FTC now getting banking, construction complaints
Published:Friday | September 17, 2010 | 12:00 AM
Dionne Rose, Business Reporter
David Miller, executive director of the Fair Trading Commission (FTC), said more banking and construction complaints have now been dogging the agency responsible for investigating competition in the market, as opposed to a decade ago.
"Most of the complaints that we receive are in relation to the telecommunications and household appliances and furniture sectors. We have, however, noticed that for the past three years, we have been receiving more complaints that relate to financial services and construction sectors," said Miller in an interview with the Financial Gleaner.
Miller said the complaints against the financial sector were related to competition and consumer protection issues.
"We have had, therefore, to focus our efforts in the direction of financial services and the construction industry more now than earlier in the decade," he pointed out.
Banking sector study
Triggered by the complaints, which relate to bank charges and fees imposed by commercial banks and its own overview of the sector, Miller said the FTC, a year ago, commissioned a study which would assess the nature and extent of competition in the commercial banking sector.
He said the study should be completed within a month's time and that the findings should give an indication on how competitive the industry is.
Meanwhile, Bruce Bowen, president and chief executive officer of Scotiabank Jamaica, at the 11th Shirley Playfair lecture last week said he was against regulation of the sector as it relates to bank charges or fees.
"I'm not for regulation of pricing of fees. What I do think from a public policy perspective the regulatory objective should be, is first of all, ensuring that financial institutions provide a wide range of product and services so that consumers - retailing and commercial - have options," he pointed out.
He, however, noted that the commercial industry should ensure that more information is available to the public so that they can make more informed choices.
Over the period April 1, 2009 to March 31, 2010, the FTC investigated a total of 424 matters, with 266 being completed and closed, a resolution rate of 63 per cent.
Meanwhile, a total of 209 complaints were received during the year under review. Of that number, 151 or 72 per cent were classified as matters concerning 'misleading advertising'; 13, or six per cent, were classified as offences against competition; and six were classified under other sections of the Fair Competition Act (FCA).
Far-reaching disputes
Thirty-nine, or 19 per cent of the complaints, were considered as being outside the purview of the FCA. Those matters were transferred to the relevant agencies, where appropriate.
Meanwhile, Miller said one of the most far-reaching dispute that it has settled within the last six months was the Digicel/LIME dispute where it investigated Digicel's pricing strategies on the termination of calls make from LIME's fix lines.
"It was the most in-depth investigations for the last six months," said Miller. "It (also) had far-reaching effect on the market in terms of prices that consumers pay."
'It was the most in-depth investigations for the last six months ... It (also) had far reaching effect on the market in terms of prices that consumers pay.'
'We have had therefore to focus our efforts in the direction of financial services and the construction industry more now than earlier in the decade.'