The proposal touches on many relevant matters. Namely, it will create or recognize new types of activities, with an eye on the diversification of supply. Moreover, it intends to change and, hopefully, speed up licensing procedures. Discussion of the government proposal is going on the Second Committee of the Assembly. One topic has, perhaps a bit surprisingly, come to the fore.
The law will mandate those types of businesses to provide a complaint book to customers. Article 71 of the proposal mandates all establishments to have one such book (or similar system), which must be offered unconditionally to any customer who asks for it. Its existence must be advertised and, in particular, must be mentioned in the price lists offered to customers.
It seems a rather trivial matter and is a common practice in many countries. Nevertheless, the legislators seem to have reservations. As far as the public comments are concerned, there is no apparent disagreement with the principle; but several practical objections might impede the adoption of that measure. According to the president of the committee, its adoption “will be very difficult.” One of the examples mentioned is food courts. The case of Venetian is expressly mentioned. It is too big, and involves too many businesses (eighty, we are told.) Therefore, questions arise: “where to put the book? (…), how many books [will be needed]?”
These do not seem particularly strong obstacles. First, as the proposal clearly states, it does not need to be a ‘physical’ book. Surely it is not impossible to conceive a common mechanism for all the establishments operating in a food court. They are individually recognizable and entirely responsible for their activities. Second, even if the practical issues raised by the application of that regulation to food courts were insurmountable (and that does not seem to be the case), that alone would not justify dispensing other establishments from that requirement.
Consumer protection seldom seems an issue of significant concern among us. Common perceptions suggest that consumer issues are mostly unregulated (or unenforced), and the Consumer Council lacks mandate and tools for a more assertive behavior. These weaknesses could plausibly deserve more attention from the authorities. Under these circumstances, the discussion motivated by the proposed availability of complaint books in food and accommodation services is welcome.
*Economist, permanent contributor to MNA
