Consumer Fair Online




	Edition Number 5

	Consumer Fair Online is brought to you monthly by the National Consumer Forum, publishers of Consumer Fair newspaper. In this Edition: LOCAL NCF hopes Icasa rate cut can be start of cheaper call trend The National Consumer Forum has welcomed Icasa’s decision to demand lower interconnection rates from cell phone operators, and hopes that this will lead to a steady decrease in the ‘exorbitant’ rates that South Africans are currently forced to pay. NCF chairman Thami Bolani said that the organisation would be looking carefully at Icasa’s regulations and will comment further on these. Click to READ MORE Consumer Tribunal flexes its muscle The National Consumer Tribunal (NCT) this month cancelled the registration of two debt counsellors for not complying with the rules. All debt counsellors need to be registered with the National Credit Regulator (NCR), to ensure that they comply with the National Credit Act; this helps to protect consumers against rogues in this industry. When a debt counsellor does not toe the line, the NCR can report them to the NCT and apply for their de-registration. Click to READ MORE Eskom gets its coal-power loan, but against resistance The World Bank has agreed to lend Eskom the money it needs to build the coal-fired Medupi power station, but many voices have been raised against the environmental impact and the short-sighted planning strategies of the troubled parastatal. Click to READ MORE New number plates for Gauteng vehicles Over the next few years, all plastic number plates of Gauteng-registered vehicles will be replaced with aluminium plates, which will apparently help prevent vehicle theft. These plates will be fitted permanently to cars and will contain a chip, a barcode and a new number format. A new number series will also have to be introduced as the current number series for Gauteng plates are running out. Click to READ MORE GLOBAL Australian consumer website to judge supermarkets A new Australian website – called Checkout Choice (http://checkoutchoice.com.au) - asks consumers to share their experiences with large supermarkets. Set up by the Australian consumer group Choice, it gives consumers a chance to express their concerns about supermarkets. Through this website, Choice wants to start a conversation comparing and scrutinising the practices and policies around the supermarket sector and to build a national consensus for reform. Click to read READ MORE CONSUMER TIPS Get help to solve your pension fund headaches Charles Pillai has become the new Pension Funds Adjudicator (PFA) from this month. He was previously the Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services (Fais) Ombud. The PFA investigates and determines complaints of abuse of power, maladministration, disputes of fact or law, and employer dereliction of duty in pension funds. Click to READ MORE more about the PFA USEFUL RESOURCE Fight back against harmful drinking The International Centre for Alcohol Policies (ICAP) recently launched a book to challenge excessive and harmful use of alcohol. The book, whose title is “Working Together to Reduce Harmful Drinking”, was launched in Johannesburg, recently. Click to READ MORE Pass it on If you found this newsletter interesting, tell your friends to subscribe too!	NCF news The NCF is also invited by radio and television stations, as well as print media, to comment on consumer-related issues. Here are some recent broadcasts or articles you can download: Thobela – Consumer Protection Act and consumer complaints [Audio] E24 – Interest rates and petrol price [Video] e-TV – Price increases to raise the cost of living [Video] Independent Online – NCF urges consumers to get to know the new Consumer Protection Act [Article] Lotus FM – Concerns about food prices rising in future [Audio] NCF chairman Thami Bolani is on Ikwekwezi FM every weekday morning at 8.40am. Click on the link below to go to the NCF website to download and listen to his comments on a range of consumer topics of the day


The NCF is an independent non-governmental organisation working for a consumer-friendly South Africa – where the rights of consumers are respected and enforced. For more information, visit www.ncf.org.za. Contact NCF: Tel: 012 428 7071 To unsubscribe from this email newsletter, click here. © National Consumer Forum 2010