Consumer Rights and Recourse
Overview of Rights and Fair Treatment
Fair treatment means treating you equally (without discrimination) or in a way that is right or reasonable. Consumer rights are services and standards that consumers are legally and/or ethically entitled to. Financial services are closely regulated in accordance with South African law and consumers have many rights and ways to exercise these rights. If you need help addressing unfair treatment, you first have to follow the financial services provider’s internal complaints process. If the complaint is still not resolved or not handled to your satisfaction, you may lay a complaint with the Ombudsman (Ombud) office for the specific sector. Ombud offices provide free, independent services to consumers and assist with disputes .
Rights when Taking Credit
- Before you sign a credit agreement, you are entitled to receive a copy of the quote or pre-agreement showing all the costs of the loan including interest, service fees, initiation fee and credit life insurance.
- If you have applied for credit and got rejected, you are entitled to know why your credit application was rejected.
- You are entitled to seek debt review or debt counselling if you are unable to meet your credit obligations together with your other living costs. The debt review process protects you from further legal action from creditors.
- If you need to complain, you can complain internally with the credit provider, but should your complaint not be resolved or handled, you can complain with the National Credit Regulator on tel: 0860 627627 or complaints@ncr.org.za
- You are entitled to receive one free credit report per year, through credit bureaus such as Transunion, Experian or XDS.
- Should a credit provider intend to list adverse or negative information about you, they need to give you at least 20 days’ notice. Should you wish to dispute incorrect or inaccurate information on your credit profile, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the credit bureau concerned. You need to allow at least 30 days for the credit bureau to respond to your complaint. If you are still not satisfied, you can complain to the Credit Information Ombudsman on: 0861 662 837
Rights Relating to Insurance
- You have the right to receive a policy document or policy schedule indicating the terms and conditions of your policy, explaining what events are covered and what is excluded.
- The policy document needs to outline the claim process and have your insurer’s contact details.
- For long-term insurance such as funeral or life cover, you have a cooling off period of 30 days, during which you can cancel the insurance policy. And with insurance, you can also have waiting periods upon joining and cancellation which can be part of T &Cs. You have the right to know and be clear about these Ts & Cs.
- Should a complaint not be dealt with to your satisfaction with a service provider, and you wish to complain for long-term insurance, you can complain with the Ombudsman for long-term insurance on 0860 103 236 If you wish to complain for short-term insurance such as for cellphone, car insurance, household insurance, you can complain with the Ombudsman for short-term Insurance on 011 726 8900
Tips on How to Lodge Formal Complaint
- The first step in complaining is to submit a formal complaint with the complaints department of the company you are experiencing the problem with.
- The company should be given the opportunity to resolve the problem before you refer it to the Ombudsman/adjudicator.
- Give the institution 30 working days (6 weeks) to rectify/resolve your complaint.
- Keep a copy of any letters or communication between you and the institution and reference numbers.
- If your complaint is not resolved, you are unhappy with the outcome, or you do not receive a response at all, you may approach the office of the relevant Ombudsman/adjudicator.
- Ensure that you provide the Ombudsman with copies of supporting documents referred to in the complaint, including letters and emails with the institution.
- When you write a letter of complaint, set out the facts as clearly as possible.
- Write down the facts in a logical order and stick to what is relevant. Include important details like your claim number or your policy number.
- If you complain over the phone, ask for a reference number. Keep details of the date, time and who you spoke to.
- Listeners are encouraged to always deal with financial institutions that are credible and registered as this makes it easier to follow up on matters via official channels.