The Economic Inspectorate has identified almost 10,000 breach of the law by online vendors so far this year. Most of the offences involved fraud, phishing, undelivered goods or unsolicited products or services. At the end of this week it is Black Friday and many people are trying to bag a bargain online. The Federal Government has launched a campaign to warn consumers about fraudulent online vendors.
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Economic Inspectorate has identified more than 10,000 breaches of the law by web shops this year so far
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Since 2020 when the lockdown saw a big increase in online shopping, the Economic Inspectorate has increased the number of checks on online stores. This year, the Inspectorate has already identified 9,942 breaches of the law by online vendors. The provisional figures are for the period from 1 January to 13 November. The Economic Inspectorate carries out preventive checks on online stores as well as also intervening when it receives reports from dissatisfied customers.
The most common complaints concern fraud and scams (for example phishing), the non-delivery of goods or the unsolicited delivery of goods or services.
The Federal Secretary of State responsible for consumer protection Alexia Bertrand (Flemish liberal) told VRT News that "The Economic Inspectorate works hard to combat this kind of malpractice. They regularly confiscate goods, take websites offline or have the bank accounts of scammers closed. Online stores that break the law are also issued with fines."
So far this year the Economic Inspectorate’s hotline has received 6,913 complaints. In 2020 this was 11,628. The number of complaints has fallen each year since 2020. However, the number of breach of the law by online vendors identified by the Economic inspectorate has risen each year. Ms Bertrand’s office says that there are several reasons for the fall in the number of reports of malpractice to the hotline.
"In 2020, we were in the midst of the corona crisis and many more goods were being purchased online. Since 2021, we have also significantly increased the number of checks, so that could also have a dissuasive effect”.
It could also be that too few people are able to find their way to the Economy Department’s online platform where complaints can be filed against fraudulent online stores.
“Consumer Connect”
The Federal Government is therefore working on the development of a single website where consumers can go with all their questions and complaints. The "Consumerconnect" site "Will be available at the end of January. There you will find information about your rights as a consumer. Via the platform you will also be able to report any issues to the Economic Inspection of the FPS Economy”, Ms Bertrand told VRT News.
The Secretary of State believes it is important that we are all aware of our rights as consumers. "You can avoid falling foul of fraudulent online stores by, for example, checking the reviews that an online store receives in advance. Other people who have already been scammed will share this. It is also best to check the contact details of the store in question and the Safeonweb website allows you to see whether or not you are dealing with a fraudulent entrepreneur," Ms Bertrand concludes.