Consumer Protection Act, 2008 (Act No. 68 of 2008)Chapter 3 : Protection of Consumer Rights and Consumers’ VoicePart D : Civil society support for consumer’s rights78. Accredited consumer protection group may initiate actions |
| 1) | An accredited consumer protection group may— |
| a) | commence or undertake any act to protect the interests of a consumer individually, or of consumers collectively, in any matter or before any forum contemplated in this Act; and |
| b) | intervene in any matter before any forum contemplated in this Act, if the interests of consumers represented by that group are not otherwise adequately represented in that forum. |
| 2) | In addition to any other authority set out in this Act, an accredited consumer protection group may direct a generally stated concern or complaint to the Commission in respect of any matter within the purposes of this Act. |
| 3) | The Commission may accredit a consumer protection group if that person or association— |
| a) | functions predominantly to promote or represent the interests of all or a specific category of consumers generally; |
| b) | is committed to achieving the purposes of this Act; and |
| c) | engages in, or makes a realistic proposal to engage in, actions to promote and advance the consumer interests of persons contemplated in section 3(1)(b). |
| 4) | The Commission may impose reasonable conditions on the accreditation of a consumer protection group to further the purposes of this Act. |
| 5) | The Commission— |
| a) | must monitor the effectiveness of any accredited consumer protection group relative to the purposes and policies of this Act; and |
| b) | may reasonably require any accredited consumer protection group to provide information necessary for the purposes of monitoring in terms of paragraph (a). |
| 6) | The Minister may prescribe standards, procedures and related matters for the Commission to follow in assessing whether an applicant for accreditation meets the requirements of this section. |