The Malta Competition and Consumer Affairs Authority (MCCAA) announced the winners of the fourth edition of Service With a Smile during an awards night held earlier this month.
The competition had five categories and voting by the public took place between May 23 and July 4.
The winners from the five categories were: Scan, which won the Electronic Products and Household Goods category, followed by Homemate and Forestals; Sparkleimage.com won the Online Local Sellers category, followed by Xusmalta.com and Scanmalta.com; Centro Moda won the Fashion and Beauty category, followed by Beauty Plus and Trichomania Hair Studio; Smart Supermarket won the Supermarkets and Mini Markets category, followed by Lidl and Scotts Supermarket and Park Towers with equal votes; and Britannia Tours won the Travel category, followed by SMS Mondial and Hamilton Travel.
Parliamentary Secretary for Consumer Protection and Valletta 2018 Deo Debattista underlined the importance of customer care and after-sales service as key elements to growth in customer numbers. He encouraged the winners to keep providing a good service while motivating other retailers to adopt commercial practices that are beneficial to consumers and that strengthen their rights at law.
MCCAA chairwoman Helga Pizzuto noted with satisfaction the public’s participation in the competition. This reflected not only the importance consumers gave to a quality service but also their recognition of the efforts from traders in this respect, she said. The importance traders gave to the award also signalled traders’ commitment towards a quality customer service.
The companies who received the majority of votes in the five categories were vetted by the MCCAA to ensure that traders abided by the award’s code of conduct. The authority checked that these companies adhered to regulations; that prices in their outlets were indicated according to the Price Indication Regulations; that consumer complaints were dealt with in a timely manner; and, when possible, they avoided disputes with consumers being referred to the Consumer Claims Tribunal by opting for resolution through conciliation. The winners of the five categories each received a trophy, a certificate and the use of the Service With a Smile logo.
During the award ceremony, six consumers selected at random from those who participated in the voting process, were awarded €100 each. The consumers were presented with the cheques by Ms Pizzuto and by Joyce Borg, director general for Consumer Affairs.
Odette Vella is director, Information, Education and Research Directorate, Office for Consumer Affairs, Malta Competition and Consumer Affairs Authority.
odette.vella@mccaa.org