How Weights & Measures Directorate Effects Protection Of Consumer Rights
Updated on: Feb 22, 2023
The County Government of Laikipia has a mandated directorate - Weight and Measures, to ensure honesty and fairness in business transactions.
One of the law guiding the directorates duties is the Weight and Measures Act. The intention is to prevent businesses from having unfair advantage over their competitors or customers through fraudulent and unjust practices.
The directorate works to enforce weight and measures act cap 513 that deals with the use, manufacture and sale of weight and measures equipment. It ensures that during sale of any commodity, the quantity that you purchase is not less than the quantity that you pay.
What are the activities of this directorate?
One of the initial activities performed by the directorate involves mapping of business premises in the county to identify those using weight and measures equipment. According to weight and measure officer John Hunja, the mapping helps to issue notices that the business premise will be visited for the testing, verification and stamping of the equipment.
What next step will commence thereafter?
Hunja notes that the county inspectors subject the scale to all the necessary tests to ascertain the status of the weight and measures equipment, The findings of this exercise can either be: the machine is okay or faulty. If the machine is okay, the inspector will charge the owner a fee prescribed by the Weight and Measure Act Cap 513, stamp the equipment and issue a certificate of verification. If the machine is faulty, the owner pays a rejection fee as prescribed by the act and thereafter undergoes another charge to repair the scale.
After the inspector ascertains it is working as it should, the equipment is stamped and the owner issued with a certificate of verification.
The verification ensures that equipment is weighing and measuring to within accuracy limits laid down in the act.
These activities carried out by the directorate are to ensure that whenever you go to buy say tomatoes, onions and potatoes at the market or get that matumbo quarter from a butchery, you get quantity worth your money.
For the prepackaged goods in your nearest duka, it makes sure that the packages intended for retail sale are marked with the correct statement of quantity.
Weight and measure equipment becomes the impartial referee and they must therefore be inspected to ensure they are in perfect working condition to protect you-the consumer.
One of the law guiding the directorates duties is the Weight and Measures Act. The intention is to prevent businesses from having unfair advantage over their competitors or customers through fraudulent and unjust practices.
The directorate works to enforce weight and measures act cap 513 that deals with the use, manufacture and sale of weight and measures equipment. It ensures that during sale of any commodity, the quantity that you purchase is not less than the quantity that you pay.
What are the activities of this directorate?
One of the initial activities performed by the directorate involves mapping of business premises in the county to identify those using weight and measures equipment. According to weight and measure officer John Hunja, the mapping helps to issue notices that the business premise will be visited for the testing, verification and stamping of the equipment.
What next step will commence thereafter?
Hunja notes that the county inspectors subject the scale to all the necessary tests to ascertain the status of the weight and measures equipment, The findings of this exercise can either be: the machine is okay or faulty. If the machine is okay, the inspector will charge the owner a fee prescribed by the Weight and Measure Act Cap 513, stamp the equipment and issue a certificate of verification. If the machine is faulty, the owner pays a rejection fee as prescribed by the act and thereafter undergoes another charge to repair the scale.
After the inspector ascertains it is working as it should, the equipment is stamped and the owner issued with a certificate of verification.
The verification ensures that equipment is weighing and measuring to within accuracy limits laid down in the act.
These activities carried out by the directorate are to ensure that whenever you go to buy say tomatoes, onions and potatoes at the market or get that matumbo quarter from a butchery, you get quantity worth your money.
For the prepackaged goods in your nearest duka, it makes sure that the packages intended for retail sale are marked with the correct statement of quantity.
Weight and measure equipment becomes the impartial referee and they must therefore be inspected to ensure they are in perfect working condition to protect you-the consumer.
