‘Hiking old product prices along with new ones is cheating’

Increasing the price of old products when new products with increased prices reach the market is nothing but cheating as per the Consumer Rights Protection Act, DNCRP Director General AHM Shafiquzzaman has said.

“Before displaying in the showroom, the seller fixes the price of a product calculating the profit and many people plan to buy the product at that price. But if the price is increased overnight just by replacing the price tag, it is unreasonable,” he said while addressing a views exchange meeting on Wednesday.

Directorate of National Consumer Rights Protection (DNCRP) DG Shafiquzzaman said, “If the price of the product increases in the market, it would be applicable for new products. Increasing the price of products bought earlier is fraudulency as per the Consumer Rights Protection Act. This leaves the consumer confused.”

Manufacturers, importers and marketers of electronics products participated in the views-exchange meeting organised at DNCRP conference room in the capital on Wednesday.

Representatives from various electronic products manufacturing companies including Square, Walton, Singer, Minister, Butterfly and PRAN-RFL attended the meeting also participated by senior DNCRP officials.

Shafiquzzaman said many people complain to the directorate after being cheated while buying electronics products. There are various types of complaints, including changing the price tag, putting a new price tag on the old one, not following the packaging law, not mentioning the price, increasing the price overnight and not providing proper after-sales service.

Citing the example of a complaint against a showroom of electronic products, without mentioning the brand name, in Madaripur, he said, “A consumer planned to buy a product seeing the price tag at the showroom. But when he went to buy the product the following day, he found that the price had increased by Tk 5,000.”

At the meeting, representatives of electronic products manufacturing companies claimed that electronic products do not fall under the packaging law, because packaged products are likely to be rotten if kept open.

They said the customers want to buy an electronic product after checking it thoroughly, it is their right. Also, electronic products do not get damaged if kept open. It will be difficult for them to do business if their products are put under the packaging law. So, the maximum retail price (MRP) cannot be written on the package of the product.

Regarding price hikes, they said due to the increase in dollar price and transportation costs, the price of goods needs to be increased. Companies always price products by averaging. So, when the price is increased, the price of all products, old or new, increases.

Informing that the prices of all products are mentioned on the website, they claimed that either the company or the customer would incur a loss if MRP is mentioned on the packet.