Consumer Commission warns consumers about these suppliers

The National Consumer Commission has issued a warning for consumers to watch out for suppliers who sell non-compliant goods as well as suppliers who are untraceable.

Phetho Ndaba, spokesperson for the National Consumer Commission (NCC), says 12 of the suppliers who received the compliance notices are based in the Western Cape, one in KwaZulu-Natal and another in Gauteng. They mainly contravened section 24 of the Consumer Protection Act (CPA) about labelling goods.

The NCC recently conducted market monitoring inspections in the City of Cape Town, where 40 suppliers were inspected and 12 received compliance notices, while the NCC is still investigating 23 of them for inconsistencies with labelling requirements where suppliers did not properly label the goods or listed ingredients on the packaging.

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Suppliers selling non-compliant goods

The 14 suppliers are:

• Fairfield Meat Express, which failed to label Dhanya flavoured burgers, Grabouw Boerewors, Burgers (Bonanza Peppers), Texan steaks, soup bones, beef rashers, Fairfield Meat Express Faela Rice Mix/Akni Rice Mix/Breyani Rice Mix, spicy wings Worcester/Jalapeno Marrakens/Peri Peri and Chilli Cheese Russians.
• Dadas Nutritious Foods and Spices, that failed to label biltong spicy beef Snaptix, mild beef biltong, spice chicken biltong, beef droëwors, potjiekos spice, biltong spice and chicken spice.
• Bag It failed to label Spicy Chicken Burgers, Mom’s Choice Chakalaka Braaiwors and Mama’s Choice Real Burger.
• Planet Sweets failed to label Biscuits with Chocolate Centre, cured mango, plain chips Meeboz, Rive butter biscuits and dried fruit lollies.
• Beadica 381 (Pty) Ltd trading as Fish for Africa failed to label salmon off-cuts, butterfish cuts, smoked kippers, calamari and fish cakes.
• Die Visfabriek failed to label hash browns (300g).
• Bismila Grand Parade Halaal failed to label the Dhanya Burger, chicken strips, viennas and Russians.
• Amigos Fisheries failed to label minced hake and salted dried fish.
• Super Spar Cape Gate that failed to label chicken flatties, Sundowners (chicken), boneless Texan steak, Holland steak, Mzansi Brainworks, Oum Freedy’s Legacy boerewors, Party Brainworks and Ootids boerewors.
• Athena Fast Foods failed to display the prices of goods on the shelves.
• Country Glam delivered unsafe vegetables.
• Bernice Warwick and Co that installed untreated firewood that posed a risk to the consumer instead of the fireproof treated ash wood the consumer ordered for R10 220. The consumer requested a refund, but the supplier failed to refund the consumer.
• Nalicol, an importer based in Johannesburg, for not labelling 8 300 tutu skirts.
• Richie Motors Zululand for selling a tractor to a consumer for R143 750 that was not in working condition as advertised.

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Failure to label goods contravenes CPA

Ndaba says failure to label goods as required by the CPA contravenes section 24 read with Regulation 6. Section 24 of the CPA provides that a trade description must be applied to goods or any covering, label in or on a reel, or packaging or it must be attached to the goods.

“The trade description must include the country of origin and any other prescribed information.”

In addition, she says the NCC is finalising investigations from inspections conducted in Limpopo, Gauteng, Northern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal.

“From the concluded investigations, the NCC found that consumers continue to be exposed to unsafe foodstuffs and most suppliers do not comply with the provisions of the CPA. The NCC continues to prioritise cases of expired and unsafe foodstuffs,” Hardin Ratshisusu, acting commissioner of the NCC, says.

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Warning about untraceable suppliers

The NCC also warns consumers to exercise caution when interacting with certain suppliers during the festive season and beyond, as it identified about 40 suppliers that seem to have either disappeared or cannot be traced at their addresses listed on the sales records or websites.

Ndaba says the NCC identified these suppliers through complaints received from affected consumers, who bought products online or in-store.

“They accept the orders, take consumers’ money and never deliver the goods or services as expected. These suppliers would thereafter move from the known addresses without providing any forwarding address. The same happens with online suppliers who also take orders, accept payments and never deliver the products.

“The suppliers later abandon the websites or delete the sites completely. The list of these suppliers is available on the NCC’s website and any of the suppliers on the list who have become traceable should contact the NCC to be immediately removed from the list.”

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These suppliers are untraceable

Suppliers on this list are:

• Financial service providers: Pol Emipre, Bambana Trading, Turbet Trading and JR Containers & Trading.
• Baby clothes: Wiegekind Boutique.
• Car dealers and car parts: Auto Heaven Spares, Vost Auto Spares, Future Auto Investment, WBT Auto, Stephen Auto Motors, Online Car Parts, ACS Pre-Owned Cars, Best Cars JHB, FDS Engineering Tractors, Fat Boy Auto, Pro Quick Motors, Motor Brokers, NMU Motors and GPO Crew.
• Tourism: Hippo Pod Hotel and Boutique@milnerguesthouse.
• Business directory listing: Trudon/ Yellow Pages, White Pages, White Pages Online, business Entries, Huge Telecom, SA Provincial Directory, Teledialkom, Telecom and White Pages Directory.
• Computer services: Nyasa Computers.
• Tools: Apex Mechanical Tools.
• Telecommunications: Intellicel.
• Clothing: Classic Design Factory Shop and The Denim Store SA.
• Hardware: The Easternwest Hardware
• Inverters and lithium batteries: EGadgets SA.
• Drilling services: J Alderson Drilling.

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Untraceable suppliers want to defraud consumers – NCC

Ndaba says the NCC warns consumers to be extra cautious or to avoid doing business with these suppliers as their intention is to defraud consumers. The CPA requires suppliers to provide sales records with the correct physical address, contact numbers and websites to ensure that the consumers and authorities where required can locate the suppliers.

“Suppliers are reminded of their obligation in terms of the CPA which includes not marketing their offerings in a misleading or deceptive manner. The CPA requires that when a retailer or service provider markets goods, it must be done in a manner that is not misleading or deceiving, including the condition of the goods, the price and the relationship of the price to any previous price or competitor’s price for comparable or similar goods.”