• World Consumer Rights Day
• About WCRD
• World Consumer Rights Day 2012
• WCRD 2011
  • Show banks the yellow card
  • Vox pops
  • WCRD 2011 in Africa
  • Asia & The Middle East
  • Eastern Europe & FSU
  • Europe & North America
  • Latin America & Caribbean
• WCRD 2010
  • Member Involvement
• WCRD 2009
• WCRD 2008
  • Member Involvement
• WCRD 2007
• WCRD 2006

Latin America & Caribbean

World Consumer Rights Day 2011 in Latin America and the Caribbean

Consumer organisations throughout the region organised a wide variety of events for World Consumer Rights Day (WCRD) 2011 under the theme of Consumers for Fair Financial Services, including:

Tribuna, Ecuador took to the streets in Quito, Guayaquil and Cuenca to spread the word about WCRD.

PRO TESTE, Brazil, held a number of events across São Paulo, including seminars at the city's Bar Association and disseminating information at MASP, the modern art museum. PROTESTE also circulated a press release where they gave banks the 'yellow card', and launched the results of a new study identifying the key problem areas for consumer of financial services in Brazil.

CODECOH, Honduras released a statement highlighting the international theme for WCRD 2011 and calling on the government to effectively enforce the country's new Consumer Protection Act.

IDEC, Brazil, launched "The banks and you", a new guide to help the public understand the different products and services on offer and their rights as consumers. The guide, produced in collaboration with Contraf (Confederação Nacional dos Trabalhadores do Ramo Financeiro) features advice on choosing a bank, opening and closing accounts, credit cards, cheques, fees and charges, and also includes template complaint letters. IDEC also criticized new guidelines on credit cards issue by the Brazilian central bank as insufficient.

SERNAC, Chile organized a fair in the main square of Santiago to celebrate WCRD and disseminate the results of a series of studies on consumer detriment in relation to financial services. CI members CONADECUS and ODECU also put up stalls, as did CI's Santiago Office.

ASPEC, Peru organised a forum around the theme of "The consumer and financial services". Former ASPEC President Jaime Delgado released also launched his new book - "The naked consumer".

ProConsumidor, Dominican Republic launched the "best educational project" competition, inviting local consumer organisations to submit proposals for projects on protecting the rights of financial consumers.

Ipadecu, Panama staged a football match outside the headquarters of the headquarters of the banking regulatory authority in Panama City. Informational posters and brochures were distributed to onlookers and passersby

ACODECO, Panama held a number of activities throughout the week of 14 to 18 March including a 'Forum on Consumer Rights' which focused on the claims procedures for financial consumers.

Movimiento Iniciativa de los Consumidores, Venezuela held a press conference around the theme of 'fair financial services' and promoting recently introduced insolvency legislation.

AIS CODEDCO, Bolivia, held a joint press conference with the Vice-Ministry of Consumer Rights on 15 March. Regional and local groups disseminated various materials in including a consumer guide to financial services and leaflets 'giving banks the yellow card' and informing consumers of alternative sources of credit.