Cars, holidays and faulty goods...the consumer issues that cost us €1bn

A consumer is a shopper who is sore about something,” – Harold Coffin, US writer and humourist.

Padraig bought a car under a hire purchase agreement.

But the gears didn’t work properly and he took it back to the garage.

They tried to fix it three times, but the car still didn’t work properly.

He’s not even the owner of the car. So what are his rights?

Kayleigh is another disgruntled consumer.

She booked a flight from Liverpool to Knock, which was cancelled. What should she do?

Also dissatisfied is Amir, who bought an e-reader in a store for €240.

It became faulty after six weeks, but the trader refused to deal with the issue and told Amir to contact the manufacturer.  Is that right?

These are some of the consumer issues that cost us a whopping €968m last year, according to the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC), Ireland’s biggest and rapidly expanding consumer rights watchdog.

The case studies above all contacted the CCPC who helped them avoid being out of pocket too.

“Our team explained Pádraig’s right to redress, and suggested he make a formal complaint to the finance company handling his hire purchase agreement as they are the legal owners of the car.”

“Then, if still not resolved, we suggested he report the matter to the Central Bank of Ireland and make a complaint to the Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman (FSPO).”

Passenger rights are covered by European legislation and so the CCPC directed Kayleigh “to the relevant Irish regulator, the IAA, for details on refunds, rerouting and possible compensation.”

Meanwhile, Amir was advised that he was in the right – his contract is with the trader, not the manufacturer, so don’t let shops fob you off in that way. “We explained that he is entitled to seek a repair or a replacement, and if the trader refuses, he can request a full refund instead,” says the CCPC.

All of these cases were in the CCPC’s Consumer Helpline Report for the first half of 2024, which was published this week.

While these customers were helped by the CCPC, you may have noticed that they were generally referred onwards to other ‘watchdogs’ such as the financial ombudsman, aviation authority and (in Amir’s case) the Small Claims Court.

This is because the CCPC’s main watchdog role is to bark more than to bite, although it has some teeth, especially when it comes to pricing, where it has a key role.

Another case study, for example, Andrew, noticed numerous issues with pricing in his local shop. “The shop often advertised special offers, but when he went to the till to pay, the price was higher. He rang us to find out if this was against the law, “ the CCPC says.

 “We informed Andrew that businesses must display the correct prices on their products and must not mislead consumers. Our team also told him that when selling goods at a sale price or special offer, businesses must display the ‘prior price’ or lowest price the goods were on sale for in the 30 days prior to the sale.”

 “We asked Andrew to submit receipts, photos and any evidence he had to us. All reports, complaints and queries received by our helpline are screened by our enforcement divisions to help them identify persistent and serious breaches of consumer rights,” the report says.

 The vast majority of consumer complaints to the CCPC are referred on to the Small Claims Court (4900), a much under-rated avenue where we can pursue claims worth less than €2000 with minimum cost (€25) and hassle.

The Society of the Irish Motor Industry was next with 1098 complaints referred on to it – up a surprising 72%.

Comreg were next on 815 (+40%) followed by the European Consumer Centre (603), which is down as this entity has been incorporated into the CCPC.

Case study A faulty sofa

Ben bought a new sofa in-store and paid almost €2,000 for it. When delivered, it had a crack in the frame. Ben emailed the trader on the same day, exercising his short-term right to cancel under the Consumer Rights Act, but the trader insisted they would need to send someone out to assess it first. Ben called the CCPC for help, which recounts: “We confirmed to Ben if a fault appears within 30 days of receiving an item, he has a straightforward right to cancel for a full refund. We gave him information about making a formal complaint and taking a case to the Small Claims Court if the trader refused to act.”

Panel

Who were the most complained about businesses in Ireland?

The CCPC report reveals the top ten, which accounted for 15% of total trader contacts.

In top place with 356  is Eir, which had a reputational issue around consumer service  for some time.

Last April, a judge described as ‘disgraceful’ how Eir threatened staff if they handled consumer complaints compassionately and correctly.

The court heard how a family endured a nightmarish ordeal due to Eir’s alleged service issues. The mother was unable to make 999 calls when her daughter needed urgent medical attention and the father ended up in hospital after a missed delivery of his breathing machine, the court was told.

Next on the list is no surprise either – Ryanair. But Aer Lingus in seventh place, can’t afford to gloat.

Sky came third, followed by Vodafone, Harvey Norman and Currys with Virgin Media in seventh.

Power City and Lidl complete the top ten.

So what does this list show, apart from yet another appearance for Eir on a consumer rights roll ofshame?

It should be stressed that the size of companies partly explains their relative positions – Ryanair is much bigger than Aer Lingus and Sky has more customers than Virgin for example.

Likewise, Harvey Norman, Currys and Powercity relative positions are at least partly due to market strength.

The complaints table also ties in with what areas consumer complaints come from, with faulty goods and services topping the list with groceries also proving a problem area.