World Consumer Rights Day is set aside to raise awareness of consumer rights and promote consumer protection globally. It is celebrated on March 15 annually. In Nigeria, world consumer rights day is not considered significant as it is not loudly celebrated, unlike Customer Service Week and the recently commemorated International Women’s Day. Every organization is usually in a hurry to ‘prove’ that they are all for gender equity but neglect these other essential bits.
Customers are the kings of every organization because they are the reason the companies are in business, or so we have been made to believe, but is this the case in reality? To be a king means to be given what is due to you. Unfortunately, in the real world, consumer rights are being trampled on daily, leading to market injustices and exploitation in various forms.
The Nigerian power sector is one of the industries that have significantly undermined the rights of end-use consumers leading to customer apathy, hostility and other reactionary measures these exploited consumers resort to. The distribution subsector, the most critical arm of the value chain, is a major culprit in this area. This is because, among other reasons, they take the fall for the lapses of the entire chain due to their direct interaction with end-users. The major effect of this failure is distrust and lack of accountability between customers and their electricity service providers, leading to non-payment of bills, staff assault, restiveness and asset vandalism.
Although this is the wrong approach, customers should be able to hold their distribution service providers accountable for their actions or inactions concerning consumer rights and obligations. However, this is only possible if the customers know their rights. Most electricity customers who know their rights wind up in the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission’s Forum Offices across the country seeking redress and, in some cases, the open Court.
The goal of this article is not to incite customers against electricity service providers and their stakeholders. It aims to spur consumers to know their rights and demand them; as Wadi Ben-Hirki puts it, “life doesn’t always give us what we deserve, but rather, what we demand.” And this is the spirit of World Consumer Rights Day – to ensure that consumers are not subjected to exploitation and injustices that jeopardize their rights; instead, they should be aware of their rights and how they should be used in day-to-day lives.
Awareness of consumer rights will not only enable the customer to get what they deserve. It will also improve the company’s transparency, integrity, reliability and accountability, which are necessary for business growth and organizational transformation.
The first step to any actual development or change is the willingness to be held accountable for your actions and inactions. Therefore, today, service providers worldwide and their regulators are encouraged to carry out consumer awareness programs, enlightenment campaigns and outreach to educate their consumers about their rights.
Here is a list of some electricity consumer rights established by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission to protect end-user customers:
- All customers have a right to electricity supply in a safe and reliable manner.
- All customers have a right to a properly installed and functional metre.
- All customers have a right to be properly informed and educated on the electricity service.
- All customers have a right to transparent electricity billing.
- All customers have a right to a refund when overbilled.
- It is the customer’s right to contest any electricity bill.
- It is not the responsibility of the electricity customer or community to buy, replace or repair electricity transformers, poles and related equipment used in the supply of electricity.
Other critical consumer rights as provided by the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act (FCCPA), 2018, include:
- Right to information in plain language
- Disclosure of goods and service prices
- Sales records
- Disclosure of reconditioned or second-hand goods
- Right to select suppliers
- Right to fair dealings
- Customer’s right to safe, good quality goods