WHILE most South Africans understand the concept of Human Rights, which was celebrated during the month of March, many are not aware that their rights as a consumer is an important part of their overall human rights.
That’s according to Salem Dyafta, Brand Manager: Consumer at TransUnion, South Africa’s largest credit bureau who points out that South Africa’s Constitution states that everyone is equal before the law and has the right to equal protection and benefit of the law.

‘The National Credit Act was introduced to create a fair and non–discriminatory marketplace for access to consumer credit, by among other provisions, prohibiting certain unfair credit and credit-marketing practices and promoting responsible credit granting,’ she said.

The Act also introduced a number of important consumer rights.

These include:

1. The right to apply for credit: every adult person has a right to apply to a credit provider for credit.
2. Every consumer has the right to protection against discrimination in respect of credit. This means that credit providers may not unfairly discriminate against any person on the basis of that person’s race, gender, culture, language or sexual orientation when assessing the person’s application for credit.

‘This means that credit providers have to have an objective, non–discriminatory method of, for example, assessing the ability to an adult consumer to meet the obligations of a proposed credit agreement and deciding whether or not to grant the credit applied for.
‘The same objective principles must be applied when determining, for example, the terms of a credit agreement such as the interest rate to be charged as well as the repayment period; as well as when determining the type and timing of action that can be taken should the consumer not meet the obligations of the credit agreement,’ she explained.
Other rights included in the Consumer Protection Act:
•The right to reasons for credit being refused. Credit providers are obliged to advise consumers in writing of the reason for an application for credit being turned down or for offering the consumer a lower credit limit than applied for.
•Credit providers also have to explain, in writing, why they have reduced or refused to increase the credit limit of an existing credit facility, or refused to renew an expiring credit card or similar existing credit facility such as an overdraft.
•A consumer has the right to receive any document that is required for a credit agreement in an official language that the consumer reads and understands
•The right to receive documents. Every document that has to be delivered to a consumer must be delivered either in person, posted, emailed or faxed, depending on what the consumer not the credit provider prefers.
•The right to protection of consumer credit rights. A credit provider may not discriminate against or penalise a consumer who insists on having any of his or her consumer rights upheld.
•The right to confidential treatment. A credit provider may not use any of the consumer’s confidential information which has been obtained or provided as part of the credit application for any purpose that is not directly related to the credit agreement.
•The right to access and challenge credit records and information. Every person has the right to a free credit report from each of the credit bureau once every 12 months, and may challenge the accuracy of the information reported to the credit bureau.