CONSUMERS will soon be able to file complaints about trade and products through the Philippine Online Dispute Resolution System, Trade Secretary Alfredo Pascual said yesterday.
The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) launched its web-based platform CARe System or Consumer Complaint Assistance and Resolution System, as it saw a rise in consumer complaints during the last few years.
From an average of 2,000 complaints received by the DTI in 2019, the number rose to 15,000 when the coronavirus pandemic hit, the agency said.
With the increasing patronage of e-commerce platforms, consumer rights and interest must be protected, Pascual said.
“It is also important that even before the need for complaint arises, I would like to ask our e-commerce platform operators to do their part in weeding out potential sources of complaints,” he said.
Complaints about trade malpractice and substandard or hazardous products may be filed online instead of manually filing it in DTI offices.
Processing of complaints will be fully automated from filing, mediation, and adjudication.
Updates on the case will be delivered through email and will be available for access through the website www.podrs.dti.gov.ph.
Pascual assured the public that data to be stored in the system will remain confidential.
“‘Yang (As for the issue on) issue on cyberattacks, hacking, it’s a major headache as we digitalize our processes… The system is designed to be secured. Hopefully the regulators will always be ahead of the violators or the hackers,” said the DTI chief. (ABS-CBN News)
