LOOK Which industries are struggling to keep consumers happy

More consumers are unhappy with brand products, as the number of consumer complaints saw a spike last year.According to the Consumers Association of Singapore (CASE), the number of complaints to the agency  hit a record 29,254 last year, a marked 14% increase from last year. Broken down by industry silos, motorcars remained the top industry with a total of 3,302 complaints filed against companies in the sector, an over 46% increase from the number filed in 2012.Electronic goods also saw a spike in complains with a 23.5% increase. Beauty brands however saw a 2.4% decline in number of complains this year, but remained the third most complained about sector. While the number of consumers making complaints might be on the rise, this does not mean that businesses are no longer doing their part, said CASE.Seah Seng Choon, executive director of CASE told Marketing that with the outreach from CASE's educational efforts, consumers today are more aware of their rights and responsibilities, and are also more willing to speak out for themselves.Numerous factors such as the empowerment of consumers and the higher expectations of quality services and lower tolerance for poor business practices within the industry could have contributed to the figures. Seah added that with the passing of the Lemon Law in Sep 2012, consumers have now realised that they are able to request for the business to repair or replace the defective product sold to them.As such, this has led to the large increase in complaints on defective second-hand motorcars as well as electronic products like handphones and tablets. Nonetheless businesses should remain vigilant warned Seah.He explained that “businesses are not checking the quality of their products properly before putting it out to the market.” Retailer were found misrepresenting the products that they are selling, such as asking for payment for "unlocking" a handphone set when the handphone was already unlocked, he added.A spokesperson from CASE also told Marketing that the complaints were mainly about defective goods sold by wholesalers and it has taken steps to name the outlets and hence grow consumer awareness of these retailers.