consumer

Value of claims is rising

The dollar value of complaints made to the Departamento de Conciliación de la Autoridad de Protección al Consumidor y Defensa de la Competencia (Acodeco) doubled during the first quarter of this year, according to the department's records.

Since last March, Acodeco has received 155 complaints for a sum of $7,108,165, which is $3,545,312 more than during the same period last year. The number of complaints rose from 131 to 155.

The refusal to honor guarantees, deceptive sales practices, and breach of contract are the principal consumer complaints.

Eva Alvarado, head of Acodeco's Asistencia al Consumidor y Conciliación department, said that many consumers have complained about abusive clauses in real estate contracts. "Consumers are reading their contracts," she noted, ". . .and they complain when they see a clause that's not viable."

Alvarado said her department has resolved 41 of the 155 complaints for a sum of $649,683. The rest have been filed or are pending.