Starting today, moral suasion will no longer be the only recourse for resolving persistent consumer complaints. The Government of Saint Lucia has accepted that the hope that goods suppliers and service providers will always be moved to ‘do the right thing’ when attempting to settle public grievances is idealistic at best. As such, the Government has legally initiated the establishment of the Consumer Protection Council and the Consumer Protection Appeals Tribunal to usher in a new era for consumer redress on the island.

The newly constituted Consumer Protection Council met for the first time on Wednesday 31^st, May 2023 at 9:30 AM in the Conference Room of the Ministry of Commerce, Manufacturing, Business Development, Cooperatives and Consumer Affairs. The Consumer Protection Council, which seeks to provide the public with an alternative means for dispute resolution, is comprised of seven members appointed by the Minister for Commerce. This includes nominees from the Saint Lucia Bar Association, the Saint Lucia Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture, and people with experience in consumer protection, public administration, business and industry. The Council is headed by a Chairperson appointed by the Minister and a Deputy Chairperson to be elected from among members at the meeting.

Functions of the Council include: the consideration of investigation reports and supporting documents; facilitating dispute resolution between a consumer and a supplier in relation to goods and services—through alternative dispute resolution proceedings; preparing a binding written agreement if the parties to the dispute resolution proceedings have reached an amicable solution; referring the dispute to the Tribunal for consideration if the parties to the dispute resolution proceedings are unable to reach an amicable solution; on receipt of information that a person making a complaint has commenced or intends to commence an action before a criminal or civil court, determining whether the result of that action may be duplicitous in nature, and suspend or discontinue alternative dispute resolution.

Powers of the Council include: requiring the relevant parties to attend dispute resolution proceedings; requesting further information from them; requesting that the Consumer Affairs Department conduct further investigation; preparing a binding or non-binding written agreement and issuing a notice for a fixed penalty.

The Council is appointed for a period of two years.