Shopping while on holiday?

The summer holidays are round the corner and many of us are planning to spend a few days abroad.

Some may actually be planning shopping trips, where the main aim of the holiday is to buy specific products. For many, shopping from abroad has become a money-saving exercise.

But before making such purchases, do we ever stop to think about our rights should any of the products we buy be defective or not as agreed during the sale? Depending on where we buy from, we could be very well covered.

Firstly, we should know that when we buy a product from a foreign country, it is the consumer protection laws of that country that apply. If the purchase is made from another EU member state, then our legal rights as consumers are similar to those in Malta. This is because consumer law in each EU member state comes from EU directives.

So when we travel to another European country we can expect that goods sold to us are of satisfactory quality, fit for their purpose, as agreed with the trader and match samples shown to us during the sale.

If this is not the case and we end up with a product that is defective or not in conformity with the contract of sale, legally we may be entitled to free repair or replacement.

If these two remedies are not possible, or if opted for prove to be significantly inconvenient to us, we may be entitled to a part or full refund of the money paid for the non-conforming product.

Another advantage is the European Consumer Centre (ECC) network. In each member state there is an ECC centre that handles complaints against foreign EU sellers and advises consumers from other EU countries when problems with pro­ducts bought arise.

So if we have a complaint against a foreign European trader, we can use our local centre, ECC Malta, and file a complaint there. We do not need to go back to the country we bought the product from to enforce our rights.

ECC Malta can help us reach an amicable solution with the foreign trader. If mediation proves unsuccessful, ECC Malta can also help us take our case to an alternative dispute resolution body overseas.

If we buy a product while travelling outside Europe, then our consumer rights can be quite different. Should we have a problem with the product purchased, it will be entirely up to us to solve it in the best possible manner.

Therefore it would be wise to take a number of precautions to safeguard our rights. The first is to know something about the trader we are buying from. At the very least, we should retain the name of the company the trader represents, and a postal address and telephone number where the trader can be contacted. Should something go wrong we will need this kind of information.

It is also in our interest to make sure we are given all the information related to the product, such as the manual with the instructions on how to use and take care of the product.

We should also keep a copy of the sales contract with all the terms and conditions of the sale.

If the product we are buying is usually sold with a commercial guarantee, we should ask about this guarantee. If the seller offers us or agrees to give us a commercial guarantee, then it should be given in writing and include information about what it covers and how long is it valid for.

We should also check whether the guarantee is valid for Malta and whether there is a local agent authorised to honour the commercial guarantee. If this is the case, this information, together with the name and contact details of the local trader, should be given to us during the sale.

If a problem crops up with one of the purchases, we should always keep in mind that the first person responsible is always the seller. Therefore, we should contact the seller, complain with them, and try to solve the issue amicably.

If this is not enough and the seller operates within the EU, then we should contact ECC Malta.

If the seller operates outside the EU, we will have to first check what consumer rights apply and then we may have to contact the consumer agency of the country where we bought the product from to be guided on how we can enforce our rights.

odette.vella@mccaa.org.mt

Ms Vella is senior information officer, Office for Consumer Affairs, Malta Competition and Consumer Affairs Authority.