The Department of Trade and Industry (DT) on Friday launched an online dispute resolution system, marking the first government platform where consumers can complain against defective products as well as deceptive sales practices.
The platform will consist of two systems—the Philippine Online Dispute Resolution System and the Consumer Complaints Assistance and Resolution System.
Consumers can file their complaint in one website: www.podrs.dti.gov, where cases falling within the DTI’s jurisdiction will be addressed, while others will be directed to the appropriate government office.
The website where it can be accessed is scheduled to go online next week, according to the DTI.
“This breakthrough initiative will enable DTI and other concerned agencies to provide efficient, accessible and fair solutions to disputes and address consumer concerns,” Trade Secretary Alfredo Pascual said in his speech during the launch ceremony in Makati.
To streamline process
He added that the two systems have been designed to streamline the dispute resolution and consumer complaint handling process, making it easier for both individuals and businesses to seek redress and find solutions to their issues
The DTI said that their platform offers a user-friendly interface and has robust security features.
To create an account at the website, individuals will be asked to provide several basic information such as their name, a postal address, age, email address, phone number, and a copy of one valid government or school ID.
This new consumer dispute resolution system was made in collaboration with the United States Agency for International Development and the UP Public Administration Research and Extension Services Foundation Inc.-Regulatory Reform Support Program for National Development.
READ: Online selling platforms also liable in scams, says DTI
Earlier this month, the DTI said that the number of consumer complaints lodged at their office during the first eight months of the year increased by 4 percent, reaching 21,023 in total.
Fillip Sawali, director of the DTI’s Fair Trade and Enforcement Bureau, said that most of these were complaints on fake products, with the other two most common grievances due to defective products or services, and for deceptive sales promotions.
Despite the number of complaints numbering more than 20,000 during the period, Sawali said that only 6,538 of those, or roughly 30 percent, were within their jurisdiction. INQ