Nalule ordered for a TV set on one of Uganda’s e-commerce sites after being offered an attracitve deal. She went ahead to pay fully and wait for its delivery. From a two day delivery promise, it turned out to be a 7 day delivery. To make matters worse, she noticed that the product delivered had some slight variations from what was advertised online. Her attempts to question the variations were silenced by the smooth speaking delivery guy.
It eventually took a visit by a tech savvy friend for her to come to the realisation that she had been offered a previous model of the advertised TV set. Cursing herself, she just vowed never to buy stuff online and always go to the shops instead.
Nalule’s tale is not new at all. You might already have been a victim or know someone that has been. The bigger problem here is the failure of the victims to know their rights under the law. Uganda has laws that cater for such occurrences.
So, you ask;
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How do I know that the online supplier is legitimate?
Whenever you reach any Ugandan e-commerce site, some of the basic information you should expect to find as a consumer is;
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full name and legal status of the person (company).
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the physical address and telephone number of the person (company).
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the registration number, names of directors and place of registration.
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the full price of the goods or services, including transport costs, taxes and any other fees or costs.
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the return, exchange and refund policy of the person.
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where appropriate, the minimum duration of the agreement in the case of agreements for the sale, hire, exchange or supply of products or services to be performed on an ongoing basis or recurrently.
Failure to locate such key information should trigger your alerts.
- What precautions are in place to ensure I do not make mistakes while purchasing online?
Ugandan e-commerce sites need to offer you the opportunity to;
(a) review the entire electronic transaction;
(b) correct any mistakes; and
(c) withdraw from the transaction before placing an order.
- In case I have already transacted (paid up) online and I realise that the e-commerce site did not give me adequate information to make the right decision. Can I cancel?
As a consumer you may cancel the transaction within fourteen days (2 Weeks) after receiving the goods or services under the transaction.
- From the time I used the online services of [company X] I keep getting spam (unsolicited0 messages on email and my phone. What can I do?
Your rights in this case are;
- The messages should not be sent to you at a cost.
- You should be given an option to cancel the subscription to that mailing list at no cost.
- I have problems with delivery. The supplier never delivers on time.
- Unless there is specific agreement between you and the supplier, you are expected to receive your goods or services within thirty (30) days. Failure to do so, you are entitled to cancel the order by giving a seven (7) day notice.
- If the supplier realises for one reason or another that they cannot supply you with the goods or services, they should inform you before the expiry of the agreed time and make any refunds for payments made within thirty (30) days.
Uganda’s legal system is steadily being upgraded to become compliant with the advancements in technology. As we consume technology enabled products and services, we shouldn’t do so in ignorance of our legal rights as consumers. Take time and inform yourself more about the relevant laws and regulations. Find more about them archived here.
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The Wire Perspective 