In total, the Consumer Ombudsman received 11 395 written complaints and inquiries in 2014. Compared to 2013 numbers, that is an 32% increase and way above average for the agency.Complaints about telemarketing companies doubled between 2013 and 2014, from 1037 to 2569. This was in large part due to the flood of complaints directed at the company Uno Life, but numbers irrespective of the Uno Life case also show a clear increase overall.
Unprecedented flood of complaints against one single company
– We have never seen anything like the number of complaints directed at Uno Life, and a large number of Norwegians were impacted by the illegal activities of the company. This raised the importance of stopping the company from bringing complainants to a conciliation board, says Consumer Ombudsman Gry Nergård.
The Uno Life case was a contributing factor to the Consumer Ombudsman’s decision to prioritise putting an end to the marketing of these subscription traps, both online and via telemarketing, in 2015.
Fewer complaints against sports chains
In the past few years, the Consumer Ombudsman has collaborated with the sports chains to combat misleading marketing. This effort is reflected in a noticeable decline in the number of complaints against these companies.
– Following a constructive dialogue with the sporting goods industry, we see a shift in focus from an accusatory relationship between the chains, to abiding by the rules, says Nergård.
Increase in aggressive pushing of credit payment
In 2015, the Consumer Ombudsman will focus its efforts on supervising the pushing of credit and expensive add-on services. The number of complaints on this topic makes it clear that the consumers find the marketing problematic.
Several consumers are reacting against the aggressive marketing of consumer lending, for example through direct marketing and pushing of credit over the counter as you are purchasing.
– While making an important financial decision, misleading marketing or unfair contract terms can be economically detrimental for the consumer. Financial services will therefore be closely monitored by us in the coming year, says Nergård.
Success stories of 2014
The Consumer Ombudsman works to make it easier and safer for consumers to navigate markets. In 2014, a lot of time and effort went into the Uno Life case, but we also had breakthroughs in other important consumer matters. To mention a few:
- We completed the negotiations for safe and fair model terms and conditions for debit cards targeted at children, in cooperation with Finance Norway (Finans Norge – the industry organisation for the financial industry in Norway).
- We have cooperated with the leasing industry, to develop guidelines for the marketing of car leasing directed at consumers. The industry agreed to avoid misleading marketing of total costs.
- We improved upon the terms for pre-paid transaction services at several music festivals.
- We secured better rental contracts through completing a review of the larger real estate agencies with some demands for new contract terms. The old contracts could for example contain unfair maintenance requirements. Most of the providers have adapted to the new guidelines, and are now offering fair and balanced contracts to the consumers.
- We struck down on the misleading marketing of rental guarantees (an alternative to security deposits, where you pay as you go rather than upfront), and we made sure the providers give the consumer better information about the true costs involved.
- We have continued our extensive supervision of TV and streaming service providers, and we find that our efforts have contributed to a marked improvement. The providers have become better at informing the consumers of their total costs and the duration of their subscription agreements, as required by the Marketing Control Act
- We have drawn up new requirements for the marketing of 4G (regarding claims of high downloading speed on your mobile), and put an end to TV and newspaper ads that were in violation of the Marketing Control Act.
Press contact at the Consumer Ombudsman:
Gry Nergård, Consumer Ombudsman (Tel: +47 99 00 50 80)