Consumer protection in Solomon Islands

Consumer protection in Solomon Islands is fragmented across national law, sector regulators and administrative or informal remedies. The Consumer Protection Act 1995 (Cap. 63) covers goods and services supplied by manufacturers, traders and suppliers. Goods include gas, electricity, water and telecommunications. Services include professional work, utilities, recreation and instruction. The Act also binds the Crown when it conducts business. The Minister may approve product safety or quality standards. Supplying or trading goods below an approved standard is prohibited. Traders must display prices clearly and provide a receipt on request showing the date, quantity and price, including whether the price is wholesale or retail. Misleading or deceptive conduct is prohibited, including false claims about quality, newness, sponsorship, benefits, repairs or warranties. A trader offering after-sales service must have suitable facilities and should maintain reasonable supplies of spare or replacement parts. A service contract carries implied warranties that the provider will use due care and skill, use suitable materials and meet a purpose disclosed by the customer. A complaint about goods below an approved standard must be made in writing to the Director within 14 days after sale under the Consumer Protection Act. The trader, manufacturer or supplier receives an opportunity to be heard. Possible redress includes compensation, replacement or a refund. A ministerial recall can require a supplier to recall defective goods, disclose the defect and repair, replace or refund them. CAPC can advise consumers, receive complaints about fraudulent or unfair practices, investigate, inspect premises, obtain paid samples, examine records, mediate, refer matters and initiate legal action. A Director's decision can be appealed to the Magistrates' Court within 7 days. No CAPC complaint fee or standard processing timetable was identified, and practical access is concentrated in Honiara; provincial inspectors and authorities provide functional alternatives. Price Control Act (Cap. 64) and successive Gazette Orders restrict the wholesale and retail prices of controlled goods. The latest located Price Control Amendment No. 10 Order 2026 lists petroleum maximums of 900.36 Solomon Islands cents per litre wholesale and 1,123.87 retail for PMS, and 1,008.95 wholesale and 1,245.29 retail for ADO. Kerosene is priced using cost into store plus 15% for packaged supply or 20% for break-bulk supply. These figures can change, and Honiara-specific orders may apply alongside national rules. The Weights and Measures Act (Cap. 155) supports inspection, calibration and certification of trade scales. Financial complaints normally start with the licensed bank, insurer, credit institution, credit union, foreign-exchange dealer, money changer or mobile-money provider. CBSI guidance requires pre-contract disclosure of interest rates, fees and charges. A provider's complaints unit should acknowledge a written complaint within 3 business days and issue a decision or resolution within 1 month or 30 calendar days. An unresolved or unsatisfactory complaint can go to CBSI, which should respond within 1 month and may mediate or issue a binding response or compensation. Credit Reporting Regulations 2025 allow requests to access, correct or delete credit information. After the data provider responds, the provider should correct the record within 5 business days; a refusal can be appealed to CBSI within 10 business days, with a CBSI review response expected within 21 business days. The Payment Systems Act 2022 and CBSI guidance also address payment systems, fair treatment, transparency, redress and data privacy. Mobile-money customers should keep their PIN secret, use reasonable care and complain about agent conduct. Savings-group rights promoted by CBSI are guidance and do not provide the same statutory dispute process as a regulated provider. Telecommunications disputes follow a provider-first process. Under the Telecommunications Act 2009, a provider must file prices and conditions with TCSI within 7 days and publish them at its website and points of sale. It may bill only for ordered services or equipment. Postpaid invoices should be regular, plain, accurate and explain the calculation method; prepaid customers can request an expenditure review. Providers must protect customer consent and security and allow inspection, correction or removal of inaccurate data. A provider with a dominant position must offer an easy, free, impartial and quick complaint process with remedies such as refunds or compensation. A customer should first complain to the provider and then lodge a complaint with TCSI. TCSI can investigate, order reimbursement or another remedy and impose administrative penalties. The Telecommunications Act prevails over the Consumer Protection Act in a conflict, and the Price Control Act does not apply to telecommunications service access. Food and medicine have separate safeguards. The Pure Food Act 1996 prohibits adulterated, falsely described, damaged or expired packaged food and misleading, deceptive or exaggerated food labels or advertising. Closed packages require labelling and date marking. Health Inspectors can enter, inspect, sample, seize, condemn and destroy unsafe food, including water, ice, beverages, alcohol and additives. Honiara City Council Health Officers and provincial inspectors perform much of this work, with CAPC assistance. The Pharmacy and Poisons Act (Cap. 105) regulates poison import licences and sales, while the National Pharmacy Division addresses safe access, quality control and counterfeit or substandard medicines. On 27 March 2026, MHMS warned against Sabah Brand Miracle Energy Coffee after testing found 69.1 mg of tadalafil per sachet, about three times the recommended adult dose, creating a prescription-only medicine risk. Consumers should avoid such products and seek medical advice through the appropriate health service. Utility charges depend on the governing law and current notices. Electricity charges under the Electricity Act (Cap. 128) include domestic prepaid totals of SBD 8.01 per kWh below 50 kWh, SBD 8.53 from 50 to 200 kWh and SBD 9.06 above 200 kWh under regulations commencing 1 June 2026. The listed commercial rate is SBD 8.02 per kWh, the industrial rate is SBD 7.88 and the fuel component is SBD 4.89. Solomon Power handles billing, meter, line-fault and connection or disconnection matters through 166 or 167. Water tariffs and fees arise under the SIWA Act (Cap. 130), ministerial notices and Solomon Islands Water Authority schedules; a 2025 fee schedule was located, but the current tariff should be confirmed. No unified utility ombudsman or external dispute process was evidenced. Travel protection focuses more on safety regulation than standardized passenger compensation. No general aviation or maritime regime establishing cancellation, refund or compensation rights was evidenced in the reviewed sources. CAASI regulates aviation safety, security and technical matters. SIMA inspects domestic vessels, checks passenger numbers, loading and safety, can detain non-compliant vessels and provides schedule or safety information. A passenger can submit a written claim to the carrier or vessel company, use CAPC for commercial unfairness, report safety concerns to CAASI or SIMA and pursue a private court claim where appropriate. No standard compensation timetable or fee process was identified. Fraudulent offers can breach the Consumer Protection Act through misleading conduct, false representations and false claims about business profits or risks. CBSI and SIFIU warned in 2026 that the F-Mobile pyramid scheme was unlicensed, unregulated and unauthorised and used a high-return recruitment model. A suspected scam should be reported promptly to the bank or payment provider, SIFIU and the Royal Solomon Islands Police Force. Reporting does not guarantee recovery of money. Online purchases have no separately evidenced comprehensive e-commerce consumer-rights code or online dispute system; complaints can therefore use the Consumer Protection Act and CAPC, the relevant provider or bank dispute process, and the police or SIFIU where fraud is suspected.