The Voice - Consumer's Voice

Can they take the fridge?

Please help me here, my father bought a fridge at a furniture store last year October. He has never missed an instalment and he always pays on time but this month he failed to pay and they said they are coming to take it tomorrow. He lost his money beginning of this month, his old age pension, he will only get money again beginning of next month. If we don’t pay, is it legal?

This store needs to slow down and be less excitable.

Yes, of course your father missed a payment and that’s a problem. However, so long as he can catch up as soon as possible, I think the store should be a bit more patient.

The biggest problem with hire purchase is the one that people understand the least. It’s not how expensive it is. It’s not that you can spend two years paying for something that you could save for in less than a year. It’s not that the goods are often of poor quality. The biggest problem is ownership. Things you buy on hire purchase don’t belong to you, they belong to the store until you’ve paid the final instalment. Until that date, if the customer misses a payment, the store can decide to do nothing, or they can decide to repossess their property.

However, clearly in this situation, they’re going much too fast. They need to give your father a chance to catch up and make things right. I contacted the store and suggested this. I’ve also contacted their Head Office and urged them to stay calm.

Is this phone new?

Hi, Richard! I need your help sir. I bought an iPhone 11 last week Tuesday at a store in Main Mall. They said they sell brand new phones.

I started charging the phone the following day which was Wednesday. The phone took the whole day to charge and I then suspected that the cord might have a problem which I then changed. The problem continued and the phone started to shut down whilst 50/60% charged. I then reported the matter to them and I returned it on Monday but now they don't want to refund me.

Now they only changed the charger. They said they will give me a few days to observe the phone since the problem was the software not the battery.

I don’t believe the people at this store know the difference between truth and lies.

Firstly, this phone can’t be described as “new”. Apple currently sell the iPhone 17 and will shortly announce the iPhone 18 so an iPhone 11 is several versions old. It’s possible it’s been sitting in a store room for a few years but does that make it ‘new’? Secondly, the battery problem is also a sign of an older phone.

I did some detective work and found that the serial number of your iPhone belongs to a device that was first purchased in March 2020. So definitely not new.

I contacted the store but they don’t want to talk. Maybe they have a guilty conscience?

I think it’s time to post a complaint about them in the Consumer Watchdog Facebook group so everyone will know to be careful when dealing with them.

The Voice - Consumer's Voice

A one-week warranty?

I am writing to seek your urgent assistance with a product complaint. I purchased a kettle from a store in Mogoditshane. I only used the kettle for two days, on Monday and Tuesday. During this short time, I noticed that the handle became very loose and floppy. When I looked closer, I saw that the handle already had a small crack. Furthermore, when the kettle was filled with water, the weight caused the base of the kettle to completely fall off. Yesterday, I took the defective kettle back to the store. Unfortunately, they refused to assist me with either a replacement or a refund. When I bought the kettle, the staff only plugged it in to test if it switched on. They did not check the item for physical defects, cracks, or structural wear and tear. Because the item was faulty from the start and broke within 48 hours of normal use, I am requesting for a full refund or a working replacement. I look forward to your response to help resolve this matter.

Here we go again. Yet another store that has no understanding of consumer rights. Section 16 of the Consumer Protection Act says that every consumer has a right to return a faulty item to a supplier within six months of purchasing it and then they can repair it, replace it or refund you. It’s really not complicated. A business that doesn’t know this or chooses to ignore it should not be in business.

You sent me a copy of the receipt they gave you and it gets worse. They claim that electrical items only have a warranty of one week. That’s complete nonsense. It’s at least six months.

I contacted the store but I don’t think they don’t want to talk. Let’s alert the Competition and Consumer Authority. Maybe they’ll have more luck?

How did they get my details?

On the 15 May 2026, I received an unsolicited call from a mobile number. The caller identified themselves as a “call centre agent" from my bank conducting a KYC update for online banking. The caller already had my full name, ID number, and email address, which raised no initial suspicion. I was asked to confirm details and then share a One Time PIN sent to my phone. I complied. Immediately after, I realized this was likely fraud as my bank does not use cellphone numbers nor request OTPs.

I immediately called the call centre and reported the incident and requested all my banking channels be blocked immediately. I formally lodged a complaint regarding the incident and specifically raised a concern about how fraudsters obtained my personal data that should only be held by the bank. I was promised feedback. My email is not in the public domain anywhere or my cellphone number. My username was compromised, which is only accessible to bank employees.

I have received no feedback, case reference number, or outcome of any investigation.

This is obviously extremely concerning. Firstly, I’m glad you realized very quickly that this was a scam. You did exactly the right thing by immediately contacting the bank and asking them to block your account. Once scammers have access to your account, they will very quickly transfer as much money as possible and I’m glad you got there in time.

I also share your concern about how they obtained your details. However, it’s often surprisingly easy to get this information. Many of us share a lot of these details online in social media apps, and also in everyday circumstances, such as signing in to a building we’re visiting. It’s really important that we only give our identity information to people who really need it. If anyone else asks for these details, we must always politely decline.

I contacted the bank and asked them to get in touch with you.

The Voice - Consumer's Voice

Where are my curtains?

Hi Richard, I engaged a company to supply me with curtains. I paid up to 80% (P22k) deposit as requested but they have not delivered. I call but there’s no answer, no response to texts as well. The last update was after I had informed them I am going to report them and take legal action. They called and said part of the rail curtains I had ordered are ready and I can go view them. I did give them feedback but no response thereafter. Beginning of May, they had said can we give them a week or 2 to refund but unfortunately it is now June and no response from them.

It’s time to stop being polite. I don’t mean you should be rude, that never works, but you need to be much more assertive.

I suggest that you give them a deadline and make it clear to them that unless they refund you the full P22,000 before that date, you’ll go to the Small Claims Court for an order against them.

We all want to support small, local businesses but that doesn’t mean they can treat us unfairly. It’s also really important that these businesses learn how to run their companies effectively and profitably. I’m certainly no business expert but they need to learn about business planning, cashflow and how important it is to have cash reserves in case of problems. In these difficult economic times, it’s not just consumers who need to be prudent, it’s the small businesses we all want to thrive. They can start by speaking to the Local Enterprise Authority for some very cheap training and advice.

If you like, I’ll also get in touch with them.

They won’t return my money!

Mr. Richard, I need your help, I bought a car from a dealer on Monday afternoon which he told me that the does not have any engine or gearbox problem but on Tuesday morning I realized that the car has an engine fault. I called him and I also told him I can't afford to buy new engine. Its better he refund me back or give me another car then he said he don't have another car to give. Also he already used the money but he will sell the car and refund me. Yesterday he brought 2 customers to check the car and they rejected it because of the same thing I discovered. Now he doesn't want to return my money as we agreed. Please help me Richard.

This is yet another example of how risky buying a second-hand car can be. That doesn’t mean we should all buy brand new cars, very few of us can afford that ridiculous expense, but it means we must be extremely careful before spending our money on a second-hand vehicle.

By far the most important thing anyone should do is to have any second-hand vehicle inspected by an expert before paying. A few of us do know how to inspect a vehicle, but most of us have no idea. That’s why we need to rely on specialists. There are plenty of talented mechanics out there who will inspect a vehicle for you for a small fee. Even if it costs a few hundred Pula, it’s worth it because it might save tens of thousands.

In your situation, I think the best thing to do is to contact the Competition and Consumer Authority and ask them to investigate. They have a long history of dealing with second-hand car dealers and I know they’re capable of applying serious pressure in situations like this. I’m also happy to contact the dealer as well.

The Voice - Consumer's Voice

Can he insult me?

I need your help understanding something. I bought a washing machine using laybye at a store at Game City where you get to take the goods and pay them off within 4 months. 2 payments before I could finish payments I lost my job and went to the store to let them know. They told me now my terms will change to hire purchase. I made payments when I could and still updated them that I didn’t get a job yet. I started getting calls from the store from a man who insults me and is rude all the time. I went to the store to let them know the man is being abusive but got no help. I know I’m supposed to get the calls because I still owe this store but what do I do when this man now calls? He doesn’t even say hi and starts to go off of me over the phone. Several times I hung up on him. Today he called and I answered and the first thing he said was not hello, he started shouting insults. I hung up on him again. Is there a way you can help?

There are several things here that worry me. Firstly, how did they force you to convert a laybye to a hire purchase agreement? They are completely different, almost opposite ways to buy things. With a laybye you pay money in advance for a few months and then collect your goods. With hire purchase you hire the goods and pay the store a monthly fee for a couple of years until you eventually become the owner. Laybyes are a good way to buy things, hire purchase is a bad way. I don’t understand how they thought they could change the agreement and exploit you this way.

Secondly, if you couldn’t afford the laybye payments, how did they expect you to pay the hire purchase instalments? Something doesn’t add up here.

Finally, there is absolutely no excuse for this man’s rudeness. It’s also illegal. Section 6 of the Consumer Protection Act forbids a company from using

“force, coercion, undue influence, pressure, duress, harassment, unfair tactics or any other similar conduct against a consumer”.

This man is clearly harassing you and being grossly unfair.

I contacted the company and we’ll see how they react.

How long will I be blacklisted?

Please assist. So I had taken a loan with my bank and went 2 months last year without work, so I incurred some arrears. I cleared the loan in February this year. However, last month I tried to get something with a 6 months hire purchase but I was told the bank blacklisted me. So now I want to ask how to go about this? Where do I call to ask as to when I will be removed from the blacklist? I am kindly asking for your assistance.

Unfortunately, there’s probably no good news here. If you have a history of arrears with your debts, lenders will share that information in the databases held by credit reference bureaux. That way, other potential lenders can see your history so they can make an informed decision about lending you money or offering you credit. Those records usually remain online for two years after the debt is finally settled.

There’s nothing wrong or improper about this, it simply allows lenders to make sensible decisions.

But maybe this actually is good news? You managed to avoid buying something on hire purchase which might be a bonus if your finances have been a little difficult recently. If possible, it’s much better to save some money every month and then buy things for cash. It’s a lot less risky.