Consumer Protection Act, 2008 (Act No. 68 of 2008)RegulationsConsumer Protection Act Regulations9. Information to be disclosed by intermediary |
| 1) | For purposes of section 27(3)(a) of the Act, an intermediary must disclose to a person contemplated in subparagraphs (i) and (ii) of paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of section 27, the information provided for in subregulation (2) in accordance with the provisions of subregulations (3) and (4), but this regulation does not detract from the provisions of any other applicable law. |
| 2) | An intermediary must in the manner and form of delivery agreed to with the consumer— |
| a) | disclose his, her or its full names, physical business address, postal address, phone numbers, cellular telephone number, facsimile number, email address and any registration number assigned or issued to the intermediary by any regulatory body; |
| b) | provide his or her identity number, or if the intermediary is a juristic person, its relevant registration number; |
| c) | if the intermediary is a juristic person, the contact details of its public officers; |
| d) | specify the exact service to be rendered by the intermediary; |
| e) | at the request of the consumer, disclose the fee payable to the intermediary for services provided by the intermediary including the basis for calculating the fee; |
| f) | inform the consumer of any other costs the intermediary is entitled to recover from the consumer, and under what circumstances; |
| g) | specify the frequency with which the intermediary will in writing account to the consumer in respect of his, her or its mandate; |
| h) | at the request of the consumer, specify how, when and how often any amount owing to the consumer will be paid to the consumer; |
| i) | disclose any information, at any relevant time, which may be relevant to the consumer when deciding whether to acquire the service rendered by the intermediary, or whether to continue with an existing service; |
| j) | disclose commission, consideration fees, charges or brokerages payable to the intermediary by any other person; |
| k) | provide details of any code of conduct or other standard applicable to the intermediary or the service being rendered or to be rendered, as the case may be; |
| l) | disclose whether he or she or it has ever been— |
| i) | found guilty of any offence involving dishonesty which was punishable by criminal imprisonment without the option of a fine; |
| ii) | placed under sequestration, liquidation or judicial management; |
| iii) | or still is an unrehabilitated insolvent; and |
| m) | disclose any other information which may be relevant and which he or she may reasonably be expected to be aware of. |
| 3) | Information provided to a consumer by an intermediary— |
| a) | must be provided timeously so as to afford the consumer reasonably sufficient time to make an informed decision; |
| b) | which pertains to the financial aspects of the transaction, must be in writing, and if provided electronically, in an electronic format specified by the consumer, which must be a generally available format; |
| c) | must be in a clear and readable print size, spacing and format; |
| d) | must be provided in plain language, avoid uncertainty and confusion and must not be misleading; |
| e) | must be adequate and appropriate in the circumstances, and in compliance with the provisions of section 22(2) of the Act; |
| f) | regarding all amounts, sums, values, charges, fees or remuneration, must be reflected in specified monetary terms, but where that is not reasonably determinable, the basis of calculation must be adequately described; |
| g) | need not be duplicated to the same consumer, unless material or significant changes affecting the consumer occur or become relevant at any given time; |
| h) | must be clearly distinguishable from marketing or promotional material and set out the applicable rights and responsibilities of the consumer clearly with avoidance of unclear technical or legal language and, where the latter must necessarily be used, with proper explanations thereof. |
| 4) | An intermediary must immediately in writing disclose to a consumer the existence of any circumstance or any personal interest in the relevant service or goods which gives rise or may give rise to an actual or potential conflict of interest, or perception of conflict of interest, in relation to the intermediary, and the intermediary must take all reasonable steps to ensure fair treatment of the consumer. |