The National Consumer Commission (NCC) has warned consumers against transacting with Manicaa, a scam operation online, purporting to be an online business.
Acting National Consumer Commissioner, Thezi Mabuza, said the Commission has received several complaints from consumers alleging that they have purchased goods from Manicaa and did not receive their goods.
“Others alleged that they either received incorrect items, incomplete orders or defective goods with no assistance from the supplier. Upon following up on these complaints, the NCC’s investigation hit a snag as Manicaa is untraceable,” Mabuza said.
According to its website, Manicaa “sells” high end brands of items like kitchen appliances and electronics, to items like luxurious perfumes, clothing and shoes, baby products including baby foods, toys and clothes, car tyres and parts, to mention but a few.
Mabuza said the conduct of Manicaa is not in the spirit of the Consumer Protection Act (CPA).
“Manicaa’s modus operandi is to offer to sell these items, receive the money and not deliver those goods. The CPA requires that a supplier of goods delivers those goods to a consumer, on the agreed date and place.
“The physical address on their website suggests that Manicaa is operating from Midrand, while the map on the ‘contact us’ page suggests that Manicaa is based in Canada. The NCC’s preliminary findings indicate that Manicaa is a scam run by Webster Kutsawa and Clara Kutsawa,” Mabuza said.
While the NCC’s investigation is ongoing, the Commission advises consumers not to transact with Manicaa or these individuals.
“As e-commerce changes the way consumers transact, consumers are urged to exercise extra caution as online scams are on the rise.”
Before transacting online, do the following:
Check reviews other than those on the website of the store,
Analyse the overall look of the website will help in picking some of the discrepancies,
If the price is too good to be true, it is too good to be true.
Source: South African Government News Agency