New website helps Greater Bay Area consumers report complaints

Consumers in Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area have new and easier access to lodge consumption-related complaints from a website since Friday, which transfers the cases inside the region to respective consumer councils.

Managed by the Guangdong Consumer Council, the website Consumers Complaints Transferring Platform in Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, launched on Friday, is meant to help safeguard people's rights in cross-border consumption, integrate consumption in the bay area and promote quality living in the area, according to the council.

The bay area encompasses nine cities in South China's Guangdong province and the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macao.

The newly launched website, when operated well, will be expanded to include other cities in Guangdong.

The forum provides valuable experience for regional coordination in consumer protection across the country, said Zhu Jianqiao, deputy head and secretary-general of China Consumers Association.

The council also signed agreements with its counterparts in Hong Kong and Macao during a forum in Zhuhai, Guangdong, on Friday for building a mechanism for the quick handling of consumption disputes, all-round cooperation in protecting consumer's rights and information sharing.

In recent years, cooperative agreements have been reached between the consumer councils of five cities in Guangdong and Hong Kong and between 10 Guangdong cities and Macao.

In the past three years, consumer councils across Guangdong province have dealt with 1,580 cases of cross-border consumption complaints and retrieved losses valued at 14.3 million yuan ($2.07 million).

Consumer councils in Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao also have jointly issued consumption tips and staged consumer education events.