Doing business in South Africa: Consumer Protection Act

The Consumer Protection Act

The Consumer Protection Act provides a single, comprehensive framework for consumer protection affairs in South Africa. The Act lays out the rights of the consumer, as well as the responsibilities of organisations that supply goods or provide services.

The Act applies to every level of the supply chain in South Africa and applies to agreements and transactions that have been entered into in the ordinary course of business between suppliers and consumers. There are a limited number of agreement types which are exempt from the Act based on various criteria.