The Consumer Goods and Services Ombud (CGSO) has issued an alert against eGadgets.co.za, an online retailer selling electronic goods, for failure to deliver goods that have been bought and paid for by online shoppers. Of the 32 consumer complaints lodged with the Ombuds office against eGadgets in the last 12 months, only 11 have been successfully resolved.
Lee Soobrathi, Ombudsman for the Consumer Goods and Services Ombud, says that the supplier has ceased to cooperate with the CGSO, resulting in the office having to close 17 unresolved cases and referring the consumers to open new cases with the regulator. This is despite numerous attempts by the CGSO to engage with eGadgets to resolve the complaints.
“When a supplier refuses to cooperate, the CGSO issues a Termination Notice, effectively closing the case, so that the consumer can escalate their concerns to the National Consumer Commission (NCC). This is because the NCC has powers of investigation and sanction, that we – as a mediation body – do not,” says Lee Soobrathi.
According to the Ombudsman, eGadgets has consistently failed to fulfill customer orders within the stipulated timeframes, despite promising to do so. More seriously, says the Ombudsman, is the supplier’s refusal to refund consumers who – having given up on their order ever arriving – attempt to cancel their orders.
This is a flagrant contravention of the Consumer Protection Act, says Mr Soobrathi: “Section 19 of the Consumer Protection Act (CPA) provides that a supplier must refund a consumer if they are unable to deliver the agreed goods or services on the agreed date or time and no alternative arrangements have been agreed by both parties.
The CPA also prohibits conduct relating to false, misleading, or deceptive representations regarding the availability or delivery of goods or the performance of services at a specified time.”
The Ombudsman warned consumers to exercise caution when making online purchases and urged shoppers to do their homework.
“A quick search on Hellopeter shows 68 reviews for eGadgets, of which 56 are resoundingly negative (one star) with only 10 positive reviews. This should be a big red flag to consumers.”
