Breakthrough in consumer rights protection

Ensuring best benefits for consumers

Recently, the Central Committee of the Vietnam Consumer Protection Association (VICOPRO) officially launched the ‘Consumer’ app. This is the first mobile and tablet application to be developed by VICOPRO, considered a breakthrough step to enhance consumer rights protection in the current context.

The app. provides significant support, especially for consumers in rural, remote, and disadvantaged areas, who have limited access to regulations, policies, and consumer rights protected by the Government.

The protection of consumer rights is increasingly strengthened

According to the leadership of VICOPRO, this application allows consumers to easily and conveniently access state regulations and policies while safeguarding their legitimate rights. The app. serves as a two-way interactive channel for complaints and consultation, a communication platform for the Consumer Protection Law, and a tool to enhance transparency. It also provides an official channel for businesses to verify genuine products, a system for consumer voting and surveys, as well as loyalty programs, vouchers, and gifts for consumers.

Additionally, the app. features a membership management system for VICOPRO and a platform introducing trustworthy products and services to end-consumers. It also acts as a bridge connecting manufacturers, distributors, and exporters to support the promotion of products and services within the association’s operational scope, in compliance with legal regulations.

According to VICOPRO, in its initial phase, the ‘Consumer’ app. offers 10 key features: consultation and complaints, consumer voting surveys, consumer alerts, genuine product verification, legal guidelines, product lookup, promotions, news updates, policy advocacy, and activities of VICOPRO.

“In the future, we will continue to gather feedback from consumers to update, upgrade, and collaborate with organizations to further enhance the app.’s services and features, ensuring the best benefits for consumers,” emphasized Bui Thanh Thuy, Vice President and Secretary-General of VICOPRO.

‘Consumer’ app. interface

Handling 150,000 consumer complaints

The leadership of VICOPRO shared that despite numerous challenges in 2024, the association proactively implemented practical activities that significantly contributed to stabilizing the country’s socioeconomic landscape.

The association has coordinated with relevant agencies to organize over 500 events, training sessions, and meetings, installed more than 140,000 banners and slogans, and conducted 600 parades related to consumer rights protection. Notably, the association’s branches, committees, teams, and Consumer Protection Clubs directly provided consultation and resolved 150,000 consumer complaints via phone, hotline, email, the association’s online complaint portal, mail, or in person, achieving an 85 percent resolution rate. Complaints handled via the hotline reached a 100 percent resolution rate.

Last year, VICOPRO collaborated with the National Competition Commission under the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the National Assembly’s Committee on Science, Technology, and Environment to launch an event celebrating the World Consumer Rights Day on March 15. The association also disseminated the Consumer Protection Law and other relevant legal regulations, as well as information about the Buy Vietnamese Goods campaign and the Action Month for Food Safety. In addition, the association contributed to drafting legal documents and conducted the 2024 survey on trusted consumer goods and services.

Bui Thanh Thuy emphasized that to intensify consumer rights protection, the Central Committee of VICOPRO will continue working closely with relevant ministries and agencies to strengthen legal education for public awareness enhancement. The focus will be on educating and guiding consumers, especially vulnerable groups, and improving dispute resolution mechanisms to ensure that 80 percent of consumer complaints and reports receive proper consultation and resolution.