A Legal Analysis of the Regulation of Unfair Commercial Practices Under the Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008

Abstract

Downgrade fees are a new emerging trend found in consumer agreements, especially within the telecommunication and fitness industry. This makes it important to evaluate the use of downgrade fees against the Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008 (CPA) to ensure that the current provisions are sufficient and robust to protect consumers against the use of downgrade fees. The reasoning behind this is to ensure that as new trends in the consumer market emerge, we need to evaluate the trends to ensure consumers' rights are not infringed upon by any possible unfair commercial practices and that consumer laws do not fall behind newer developments in various industries. Consumers currently face various challenges due to the rise in the cost of living and the impact the COVID-19 pandemic had on consumers. The use of downgrade fees could bring significant challenges to consumers who want to address possible financial issues and as a result, negatively impact them. It is against this background that this research paper is going to analyse the current provisions of the (CPA) with regard to the regulation of unfair commercial practices to establish if the use of downgrade fees falls within the category of unfair commercial practices and if consumers are adequately protected by the provisions. Furthermore, the research will further evaluate the efficiency of the protection provided by the CPA underline some of the challenges consumers face concerning unfair commercial practices with the consideration of downgrade fees and provide recommendations and solutions.