Adequacy of Consumer Protection Act 1999 in relation to product liability

The laws on consumer protection are of crucial importance. Therefore, the direction the laws should take must be towards the rights and interests of consumers as they are the masters of the market. In view of this, the Consumer Protection Act was enacted 12 years ago by the legislature taking into account the trends that have taken place regionally and globally. The Consumer Protection Act 1999 is a general law governing consumer protection. Thus, this statute has been termed as the omnibus statute as it deals with many areas in relation to consumer protection. It should be noted that the Consumer Protection Act 1999 has been promised to offer greater protection than the existing regimes of law under contract and tort. In this study, the focus is on the provisions which relate to consumer protection as regards to product liability. The study will show the extent the provisions are adequate in protecting the consumers. The study will also propose any reforms that are necessary to enhance consumer protection. The fact that the statute is based on a philosophy of liability without the necessity to attribute fault to the manufacturer in terms of jurisprudential analysis, it will make the courts more willing to hold plaintiffs to be entitled to compensation. It will also change consumers’ attitude in reacting towards defects in a product, which causes damage to them. Most importantly, the market is the best place to determine whether the objectives of any consumer protection laws are met.