Seema Shandil

The Consumer Council of Fiji is advising consumers to exercise due diligence when buying Anti-Lock Braking System accumulators, particularly from social media platforms or online traders.

This plea comes after the Council noted an increase in the number of complaints received from consumers who have purchased the item from unscrupulous online traders.

Investigations reveal that most of the traders selling these inferior -quality accumulators operate on social media platforms particularly Facebook.

Council CEO Seema Shandil says they received 29 complaints last year alone.

This is a concern a accumulators do not come cheap and are being sold for between $650 – $2,000, and come with either short warranty periods or no warranty at all.

She adds that they have also received complaints where consumers have informed the Council that accumulators purchased did not even last a day.

Shandil further adds that the Council cannot place enough emphasis on the need for consumers to exercise caution when dealing with online traders.