Online shopping source of most complaints, says consumer ombud

The ombudsman released its latest report on Wednesday.

Mphahlele says 11 834 complaints were received in the period under review, and the biggest category was online shopping at 27% followed by satellite and telecommunications at 17.5%, while retail appliances were at 14%.

Women are most affected by online fraud when shopping for personal items such as wigs and hair extensions.

Mphahlele says cases of cyber fraud involving identity theft, phishing and fishing fall outside the ombudsman's jurisdiction. However, the ombudsman is dealing with rogue e-commerce sites that deliberately defraud consumers.

"As the CGSO does not have powers of enforcement, nor the right to issue binding decisions on suppliers, our best defence currently is to name and shame and arm consumers with the knowledge to spot potentially fraudulent websites.

“When we become aware of clusters of complaints around sectors or specific e-commerce suppliers who accepted payment from consumers with no clear intention to supply the goods or services, Consumer Protection In The Digital Age.

“We issue alerts, harnessing the power of traditional and social media to warn consumers against these entities. This is only done once complaints have been thoroughly investigated and we are satisfied that there is evidence of fraud or unlawful activity," says Mphahlele.

Mphahlele says based on complaints received, consumers are most likely to be scammed when shopping for clothing and electronics.

"In the period under review, four such alerts were issued against Mr Shopper, Wiegenkind Boutique, Ana Eleven Brand, and Liepies Online. Most recently, at the start of the current financial year, we issued an alert for Sassy Heels. In the course of the financial year, these four entities racked up 535 complaints between them, with Ana Eleven accounting for 399 complaints.

“All these suppliers have the following in common: they advertise goods – often at bargain prices – and then fail to deliver them, either on time or at all. Where these suppliers do respond to customer queries (almost all stop responding at some point), the promised refunds fail to materialise.

“On the rare occasions, refunds were made, they were either not the full amount due to the buyer, or they took an unconscionably long time to reflect in the consumer’s bank account," says Mphahlele.

SEE THE FULL REPORT BELOW: