Consumer Awareness: Know Your Rights and Responsibilities

Content

• What is Consumer Awareness?
• Example of Consumer Awareness
• Why Is Consumer Awareness Important?
• Stages of Consumer Awareness
• What are the Consumer Rights?
• Consumer Responsibilities
• Consumer Awareness in the Digital Age

What is Consumer Awareness?

Consumer awareness is not just about being a smart shopper. It means knowing what you’re buying, understanding what’s in the products, and being aware of your rights if something goes wrong. Consumer awareness is a consumer's understanding of their rights to a product or service being marketed or sold, allowing them to get the most out of what they buy.

The Parliament of India sanctioned The Consumer Protection Act 1986 to safeguard the interests of India’s consumers.

In 1985, the United Nations adopted specific guidelines to establish ethical conduct for distributing and producing goods and services and protect consumers worldwide. World Consumer Rights Day is celebrated on March 15.

Example of Consumer Awareness

Hence, consumer awareness is fundamental to protect consumers from these malpractices and fake advertisements while helping businesses to stay sustainable. Modern-day consumers need to be aware of their rights and responsibilities. 

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What are the Consumer Rights?

As the Government of India outlines, the following pointers facilitate consumer awareness in India and protect their rights.

• Right to Safety: Consumers have the right to be safe from dangerous goods and services. The products they buy should meet their long-term needs.

• Right to be Informed: Consumers should know everything about what they’re buying, including its quality, amount, strength, purity, standards, and price. Shoppers should get all the details about a product before buying and avoid high-pressure sales tactics.

• Right to Choose: Consumers should have choices and access to various goods and services at competitive prices, including necessary goods. Conscious shoppers should compare products and services to get the best deal.

• Right to be Heard: Consumers’ needs and interests should be top priorities. They should be listened to by appropriate consumer welfare groups or committees set up by the authorities or the government.

• Right to Seek Redressal: Shoppers should know they can file complaints and seek justice against unfair trade practices. This includes the right to a fair solution if their complaints are valid.

• Right to Consumer Education: This includes being aware of fair trade practices and making informed decisions when buying products. It also means respecting other shoppers’ rights and helping them with legal matters. Shoppers should know and use their rights for effective consumer protection.

Why is Consumer Awareness Important?

Merchants and manufacturers exploit consumers through artificial shortages, improper conditions, rude behaviour, and high prices. Protecting and promoting consumer rights is an essential function of government in any economy. Government agencies and consumer groups regularly initiate consumer awareness campaigns to help consumers understand new products and services.

Consumer awareness is essential to helping consumers exercise their consumer rights. The Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA) has conducted a country-wide multimedia awareness campaign titled "Jago Grahak Jago." Through this campaign, consumers can learn about fraudulent practices and problems and how to tackle these problems with the help of concerned government authorities.

Stages of Consumer Awareness

Consumer awareness is a very crucial aspect of the success or failure of products. If the consumer is aware of the products and can make informed decisions, there is a high chance that the sales of such products will be higher. There are five stages of awareness of a potential consumer - 

1. Completely unaware: A consumer who is completely unaware of the problem and hence does not know the solution to that problem.
2. Aware of the Problem: A customer who knows s/he has a problem but doesn't know there are solutions to that problem.
3. Aware of the solution: This type of consumer knows the problem. He knows there are solutions but has not yet opted for one and does not know the product.
4. Aware of the Product: A consumer who already knows about the goods or services but is still determining if it will solve their problems. In such cases, the merchant needs to work on objections.
5. Fully aware: Finally, the customer who knows a lot of information about your product is about to buy but needs one last nudge. Understanding how aware potential customers are can help a business. It can guide them to create the right plan to boost sales based on customers’ knowledge. By understanding these five levels of consumer awareness, businesses can ensure they’re getting the right message to the right person at the right time.

As consumers, we also have duties and responsibilities. We must be demanding and inform ourselves about the products we want to acquire. In the following sections, let us explore the rights and responsibilities of consumers.

Consumer Responsibilities

Being a responsible consumer is crucial to any balanced economy. Now that you know what your rights are, you must be aware of your responsibilities as a consumer –

• Learn about responsible shopping.
• Find out about products, their prices, and terms before buying.
• Think before you buy. Look for the best option.
• Only buy from trusted businesses.
• Read contracts well before you sign.
• Don’t sign big money contracts without reading carefully or asking for advice.
• Check that ads are truthful and clear. What ads say is part of the deal.
• Don’t accept big money offers without thinking it through. Get the info in writing.
• Don’t pay for things you didn’t accept.
• Ask for a refund or compensation if something goes wrong, as the law allows.
• Keep all purchase records, such as ads, tickets, forms, receipts, and invoices. They prove that you bought something.
• Be safe when using products or services.
• Only complain about suppliers when it’s fair to do so.

Consumer Awareness in the Digital Age

Online shopping and digital transactions are the new normal now, which makes consumer awareness even more important. Some of the major issues to be considered include online shopping, data privacy, and recognizing scams:

Online Shopping

• Convenience and Choice: Online shopping offers the convenience of purchasing products from anywhere. However, consumers should be aware of the risks involved, such as receiving counterfeit products or items that do not match their descriptions.
• Return Policies: Most online retailers have different return policies than physical stores. Consumers should read the return policies before buying to avoid problems if they want to return an item.

Data Privacy

• Personal details: While shopping online, users provide personal information like names, addresses, and credit card details. It should be ensured that the website is safe (check if the URL begins with "https://") and has a transparent privacy policy which informs how data will be used.
• Data Breaches: With the growing cases of data breaches,  consumers need to be careful where they share their information. Changing passwords regularly and creating different passwords for different accounts is a good practice to safeguard personal data.

Scam Awareness 

• Phishing Scams: The fraudsters send an email or message that seems to be from the company to steal personal information. The consumer should verify the sender's email address and not click on suspicious links.
• Too Good to Be True Offers: If a deal is advertised as too good to be true, it likely is. A savvy consumer will question offers with very high value at very low prices because this can be a scam.

Educating Consumers

As a consumer, you must take the following steps to address these challenges:

• Education Yourself: Know your consumer rights and how to protect yourselves online. For instance, you may get valuable information from consumer protection agencies.
• Stay Informed: Staying updated on common scams and data privacy issues can help consumers make safer choices in the digital marketplace.
• Use Trusted Platforms Only: Shopping on well-known and reputable websites can reduce the risk of encountering scams or receiving poor-quality products.

By being aware of these issues and taking proactive steps, consumers can enjoy the benefits of online shopping while protecting themselves from potential risks in the digital age.

Conclusion

Consumer awareness is a key part of a strong economy. Shoppers must know their legal rights and use them when needed. This doesn’t just boost the quality of products made and leads to happier customers and improved customer satisfaction. Additionally, aware consumers are more likely to make informed purchasing decisions, which can lead to increased market competition and innovation, ultimately contributing to a healthier, more dynamic economy where both consumers and businesses benefit from improved satisfaction and efficiency.

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