The sixth edition of Premju Servizz bi Tbissima was launched last week by the Office for Consumer Affairs at the Malta Competition and Consumer Affairs Authority. The award recognises local retailers and service providers who, through good customer care and aftersales service, provide the best shopping experience to their customers. The award also encourages and promotes commercial practices that provide more benefits to consumers than those stipulated by law.
Speaking at the launch of this year’s edition of the award, Consumer Protection Parliamentary Secretary Deo Debattista said “through such initiatives, economic operators that offer a good quality service and place consumers at the centre of their business operations, stand out among competitors”.
Debattista added that a service with a smile is one that goes beyond what the law requires from sellers because it focuses on consumers’ well-being and satisfaction.
During the launch, MCCAA chairperson Helga Pizzuto stressed on the value of strengthening the relationship between consumers and traders. The importance of this relationship came under the spotlight during the difficult times of the pandemic as consumers relied on sellers for the provision of essential products and services, all with heightened safety measures in place. A number of local traders also changed or adapted their business model by shifting their services online and started offering delivery services.
Consumers who vote in the competition are eligible to win one of four cash prizes of €100 each. The prizes are drawn every week
Pizzuto also referred to consumers’ buying behaviour and expectations that have evolved over the 10 years since the MCCAA was set up and to measures being taken to ensure ongoing protection of consumer rights. The emergence and rise in popularity of products that contain digital elements, or that primarily constitute of digital content, are now being catered for in the regulatory framework, and new legislative measures will shortly be in place.
The growth in online shopping has also necessitated a shift in the way the authority monitors the market for compliance with a view to proactively removing unsafe products from the market and take immediate action to halt any fraudulent commercial practices.
During the award’s launch it was explained that it was consumers directly who give recognition for good service provided by traders as it is they who are eligible to vote in the competition. There are four main categories in which consumers can vote: online local sellers, supermarkets and mini markets, electronic products and household goods, and fashion and beauty. While consumers can vote for more than one seller, even within the same category, they can only vote once for the same seller.
Consumers can vote through the competition’s webpage servizzbitbissima.mccaa.og.mt and also through the MCCAA website www.mccaa.org.mt.
This year the competition opened on Friday, July 23, and closes on Friday, August 20. Consumers who vote in the competition are eligible to win one of four cash prizes of €100 each. The prizes are drawn every week during the competition period.
When the voting period ends, the sellers who receive most votes in each of the four categories will be checked to ensure that the prospective winners meet the criteria of the award’s code of conduct. The winners of the four categories will be announced during an awards ceremony and will each receive a trophy and a certificate. The winners will also be able to use the Servizz bi Tbissima logo in their retail outlets and on their promotional material.
For further information about the Servizz bi Tbissima award e-mail info@mccaa.org.mt or call 2395 2000.
Odette Vella, Director, Information and Research Directorate
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