scholarly journals THE APPLICATION OF THE PLAIN AND UNDERSTANDABLE LANGUAGE REQUIREMENT IN TERMS OF THE CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT – CAN WE LEARN FROM PAST PRECEDENT?

Obiter ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 33 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen Newman
Keyword(s):  
Consumer Protection ◽  
Consumer Protection Act ◽  
Consumer Contracts ◽  
Language Requirement

In many instances consumers enter into contracts when buying goods or services. These contracts are extremely important as they contain the terms under which the contract is concluded. The terms may also be contained on the reverse side of a receipt or, on occasion, in a separate document which is given to them either when they conclude the contract or at a later stage. In addition to written contracts which contain terms and notices placed at business premises warning consumers of various hazards or consequences also bind consumers. However, consumers will seldom read the contractual documents that they sign and notices are also often ignored. A variety of reasons for this can be put forward; amongst others, consumers are commonly more interested in obtaining the goods rather than the consequences of the purchase. They may feel that they trust the business that they are dealing with to deal honestly, or they may simply believe that they will not be able to understand the terms and conditions, so they do not bother to read them. Van den Bergh (Readable Consumer Contracts (1985) 1) proposes that one of the reasons for the latter may be that the terms or notices are written in a manner which is unattractive and unintelligible to consumers. A possible solution to this is to try and ensure that all written material is in a format and style which is easy to read and in a language which is easy for the consumer to understand. This is the objective of plain and understandable language requirements in legislation.

The Regulation of False Advertising in South Africa: An Analysis of the Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008 and Self-Regulation

2021 ◽  
Vol 33 (2) ◽  
pp. 260-288
Author(s):  
Yeukai Mupangavanhu ◽  
Dominique Kerchhoff
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Consumer Protection ◽  
Self Regulation ◽  
Advertising Industry ◽  
Goods And Services ◽  
Additional Layer ◽  
Consumer Protection Act ◽  
Deceptive Advertising ◽  
Consumer Contracts

The Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008 (CPA) regulates the provision of goods and services, the conclusion of consumer contracts as well as the promotion and marketing of goods and services. It also protects consumers from unscrupulous advertisers who use false and misleading advertisements to induce consumers to enter into contracts which they would otherwise not have concluded. This article seeks to critically analyse the legislative provisions relating to false, misleading, and deceptive advertising, and the seemingly accessible and efficient legal redress mechanism created under the CPA. Self-regulation by bodies such as the Advertising Regulatory Board, which is responsible for the regulation of the advertising industry in South Africa, is also discussed in detail. The article concludes that the co-existence of the CPA and self-regulation is pertinent to ensure that consumers are adequately protected from unscrupulous advertisements. This is because self-regulation provides an additional layer of protection to consumers. It is also argued that the forums created under the CPA should be given powers to declare certain promotional activities and advertisements unfair, unjust or unreasonable.

scholarly journals CONSUMER PROTECTION LEGISLATION AND PRIVATE INTERNATIONAL LAW

Obiter ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan L Neels
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
South African ◽  
Consumer Protection ◽  
Private International Law ◽  
Electronic Communications ◽  
Consumer Protection Act ◽  
Protection Legislation ◽  
Consumer Contracts ◽  
National Credit Act

Although South African private international law is primarily based on bilateral and multilateral reference rules, the legislator in recent consumer protection legislation rather employs unilateral conflict rules by the identification of rules of immediate application and in the form of scope rules. The relevant provisions in the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act 25 of 2002, the National Credit Act 34 of 2005 and the Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008 are discussed, together with the role that the traditional conflict rules still play. A new rule of private international law for consumer contracts is proposed; in this regard the principle of preferential treatmentwill play a role in the context of alternative reference rules.

scholarly journals Empowering Malaysian Consumers through Legislation: Does ‘small print’ in contract influence consumer behaviour and affect the quality of life?

2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (9) ◽  
pp. 97
Author(s):  
Farhah Binti Abdullah ◽  
Sakina Shaik Ahmad Yusoff
Keyword(s):  
Consumer Protection ◽  
Publishing House ◽  
Consumer Law ◽  
Consumer Protection Act ◽  
Judicial Intervention ◽  
Consumer Contracts ◽  
International Publishing ◽  
Unfair Terms ◽  
Open Access Article

Consumers faced with contract do not know what 'small print' contains or understand its effect. Exclusion clauses may deprive a consumer of specific rights in which he deserves protection. The Consumer Protection Act 1999 in Malaysia, allows the consumers to identify between procedural unfairness and substantive unfairness. However, Consumer Protection Act 1999 does not adequately protect consumer. By applying the content analysis research method, this paper reviews the legislative and judicial intervention on unfair terms in consumer contracts. This paper advocates that Malaysia should establish a specific framework on consumer law protection against unfair terms in consumer contracts.Keywords: Exclusion clauses; unfair terms; consumer contracts; judicial-legislative interventioneISSN: 2398-4287 © 2018. The Authors. Published for AMER ABRA cE-Bs by e-International Publishing House, Ltd., UK. This is an open access article under the CC BYNC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). Peer–review under responsibility of AMER (Association of Malaysian Environment-Behaviour Researchers), ABRA (Association of Behavioural Researchers on Asians) and cE-Bs (Centre for Environment-Behaviour Studies), Faculty of Architecture, Planning & Surveying, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia.https://doi.org/10.21834/e-bpj.v3i9.1483

scholarly journals Judicial Guidance on the Application of Section 49 of the Consumer Protection Act, 2008 – Van Wyk t/a Skydive Mossel Bay v UPS SCS South Africa (Pty) Ltd [2020] 1 All SA 857 (WCC)

Obiter ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 41 (4) ◽  
pp. 948-960
Author(s):  
Mark Tait
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Consumer Protection ◽  
Western Cape ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
High Court ◽  
Consumer Protection Act ◽  
Consumer Contracts ◽  
Number Of Publications ◽  
The Impact

In South Africa, the legislature’s response to the negative consequences resulting from the pervasive use of disclaimers by suppliers has been to regulate the use of these terms through the enactment of a number of provisions in the Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008 (CPA), including sections 48, 49 and 51. A number of publications have considered the meaning of these provisions and the impact they may have on the use of disclaimers in consumer contracts. As a consequence of the widespread use of disclaimers and the adverse consequences they may hold for consumers, any judicial pronouncement on the impact of the CPA on these clauses is significant. In Van Wyk t/a Skydive Mossel Bay v UPS SCS South Africa ([2020] 1 All SA 857 (WCC) (Skydive v UPS)), the Western Cape High Court was afforded the opportunity to consider the impact of aspects of section 49 specifically on the use of a clause in a consumer agreement excluding the risk or liability of suppliers (referred to as an “exemption clause” in this note).Section 49 of the CPA applies to four distinct types of clause enumerated in section 49(1) – namely, clauses limiting the risk or liability of suppliers in respect of any other person; clauses constituting an assumption of risk or liability by the consumer; clauses imposing an obligation on the consumer to indemnify the supplier for any cause; and clauses requiring a consumer to acknowledge a particular fact. As indicated, in Skydive v UPS, the contentious clause was one excluding the risk or liability of the supplier. The focus of this note then is on the interpretation and application by the court in Skydive v UPS of the relevant provisions of section 49 of the CPA to an exemption clause.

scholarly journals Legislative Enforcement of Contractual Fairness in Malaysian Consumer Contracts

2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (13) ◽  
pp. 51-61
Author(s):  
Farhah Abdullah ◽  
Ong Tze Chin ◽  
Mohd Safri Mohammed Na’aim ◽  
Nor Honey Dayatie
Keyword(s):  
Consumer Protection ◽  
Publishing House ◽  
Consumer Law ◽  
Consumer Protection Act ◽  
Judicial Intervention ◽  
Consumer Contracts ◽  
International Publishing ◽  
Malaysian Consumer ◽  
Unfair Terms ◽  
Open Access Article

Consumers faced with contract do not know what 'small print' contains or understand its effect. Exclusion clauses may deprive a consumer of specific rights in which he deserves protection. The Consumer Protection Act 1999 in Malaysia, allows the consumers to identify between procedural unfairness and substantive unfairness. However, the Consumer Protection Act 1999 does not adequately protect the consumer. By applying the content analysis research method, this paper reviews the legislative and judicial intervention on unfair terms in consumer contracts. This article advocates that Malaysia should establish a specific framework on consumer law protection against unfair terms in consumer contracts. Keywords: Exclusion clauses; unfair terms; consumer contracts; judicial-legislative intervention eISSN 2514-7528 © 2019. The Authors. Published for AMER ABRA cE-Bs by e-International Publishing House, Ltd., UK. This is an open-access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). Peer–review under responsibility of AMER (Association of Malaysian Environment-Behaviour Researchers), ABRA (Association of Behavioural Researchers on Asians) and cE-Bs (Centre for Environment-Behaviour Studies), Faculty of Architecture, Planning & Surveying, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia.DOI: https://doi.org/10.21834/jabs.v4i13.334

Difficulties of the Financial Reform in the USA

2013 ◽  
pp. 147-158
Author(s):  
V. Kulakova
Keyword(s):  
Economic Policy ◽  
Consumer Protection ◽  
Financial Regulation ◽  
Financial Reform ◽  
Wall Street ◽  
Political Sciences ◽  
Consumer Protection Act ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Major Factors ◽  
International Financial Regulation

We study the reform of financial regulation initiated by the Dodd—Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010. Major factors impeding Obama’s financial and economic policy are explored, including institutional difficulties, party warfare, lobbyism, and systemic inconsistencies of international financial regulation. We also examine challenges that are being faced by economic and political sciences due to the changes in financial regulation and also assess the level of radicality of the financial reform.

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