A CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF THE ONLINE CONSUMER’S RIGHT TO INFORMATION IN NIGERIA

Abstract

In the bid to provide optimum protection to consumers governments in various jurisdictions have adopted different policies, laws and measures, which are all directed at eliminating the disparities in the consumer/seller relationship and ensuring that basic consumer rights are protected. There are various measures generally used in protecting the economic interest of consumer’s who engage in e-commerce. This paper discusses the information disclosure requirement as one of those measures and as a primary means of protecting the consumers’ right to information in Nigeria, South Africa and the United Kingdom. It finds that disproportionate focus is usually placed on mandating the provision of requisite information to consumers at the expense of ensuring that consumers understand and take advantage of the provided information. It therefore recommends that to achieve optimum protection for consumers in the online market by means of the information disclosure measure, attention should be given to the design and framing of consumer information. Additionally, there should be a standardized form for disclosure which will be used to streamline the types of information provided to consumers and the manner they are presented.