Issued on the basis of Article 2 of Law Number (8) of 2008 on consumer protection, the circular falls within the framework of the ministry’s efforts to ensure the safety and health of consumers and protect their basic rights.
The law guarantees consumers’ right to the use of healthy and safe goods and services as well as the right to obtain information and correct data about the goods and services purchased or used or submitted to them.
Highlighting the need to comply with Article (6) of Law Number (8) of 2008, the circular reminded managers of barbershops and beauty salons that the statute prohibits the sale, display and promotion of substandard, counterfeit and fraudulent products. A product is considered fraudulent if it fails to meet the standards or has expired. The circular also highlights the need to comply with Article 7 of the same law, which prohibits the display of false or misleading product descriptions and advertisements.
The notice was issued after intensive inspection campaigns revealed an increase in consumer complaints about barbershops and beauty salons that were making use of non-compliant beauty products including substandard or expired products along with the use of counterfeit cosmetics, the MEC said in a statement.
Violations seen at barbershops and beauty salons also included the display of misleading labels on hair design and skin care products, which represent a form of fraud when it comes to the nature of the product, its structure, characteristics and the elements that compose it as well as the properties and expected results from its use as stipulated on the brand’s label.
The ministry warned that the products used at barbershops and beauty salons touch on people’s lives given the purpose of their use and pose great risk if they fail to conform to standard specifications or have expired. "Furthermore, substandard products pose a health hazard to customers as a result of fraud and counterfeiting in their properties and composition."
Barbershops and beauty salons have been urged to inform consumers of the characteristics and potential side effects of the products they use.
Warning salon operators who violate the law of legal measures such as administrative closure, the ministry stressed it will not tolerate use of spurious products.
The ministry also stressed that it would intensify its inspection campaigns to crack down on violations. The ministry said it will refer those who violate laws and ministerial decrees to competent authorities, who will in turn take appropriate actions against perpetrators in order to protect consumer rights.
The ministry has urged consumers to report complaints and violations via the following channels: Call Centre: 16001, Email: [email protected] and the accounts of the Ministry of Economy and Commerce on social networks -Twitter MEC_QATAR, Instagram MEC_QATAR; the application of the MEC on iPhone and Android devices MEC_QATAR
