Doha: The Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MOCI) carried out intensive inspection campaigns on shops in several regions of the country, which resulted in the detection of 107 violations in the month of February 2022.
The ministry explained in a statement that these violations ranged from not announcing prices, not using the Arabic language in data related to the offered commodity, products with expired dates, and describing, advertising, or displaying the commodity in a manner that contains false or misinformation.
The seized violations also included non-compliance with the service guarantee carried out by the provider within a period commensurate with the nature of that service, returning the amount paid by the recipient of the service or performing it again in the correct manner, failing to record all explanatory data related to the offered commodity, and not complying with the compulsory bulletin for vegetables and fruits prices, and the violation of conditions related to religious values, customs, and traditions.
Penalties for violating stores range from administrative closure to financial fines ranging from QR 5,000 to QR 30,000, according to the laws and decisions regulating the work of the Consumer Protection Department.
The consumer protection authorities in the Ministry received several complaints during January, and they were dealt with the necessary measures taken to resolve them.
The following are the types and numbers of violations for February 2022:
1) Failure to display prices: 6
2) Failure to display prices in Arabic: 1
3) Failure to issue invoices in Arabic: 4
4) Failure to issue complete invoices: 2
5) Failure to offer an Arabic version of the information on displayed commodities: 2
6) Failure to clearly define the service information, features, characteristics, and pricing: 2
7) Failure to provide spare parts, delay in after-sales service, and failure to provide an alternative car: 2
8) Failure to place the issued promotional offer license in a visible and prominent place on the storefront: 1
9) Failure to place labels on goods included in discounts, indicating the original and reduced prices: 1
10) Failure to comply with the mandatory price bulletin of vegetables and fruits: 12
11) Failure to write all the explanatory information about the displayed commodity: 14
12) Failure to provide spare parts for durable goods within a specified period of time: 1
13) Failure to guarantee that the performed service during a period of time is commensurate with the nature of that service, to refund the amount paid by the recipient of the service, or to perform it again in an appropriate manner: 26
14) Non-compliance with the form and format of the promotion advertisement approved by the competent department: 1
15) Failure to apply all commodity guarantees: 6
16) Making a promotional offer without obtaining the necessary license from the competent department: 8
17) Offering a discount without obtaining the necessary license from the competent department: 4
18) Describing the commodity, advertising it, or displaying it in a manner that contains false or deceptive information: 9
19) Charging a higher price than that announced: 1
20) Displaying expired products: 4
The ministry confirmed that it will be firm in the face of anyone who neglects to fulfill his obligations under the Consumer Protection Law and its executive regulations, will intensify its inspection campaigns to control such practices, and it will refer anyone who violates laws and ministerial decisions regulating to the competent authorities to take appropriate measures against him to protect the rights of consumers.
The Ministry of Commerce and Industry urged all consumers to report any abuses or violations and receive complaints and suggestions through the call center 16001 and the Ministry's social media accounts.
