KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 5 (Bernama) -- Customers lost almost RM70 million due to unsatisfactory products and services last year, according to the National Consumer Complaints Centre.

NCCC chairman Datuk Dr N. Marimuthu said the centre received 41,531 complaints involving losses amounting to RM68,324,100.

The total of complaints increased by 28 per cent from 2009 (32,369), with the highest number (7,641) coming from the e-commerce (online shopping) sector, he added at the launch of the NCCC 2014 Annual Report, here today.

The report contains analyses and reviews of all complaints received from 22 different sectors. It also makes suggestions for customer satisfaction, and recommendations for ethical business practices.

Marimuthu, who is also president of Fomca (Federation of Malaysian Consumer Associations), said e-commerce was a rapidly growing business with the ever growing demand for inexpensive and easily accessible products, but customers must also be more careful when buying online.

"The benefits of buying goods and services online include finding better quality and cheaper products, variety of choices both of local and international products, and above all shopping in your own comfort zone, at home.

"But most of the consumers do not realise the risks that may arise from this and fail to understand that by agreeing to the terms and conditions they are bound to them. Most do not even read them (the terms and conditions)," he said.

The NCCC was launched by the Ministry of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs in July 2015 as an intermediary body between the government, private sector and consumers to identify solutions to complaints.

Marimuthu hoped that sellers would take note of the recommendations and suggestions in the report to improve their goods and services.

-- BERNAMA