Improving courts and ADR to help vulnerable consumers access justice

The process of reaching carbon neutrality by 2050 and cutting CO2 emissions by 2030 by 55% compared to 1990 as per the EU Green Deal is highly complex. The energy mix must be changed to ensure long-term environmental sustainability, mainly by closing down coal sites, while preserving the energy-intensive short-term economic growth, ensuring social equity, and opening opportunities for regions diminishing in population and potential. Romania is currently in the position of deciding the optimal way forward in this challenging societal shift while morphing to evidence-based policy-making and anticipatory governance, mainly in its two coal-mining regions. This article provides possible future scenarios for tackling this complex issue in Romania through a three-pronged, staggered, methodology: (1) clustering Romania with other similar countries from the point of view of the Just Transition efforts (i.e., the energy mix and the socio-economic parameters), (2) analyzing Romania’s potential evolution of the energy mix from the point of the thermal efficiency of two major power plants (CEH and CEO) and the systemic energy losses, and (3) providing insights on the socio-economic context (economic development and labor market transformations, including the component on the effects on vulnerable consumers) of the central coal regions in Romania.

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Mixed emotions and credence service use: insights from at-risk gamblers

Journal of Services Marketing ◽

10.1108/jsm-07-2020-0308 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 35 (6) ◽

pp. 740-754

Author(s):

Svetlana De Vos ◽

Roberta Crouch ◽

Pascale Quester ◽

Jasmina Ilicic

Keyword(s):

At Risk ◽

Service Use ◽

Positive Impact ◽

Individual Characteristics ◽

Service Research ◽

Content Type ◽

Tolerance Of Ambiguity ◽

Phase Study ◽

Vulnerable Consumers ◽

Credence Services

Purpose This paper aims to explore the power of appeals based on fear mixed with challenge co-designed with vulnerable consumers in motivating the use of credence services. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative phase (Study 1), comprising focus groups of self-identified at-risk gamblers, revealed a series of conceptual themes for advertising stimuli that were then tested empirically (Study 2) on the likelihood to use credence services in a gambling context. Individual characteristics such as tolerance of ambiguity were also tested for their potential moderating influence. Findings In comparison to appeals based on single emotions, fear mixed with the challenge has a significantly stronger impact on intentions to use credence services in at-risk gamblers. Findings confirm the indirect positive impact of fear mixed with the challenge via sequential mediators of involvement with advertising and attitude towards credence service advertising. The moderating role of tolerance of ambiguity on credence service use intentions was confirmed. Originality/value The potential of a fear mixed with challenge appeal to motivate vulnerable consumers to seek credence services has not been investigated to date. The findings contribute to both the transformative service research and advertising literature streams by providing valuable insights into promotional campaigns aimed at vulnerable consumers such as at-risk gamblers.

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PROPERTY-SYNDICATION INVESTMENT V PROPERTY SCAM: WHO DECIDES? A CRITICAL EXAMINATION OF THE REGULATION OF PUBLIC-PROPERTY SYNDICATION SCHEMES IN SOUTH AFRICA

Obiter ◽

10.17159/obiter.v34i2.12035 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 34 (2) ◽

Author(s):

Tanya Woker

Keyword(s):

Financial Services ◽

Essential Element ◽

Critical Examination ◽

Investment Portfolio ◽

Public Property ◽

Reserve Bank ◽

Investment Opportunities ◽

Full Picture ◽

Vulnerable Consumers ◽

The Individual

Building an investment portfolio is an important part of saving for retirement. This not only benefits the individual concerned but it also has benefits for the economy as a whole. Investment in property is regarded as an essential element of an investment portfolio and many investors have over the years invested in public-property syndications. Unfortunately such investments have proved to be very risky and there have been some spectacular failures with severe consequences especially for elderly, vulnerable consumers. There is a need to ensure that all investment opportunities are properly regulated and different aspects of property syndications are regulated by different regulators including the Reserve Bank, the Department of Trade and Industry, the newly established Consumer Commission and the Financial Services Board. There seems to be some confusion amongst regulators over which entity is ultimately responsible for ensuring that such investments are sound and reliable and that consumers can have faith that they are not investing in a scam. The fact that no one regulator is responsible for overseeing the full picture is problematic because it enables the unscrupulous to slip under the radar and avoid detection. This paperseeks to consider the question of which regulator is or should be responsible for regulating public-property syndications and to make some suggestions for reform going forward.

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Vulnerable Consumers in EU Law

The Images of the Consumer in EU Law : Legislation, Free Movement and Competition Law ◽

10.5040/9781474202510.ch-005 ◽

2015 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Keyword(s):

Eu Law ◽

Vulnerable Consumers

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Online dispute resolution of consumer disputes, vulnerable consumers and new technologies

Vulnerable Consumers and the Law ◽

10.4324/9781003104650-13 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 208-225

Author(s):

Mateja Durovic ◽

Plamena Markova

Keyword(s):

Dispute Resolution ◽

New Technologies ◽

Online Dispute Resolution ◽

Vulnerable Consumers

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Determinants of the knowledge of the total cost of consumer loans

Academia Revista Latinoamericana de Administración ◽

10.1108/arla-12-2015-0323 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 32 (1) ◽

pp. 2-19

Author(s):

Pablo Farías

Keyword(s):

Financial Services ◽

Design Methodology ◽

Market Segment ◽

Actual Knowledge ◽

Content Type ◽

Total Cost ◽

Consumer Loans ◽

Vulnerable Consumers ◽

Advertising Exposure ◽

Price Advertising

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the influence of consumer-related and bank-related characteristics on the knowledge of the total cost of consumer loans paid by consumers and test the hypothesized relationships between them. Design/methodology/approach In order to identify the proportion of consumers who do not know the total cost of consumer loans and reasons for it in the Chilean consumer loans industry, an empirical study using a survey administered through personal in-home interviews was carried out. Findings Results show that knowledge of a consumer loans total cost is positively associated with product satisfaction as well as recent and infrequent purchases. This study also shows that a big market segment, comprising 37.2 percent of the probability sample, represents vulnerable consumers with high self-reported knowledge but low actual knowledge of the total costs of consumer loans. This study shows that this market segment has a higher use of the price-quality cue and a higher purchase frequency of consumer loans. Originality/value The present study contributes to the existing literature in the following ways. First, while previous research measured only self-reported knowledge for financial services, the present study examines actual knowledge of the total cost of consumer loans. Second, while previous research for financial services only examined the effects of the use of the price-quality cue and price advertising exposure, the present study also examines 11 other determinants, which are relevant for managers, regulators and researchers.

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“Welcome to Holland!” People with Down syndrome as vulnerable consumers

European Journal of Marketing ◽

10.1108/ejm-02-2017-0164 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 53 (11) ◽

pp. 2245-2267

Author(s):

Marina Dias de Faria ◽

Leticia Moreira Casotti

Keyword(s):

Down Syndrome ◽

Social Inclusion ◽

Marketing Research ◽

Point Of View ◽

Specific Group ◽

Vulnerable Group ◽

Content Type ◽

Exploratory Investigation ◽

Vulnerable Consumers ◽

Practical Implications

Purpose Consumers with Down syndrome are present in all countries, but there has been little marketing research examining their consumption experiences. The purpose of this exploratory investigation is the analysis of the consumption meanings and practices of Down syndrome adults from their own point of view and from their families’ perspectives. Design/methodology/approach Data was drawn from 44 narratives interviews that included families'stories, description of album photos and projective techniques. Findings The research shows from the families’ perspectives how barriers to consumption prevent Down syndrome adults from becoming agentic consumers. The findings reveal the “labels” associated with the vulnerability of people with Down syndrome and their families in their market experiences. Research limitations/implications Research is limited to a single country and location and is focused on a specific group of overlooked consumers. We encourage the expansion of the research to a wider group and different locations. Practical implications The research identifies barriers to social inclusion that can support public policy and marketing manangement that contribute to a more humanistic marketing. Originality/value The research presents narratives of adults with Down syndrome, their mothers and siblings. The findings contribute to a comprehension about the welfare of this traditionally neglected, vulnerable group of consumers, which is useful for consumers, Down syndrome people and their families, marketing managers and public policymakers.

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The Development of Political Consumerism in India

The Oxford Handbook of Political Consumerism ◽

10.1093/oxfordhb/9780190629038.013.27 ◽

2018 ◽

pp. 26-46

Author(s):

Hari Sreekumar ◽

Rohit Varman

Keyword(s):

Colonial Period ◽

Political Consumerism ◽

Economic Nationalism ◽

The West ◽

Social Hierarchies ◽

Major Point ◽

Business Interests ◽

Historical View ◽

Vulnerable Consumers

This chapter provides a historical view of the development of political consumerism in India and details its present-day manifestations. Political consumerism in India emerged during the colonial period and was rooted in Gandhian ideologies such as swadeshi. The chapter highlights how swadeshi has been co-opted by political and business interests, which have recast it as a form of ascendant economic nationalism. Strategies such as boycotting have been employed, sometimes against vulnerable consumers. Food has emerged as a major point of contention and has been employed strategically to convey identity, reinforce social hierarchies, and even as a test of Indianness. The chapter concludes that political consumerism in India, due to its colonial origins, follows trajectories that are distinct from those in the West.

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