The directors of the National Institute of the Protection of Consumer Rights (Proconsumidor) and the Specialized Corps of Tourist Security (Cestur), Anina del Castillo and Juan Carlos Torres Robiou, respectively, have signed an agreement to respond more efficiently and effectively to complaints made by tourists.
The complaints tourists most often report are about changes in the prices of services and products, sales of fake artisan works, hotel packages, long stays booked in villas that later are not honored, as well as from tourists who say they are being cheated by mafias of lawyers, among others.
Del Castillo said that the inter-institutional agreement will ensure that tourists can be made aware of their rights when purchasing goods and services, as well as bringing clarity in pricing and compliance with reserved hotel packages, among others.
Given the importance of the tourism sector, Del Castillo explained the inter-agency agreement would bolster tourism and the nation’s economy.
Torres Robiou said that the agreement would help to control bad commercial practices in tourist areas, especially the exorbitant increases in prices. He said that one of the areas worst from where more cases are reported is in Boca Chica. He said there, they have had complaints of a serving of fried fish for a tourist costing as much as RD$2,000 when the average price should be no more than RD$400. This occurs many times when a “guide” takes an unknowing tourist into a restaurant and then the restaurant levies the tourist guide’s commission onto the bill of the tourist.
In addition, in Boca Chica, he said there is a mafia of lawyers that takes advantage of tourists who have broken the law and charge these high sums of money in dollars to try and resolve their cases.
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Hoy
14 November 2018
