Consumers in Situations of Vulnerability and Disadvantage

The Consumer Protection and Fair-Trade Authority issued Disposition DI-2024-137-APN-SSDCYLC#MEC on May 30, 2024, replacing the concept of “hyper-vulnerable consumers”—which had been established in the former Resolution RESOL-2020-139-APN-SCI#MDP—with the concept of “consumers in situations of vulnerability and disadvantage.”

This modification was based on new trends and developments in the international context, including the Competition and Consumer Protection Program in Latin America, the Intergovernmental Group of Experts on Consumer Protection Law and Policy of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, and the 2015 United Nations Guidelines for Consumer Protection, which specifically refers to “consumers in situations of vulnerability and disadvantage.”

The Disposition defines these consumers as “any human person who, due to his/her age, gender, health conditions, or other social, economic, or cultural circumstances, is or may imminently be subject to any affectation of his/her rights as a consumer due to his/her particular condition.”

The Disposition also orders the Consumer Protection Authority to adopt the necessary actions to guide, assist, advise, and follow up on the claims initiated by this type of consumers. The Authority must identify and register such claims for statistical purposes, and inform and instruct on the scope of the Disposition.

The purpose of this Disposition is to provide an efficient and expedite treatment to the claims this specific group files.