Speaking to The Citizen, Moilwa said that, because the CPA exists, recalls are inevitable.
It’s proving to be a testing time for car and food manufacturers in South Africa, as products are flying off shelves and dealerships are facing non-compliance with the Consumer Protection Act (CPA).
Prudence Moilwa, head of Complaints and Investigations at the National Consumer Commission (NCC) explained why product recalls have been so prominent and frequent as of late.
‘Not about punitive or the strict compliance’
Speaking to The Citizen, Moilwa said that, because the CPA exists, recalls are inevitable.
Responding to a question about whether recalls are a result of stricter enforcement of the CPA by the NCC or of a genuine decline in manufacturing and safety standards, Moilwa said, “It’s the recognition of the fact that products that are manufactured…things can go wrong.
“So it’s not necessarily about being punitive or the strict compliance with how we inform other sections of investigation and prosecution,” she said.
Where’s the danger?
When the NCC removes products from the market, it aims to mitigate risks.
“Usually, when there is a recall, the actual danger has not occurred.
“That’s what we’re communicating to consumers to say, these are the possible dangers, please take it back, ” Moilwa explained.
“It also gives us the right to be able to assess whether there was some negligence.”
Fines and penalties
Moilwa was blunt about the consequences of non-disclosure.
“When we, for example, pick up that there was an unreasonable delay in informing us in trying to perhaps not bear any cost for a recall…. and you tell us maybe a year and a half later…we will definitely start an investigation.”
Moilwa referred to the 2019 Ford Kuga incident, in which combustion issues occurred while driving or when the vehicle was parked.
“The reason why we investigated them was more around how they were not upfront with some of the issues that they knew.
She said Ford initially informed the NCC that it was a coolant issue, a small issue that they would be able to fix.
“We had a trail of what they had said to us vis-a-vis what was actually happening,” she continued.
Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa (FMCSA) was subsequently fined R35 million for the delays in forming the commission. Ford had to pay consumers R50 000.00 as compensation if their vehicle caught fire.
Moilwa said the NCC also targets companies that stay silent about their own mistakes in handling dangerous or defective products.
“[This] ends up with a possible penalty because we don’t want to be punitive on the product recalls, but they have to be done responsibly.”
The Citizen reported in February that ButtaNutt peanut butter was no longer safe to consume due to the risk of aflatoxin contamination. Rain-soaked peanuts produce aflatoxin.
Negligence has cost the supplier half a million rand, according to Moilwa, who detailed the R500 000 fine issued following a formal probe. She said the company suffered a loss.
“They had nothing afterwards after they lost their contract with the retailer.”
Is there a better way to let consumers know about recalls?
The NCC currently relies on its current media statement system accessible through its website and social media platforms.
A concern is that some consumers aren’t even aware of the commission’s existence, even though there’s an argument that media houses relay communication to the public.
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Moilwa said that suppliers are, in fact, the first line of communication between consumers.
“Things that are bought online, we would want them to publish [the recalls] on the same platform.
“If you go to one of the major supermarkets, when there is a product recall, we do require that at the space where they used to keep the product, they put up a sign.
“…because consumers, mainly, might not necessarily engage with our messages through the media statements.
“We’ve also engaged suppliers to work with the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC), where the RTMC would then try to communicate the recalls. But then we find that people think it’s a traffic fine.”
More challenges
Furthermore, she said the NCC faces challenges in achieving high recovery rates for products already in consumers’ homes.
“Especially for older products,” she said.
She highlighted the Takata airbag recall as a primary example of the difficulty in tracking older vehicles, especially those that have changed ownership multiple times since their original sale.
However, “with the recent recalls of the Ford, the Lexus and the Toyota Cruiser, you can see that these are new vehicles that have just been sold not so long ago.
“They already have the database of consumers, and [are] able to also contact them directly.”
Just last week, the NCC released a list of suppliers who have been mistreating consumers.
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