Initiatives by Dubai Economy to improve competitiveness and harmony in the business sector are leading to significant outcomes, including a drop in commercial complaints in the emirate. The Business Protection section in Dubai Economy saw commercial complaints decreasing by 41% during the first half of 2019, to 464 from 790 complaints during the same period of 2018.

Part of the Commercial Compliance & Consumer Protection (CCCP) sector in Dubai Economy, the Business Protection section receives complaints related to disputes between traders in the local market, including those outside the UAE, and work to resolve them amicably. The complainant must be a commercial entity registered in Dubai. The dispute should be commercial in nature and should not be under the consideration of any other judicial, legal or administrative body.

The decrease seen in complaints so far this year validates the global best practices being adopted by CCCP in resolving business complaints and strengthening Dubai’s international reputation as an investment destination and hub for sustainable business growth.

The largest share of commercial complaints (45%) came from the Services sector, followed by Decoration & construction (11%), Foodstuffs (11%), Electronics (6%), and Building materials (6%). Shipping, Cars & accessories (3% each), Furniture (2%), Labour supply, Equipment Rental and Clearance transaction (1% each) were the other sectors that featured prominently among the total complaints received.

Non-compliance with the terms of the agreement was the reason for 48% of the complaints. Reasons behind the other disputes involved terms of contract (36%), commercial fraud (8%), specifications and standards (2%), after-sales service (2%), warranty (1%), non-compliance with commercial activity (1%) surcharge on service/product (1%).

UAE companies accounted for 22% of the complaints received locally, followed Indian (19%), Egyptian (8%), Pakistani (4%) and Saudi companies (3%) while 41% of the complaints came from companies outside the UAE.

Mohammed Ali Rashid Lootah, CEO of CCCP, remarked that Dubai Economy is keen to ensure fairness and transparency in regulating the relation between UAE businesses and their partners, as it will strengthen Dubai’s reputation as a business hub and gateway.

“The decrease we have seen in commercial complaints in the first six months of 2019 reflects the dynamism in the way Dubai deals with businesses locally, regionally and internationally.  The commercial complaints we received are generally resolved in 10 days, which is the shortest period taken for complaint resolution anywhere in the UAE,” Lootah said.

Businesses filing complaints to the Business Protection section must submit a copy of the documents to validate their claim. If the complainant is from outside the UAE the documents must be certified by the competent authorities in the respective country. Complaints can be submitted by calling +971 600545555, or via e-mail to businessprotection@dubaided.gov.ae.