The initiative was aimed at monitoring the compliance of suppliers with the obligations stipulated under Law No 8 of 2008 on Consumer Protection, the MEC said in a press statement. It fell within the framework of the ministry's keenness to monitor markets and commercial activities in a bid to crack down on price manipulation, disclose violations and protect consumer rights.
The 69 violations detected during the inspection campaigns, which were conducted by inspectors from the ministry in various regions of the state, pertained to failure to comply with the list of selling prices before and during reductions (16 cases); failure to announce product/service prices (12); failure to clearly identify service information, including its advantages, characteristics and prices (4); failure to announce product/service prices in Arabic (3); failure to comply with the prices of fruits and vegetables stated in the daily bulletin (3); declaring reductions without obtaining the necessary approval from the competent authority (6); and selling and displaying expired products (6), among others.
The fines issued by the ministry to the violating outlets included closures and financial penalties ranging from QR5,000 to QR30,000, in accordance with the laws and regulations of the Consumer Protection and Anti-Commercial Fraud Department.
In addition, the consumer protection authorities at the ministry received 1,242 complaints, and necessary action was taken to resolve the issues.
The ministry stressed that it would not tolerate any violations of the Consumer Protection Law and its regulations, and would intensify its inspection campaigns to crack down on violations. It will refer those who violate laws and ministerial decrees to the competent authorities, who will, in turn, take appropriate action against perpetrators in order to protect consumer rights.
The MEC has urged all consumers to report violations to the Consumer Protection and Anti-Commercial Fraud Department through the call centre: 16001, email: [email protected], Twitter: MEC_QATAR, Instagram: MEC_QATAR and the ministry’s application on iPhone and Android devices: MEC_QATAR.
MEC Qatar
Intensive inspection campaigns carried out by the Ministry of Economy and Commerce (MEC) resulted in the issuance of 69 violation reports in November, it was announced on Tuesday.
