Last Updated on Tuesday, 11 July, 2023 at 9:40 pm by Andre Camilleri
The House of Representatives on Monday approved the third reading of a bill focusing on regulations to improve the competencies of the Consumer Claims Tribunal in handling issues faced by consumers. This draft was approved by all the procedural stages of parliament, a government statement said.
The Consumer Claims Tribunal deals with cases which relate to disagreements and discrepancies between the consumer and supplier of a product or service which do not exceed the value of €5,000. The original maximum value was €3,500 but was raised to €5,000 in 2021.
With the amendment approved by Parliament, the maximum amount has now been raised further to €10,000, allowing the tribunal to deal with a wider range of claims. Cases end up being dealt with by this tribunal after the attempts of resolving the situation by the Office for Consumer Affairs leave the issue unresolved.
The Minister for Inclusion, Volunteering, and Consumer’s Rights Julia Farrugia Portelli, who brought forward the amendments, stated that with the enactment of the law fulfilled an electoral pledge made by the Labour Party.
The law also enables the introduction of the concept of video conferencing. This introduction should lead to further efficiency in the overall process. The government said consumers will have better opportunities to resolve their cases due to the substantial rise in the maximum amount for claims.
