Majed Al-Qasabi, Minister of Commerce, had asked for individuals operating in the electrical appliances sector to have toll-free lines to resolve complaints from customers.

He also emphasized the need of safeguarding consumer rights and enhancing consumer services offered by the private sector.

On Thursday, the minister made the comments while speaking to a gathering of top officials representing the Kingdom's agents and suppliers of electrical goods at the ministry's offices here.

Dr. Iman Bint Habbas Al-Mutairi, Deputy Minister of Commerce, Badr Al-Haddad, Assistant Minister of Commerce, and Eng. Omar Al-Suhaibani, Deputy Minister for Consumer Protection, was also there.

Al-Qasabi emphasized the significance of yet more enhancing and marketing after-sales services, assigning toll-free lines for customer complaints, and establishing service and repair facilities throughout the Kingdom's provinces and governorates.

The minister emphasized the importance of improving customer services and trying to develop after-sales services, and setting performance measures and supervising them following the best international standards, and evaluating and improving the sector's legislative and procedural elements.

The meeting covered a variety of topics of significance to customers in the electrical appliances sector by three main areas: after-sales services, represented by device availability, shipping, delivery, and installation; maintenance and warranty, and lousy service in some cities and governorates; and price-related issues.

Al-Qasabi mandated that work teams comprised of sector representatives identify all issues and solutions to develop and improve services, emphasizing that now the customer comes first and that care must be given to deliver services to them with the appropriate quality and speed.

"Responsibilities towards the consumer must be met without delays or omission." The ministry is functioning in collaboration with commercial establishments to help them improve their services, provide a stimulating environment for them, and surmount all the hurdles they face,” the minister added, mentioning that the ministry had previously received numerous consumer complaints.

It is worth noting that the meeting comes just two weeks after a similar one with the CEOs of auto dealerships in the Kingdom. That conference underlined the necessity of fixing flaws in all elements of consumer rights service.