Dubai issues advisory for consumers buying products online

The advisory from the Dubai Economy comes amid a huge increase in online orders and deliveries of goods since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic last year.

If the product is damaged or has a fault, the consumer can refuse to accept the product and return it to be replaced.

“Inspect any bought products for faults before you sign the proof of delivery form,” Dubai Economy said in an advisory on its social media platform.

According to Dubai Economy, the largest share of consumer complaints at 32 per cent was about services, followed by electronics (16 per cent) and e-commerce (12.6 per cent) in the third quarter (Q3) of the last financial year (FY 2020).

Dubai Customs has projected e-commerce sales rising 23 per cent to Dh100 billion (b) in 2022.

''We expect e-commerce sales to rise 23 per cent to $27b in 2022, especially since there is a noticeable shift in the consumers’ trends and behaviour after the pandemic, which is expected to raise the use of e-marketing channels 10 per cent," said Ahmed Mahboob Musabih, Director-General of Dubai Customs.