Everyone, either directly through the purchase of a soft drink, by visiting a restaurant or indirectly by receiving a gift have been a consumer, and many times, we have been victims of misleading advertisements, false offers, poor service or unmanaged claims and ¿how will we handle it, if we don´t know the law? For this reason, in this article we will talk about three main rights that assist
you when making a purchase or hiring a service:
1. If the offer was published, you can demand it: if your favorite store or restaurant publishes that an item or service is on sale or if you visit a supermarket and find a “discount”, “2 for 1” or “second half price” poster, that place is obliged to sell you such items in those terms the product or service, regardless of whether they say that it is no longer valid, available or that they made a mistake when placing the label, price or place of the product. This right is recognized by the Law 842, Law for the Protection of Consumers and Users Rights, on its article 6, numerals 9 and 15.
And your provider is obliged to sell the product or provide the service in the published terms, otherwise he would incur of misleading advertising sanctioned with a penalty of one to three years in prison plus fines (Article 272, Law 641, Penal Code).
2. Preferential treatment is not just a courtesy: The law establishes that pregnant women or women with children under three years of age, older adults, or people with disabilities have the right to receive preferential treatment (article 6, numeral 13, Law 842, Law for the Protection of Consumers and Users Rights). And it can be claimed when making a payment, contracting a service or when visiting a store, bank or any commercial establishment.
3. Non-discrimination: We all have the right to acquire a good or service regardless of our physical appearance, religious or political belief, race or gender and to be served by respectful, kind and ethical people. These are things that your supplier must respect, since he decided to offer his services or products to a diverse public and the law obliges him (article 6, numeral 5, Law 842, Law for the Protection of Consumers and Users Rights).
The abovementioned rights are some of the ones we have as consumers in Nicaragua, and these can be demanded first before the local, store, supermarket or restaurant and then before DIPRODEC, that is the regulatory body in charge of receiving claims or complaints in this matter and in case of being a victim of misleading advertising you can also file a charge or complaint for
damages.
If you have any questions in this regard, please do not hesitate to contact us.