Capítulo IV. Dirección de atención y asistencia al consumidor

The Directorate for Consumer Attention and Assistance is hereby created as a dependency of the Ministry of Economy, which shall enjoy functional and technical independence with jurisdiction throughout the national territory, being the body responsible for the application of the present Law and regulations, without prejudice to the functions pertaining to the courts of justice.

The powers of the Directorate are:

a)Ensure respect for and compliance with the rights of consumers or users and the obligations of providers.

b)Apply the necessary measures to promote fairness and legal certainty in relations between providers and consumers and/or users.

c)Collect, prepare, process, disseminate and publish information to provide the consumer or user with better knowledge of the characteristics of the goods and services offered on the market.

d)Formulate and carry out programs for the dissemination of and training on consumer and user rights.

e)Promote and directly carry out, as applicable, educational and training programs on consumer and user guidance, as well as provide advisory assistance to consumers, users and providers.

f)Promote and conduct technical research in the areas of consumption of goods and use of services.

g)Initiate administrative proceedings in the case of an alleged violation of the provisions of this Law, its regulatory norms and decisions issued as a consequence thereof, on its own initiative or upon complaint by a person invoking a private interest or acting in defense of the general interest of consumers and users.

h)Establish expeditious and conciliatory procedures for the resolution of conflicts of which it becomes aware in accordance with this Law.

i)Enter into agreements with providers, consumers and/or users and their organizations to achieve the objectives of this Law.

j)Monitor to ensure that the supply of products and services is framed within the principles governing the market economy.

k)Ensure compliance by providers, in coordination with specialized administrative entities, with legal provisions related to technical regulations or quality standards, weights and measures for commercial activity or the health of the human person, as well as request the competent authority to adopt the necessary corrective measures, as applicable.

l)Apply the administrative sanctions established in this Law, where applicable, and publish the results.

m)Promote and support the establishment of consumer or user organizations, providing them with training and advisory assistance.

n)Maintain a register of consumer or user organizations and, where possible, of providers of certain products or services.

ñ)Directly or indirectly carry out a general program for verification of public-service measurements, in coordination with specialized administrative entities.

o)Represent the interests of consumers or users, advocating for them through the exercise of such actions, remedies, procedures and steps as may be appropriate.

p)Issue administrative measures in cases where calculation errors on the part of providers that economically affect the consumer or user are presumed.

q)Establish branch offices for different areas of the country as determined by the Directorate, taking into account their geographic location and in accordance with its budgetary capabilities.

r)Register adhesion contracts when requested by providers and the legal requirements are met.

s)The Directorate shall keep a monthly report on the administrative proceedings initiated before it, which it shall publish monthly, indicating the parties involved.

t)Register adhesion contracts on its own initiative.

u)Any others assigned to it by this Law.

The Director is the superior administrative authority and the highest-ranking executive public official of said Directorate, shall exercise his functions with absolute independence of judgment, but adhering to technical and legal criteria, under his responsibility in accordance with the law, shall likewise be in charge of the legal representation of the Directorate.

To be Director, the following is required:

a)To be Guatemalan.

b)To be in the enjoyment of their citizen rights.

c)To be a person of recognized honorability, probity and experience.

d)To be an attorney and notary or a professional in the Economic Sciences, an active member of the professional college.

The Director shall be appointed by the Minister of Economy.

The Director may be removed by the Minister of Economy, based on the following causes:

a)For committing fraudulent, illegal acts or acts clearly opposed to the powers or interests of consumers or users, of the Directorate and of the State in general.

b)For acting or proceeding with manifest negligence in the performance of his functions.

c)For having been judicially declared in a state of interdiction or for suffering a physical incapacity that renders him unable to exercise the office.

d)For having been convicted in a final judgment for the commission of an intentional crime.

In addition to the functions established in this Law, the attributions of the Director are:

a)To plan, organize, control, direct and integrate the physical, human and financial resources of the Directorate.

b)To ensure compliance with this Law and its respective regulations.

c)To submit the draft annual budget of the Directorate to the Ministry of Economy for its discussion and approval.

d)To create the technical sections required for the proper functioning of the Directorate, assigning their functions to them.

e)To promote collaboration with other national or international bodies or other states, in relation to the matters contained in this Law and its regulations.

f)To design the policies of the Directorate for the achievement of its objectives.

g)Such others as are inherent to the office.

The Directorate shall have a deputy director. To be deputy director, the same qualifications as those of the Director are required, and [the deputy director] shall likewise be appointed by the Minister of Economy.

In the event of absence or temporary impediment of the Director, the Deputy Director shall assume the office.

Consultants shall be included in a list or database of technicians and professionals in different legal, social and economic fields, who may be consulted by the Directorate during the administrative procedure. They shall be persons of recognized honorability, possess knowledge of the matters regulated by this Law and shall be in enjoyment of their civil rights.

In their actions they shall perform with independence of judgment, applying their knowledge and experience in matters for which they are required, being subject to what is prescribed by this Law, and for the cases for which they are appointed they shall earn fees in accordance with the agreed fees.

The Directorate shall have a body of legal, technical and administrative advisors, who shall be appointed by the Director and shall perform the functions inherent to their office. Their principal function shall be to advise the Directorate within the scope of its competence in accordance with the powers conferred upon it by this Law.

a)The funds allocated to it annually in the General Budget of Income and Expenditures of the Nation.

b)The ordinary and extraordinary contributions it receives from national or international entities.

c)The property of any nature transferred to it by the Government of the Republic or by entities decentralized by the State.

d)The donations or subsidies granted to it by individual or juridical persons, except those from suppliers or service providers that seek a

f)Funds from income from payment for sanctions that shall increase and shall constitute its private funds.

The inspection, oversight and control of the accounting and financial operations of the Directorate are the responsibility of its Internal Audit and of the Comptroller General of Accounts to the extent within its jurisdiction.

The Internal Audit of the Directorate is composed of an internal auditor who shall be appointed by the Director and the personnel necessary for the proper fulfillment of its purposes. The internal auditor must hold the university degree of Public Accountant and Auditor, be an active member of the professional association and have recognized experience in the subject matter of at least five years.