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The Consumer Protection Act - Part 3

Last month, I spent four days canoeing down the Orange River through the Richtersveld Desert, camping some nights in South Africa, and some in Namibia. However, before you get the wrong, if flattering idea that I was on some lone wolf, wilderness survival mission, a la Bear Grylls, let me assure you that it was nothing like that. Firstly, there were about fifteen of us in the group, and secondly, the trip was run by a specialist company, who provided all the food and boats, along with very good river guides, who were also excellent camp-fire cooks. Just to give you some idea, on the last evening, we had wonderfully moist, light chocolate cake for dessert – baked on the fire – and the rest of the food during the trip was just as impressive. So, while the nights got really cold, and we did sleep on the ground, I must admit that we were roughing it in relative comfort. However, this is not about food, proving my manliness, or even the trip itself.

I'm sure most of you have heard about, read about, and even seen quicksand in adventure movies. You've possibly heard, or even told jokes about it. You've most certainly heard rumours. Quicksand has been so romanticised in adventure folk-lore, jokes, and cartoons, that many people, especially we urban dwellers, have come to think of it as somewhat legendary, or even mythical – a rural myth if you please. Well, I'm here to tell you that quicksand is neither funny, mythical, nor legendary. I can also assure you that its embrace can in no possible way be considered pleasant or romantic – unless your idea of romance involves infinite amounts of insecurity and clingyness. Think anaconda with severe separation issues. Quicksand exists, and its scary.

The mid-morning sun was shining, and I was standing on the hard-packed mud on the bank of the Orange River, about to climb into my canoe to get our adventure under-way. My paddling partner was already seated in the front of the canoe. The bank was slippery, but firm under the soles of my rugged Rocky sandals. I took one short step forward, pushing the canoe further into the river as I went, and my foot, along with much of my leg, disappeared into the earth. In an attempt to regain my balance, I stepped forward with my other foot, which was of course, also instantly swallowed. In literally less time than it took my mind to formulate an appropriate expletive, I had already sunk to above my knees. Now, when I say “sunk”, you should not imagine a graceful, or in any way gradual descent. Think rather of the snap of a trap, a predatory ambush, or that immeasurably brief moment when, as a husband you go from, “I think I did good ...”, to, “What the hell just happened?”. In the space of less than a second, I went from standing on the earth to being almost completely, and immovably trapped by it. Let me assure you, until you've experienced this personally, it is almost impossible to imagine quite what it is like.

Quicksand occurs when an area of sand also contains so much trapped water, that the sand grains are actually held suspended in the water. This semi-solid substance is usually topped by a relatively thin layer that looks just like the ordinary sand or mud surrounding it. However, as soon as you break through this relatively thin surface, there is little, or nothing to support the weight of your body, causing you to sink. Now, that may sound bad enough, but what happens next really puts the bow on the show. The action of your body sinking into this semi-solid mixture, displaces most of the water between the sand particles immediately surrounding your body, causing them to pack tightly around you. If, as in my case, the “sand” particles are actually incredibly fine river clay particles, you feel like you've been trapped in instant-set cement.

Fortunately, I was still holding onto the canoe, and so could use it to stop my descent into the bowels of the earth, and to help free myself from this quagmire. Even so, the quicksand had flowed into the gap between my feet and the relatively large, flat surface of the inner-soles of my sandals, making movement and escape even more difficult. My sandals, were of course quite firmly strapped to my feet, and thus very effectively locked them into a horizontal position in which the mud could most effectively resist my escape attempts.

Of course, your first response is to get out as quickly as possible, but its only when you remember to move achingly slowly, that you will be able to move at all. Fast movements further compact the particles, creating more of a solid, whereas very slow movements allow some water to move back between the particles, recreating some fluidity. Panic and fear are the enemy. Only calm, reasoned action can save you. Of course, while you're remembering this from from your boyhood adventure reading, or from watching Ultimate Survival more recently, you are still sinking. Please believe me when I say that this does not help to foster a calm and reasoned approach, in either thought or action.

Of course the fact that I'm now sitting at home, with my feet up, writing this article, means that I did successfully escape the clutches of quicksand. I was fortunate in a number of ways. Firstly, I was not alone. Secondly, I had the canoe to hold on to, and thirdly, I knew what to do (all those years of adventure stories weren't wasted after all). Finally, and possibly most importantly, I did not panic. Even so, my escape resulted in some wrenched joints, sore muscles, and lost skin (from sandal straps),  all of which provided, for the remainder of the trip and beyond, minor, unpleasantly nagging reminders of my introduction to quicksand.

Well, officially, the CPA (Customer Protection Act) has been with us for about five months already. In reality, how many of us have actually noticed any real changes that have occurred because of it? I think I'm right to say not many, and not much. Well, maybe there have been some; a few customers that are a little more aware of their rights and will no longer take a store credit for something they don't really want. Maybe there has been a very slight decrease in the number of junk advertising emails and texts for items that you didn't request. And yes, particularly in the property industry, there has been rather a lot of complaining, and even some predictions of doom and destruction because of the new legislation.

That said, there is one fairly substantial change that I've noticed, and that is the sudden appearance of numerous businesses offering to CPA-proof your business. Basically what they offer is to go through all your business' documentation, contracts, and forms, and ensure that there are no loopholes under the new legislation that would allow people to sue your business unduly. Sounds like a great offer and a valuable service, and in some instances, it may well be. However, many of these businesses are taking full advantage of the atmosphere of uncertainty and even fear resulting from this fairly major legislative change in order to charge rather exorbitant amounts of money (in my opinion) to perform this service. For example, when I'm not wearing my writer, photographer or consultant hats, I help my wife with running her nursery school. Now, I can assure you, in terms of documentation, a nursery school is not very complex. We have a basic registration form, a basic indemnity form, and a basic staff employment contract. The main purpose of the registration form is to provide sufficient information about the child & parents concerned to enable proper care of the child, and to facilitate parental contact in case of sickness or other necessity. Oh yes, we also want to be able to follow up on parents that don't pay their fees. What I'm getting at, is that this is a very simple document. Our indemnity document, while crossing and dotting all the appropriate bits of the alphabet, is about as effective as any other, which is as effective as it can be. By this I mean, that if it is challenged in court, it will be the party with the best lawyers and the deepest pockets that will win. Well, this particular company, which is actually quite reasonably prices for this market, wanted to charge us about three thousand Rand to look at about seven pages (well spaced) of text. The cost of these services to larger businesses, with larger incomes can apparently be truly staggering. By bringing them on-board to CPA-proof our business, we also co-incidentally, sign up for a four month contract, which I'm sure they are hoping will be extended indefinitely. The idea of the contract is that they will apparently continue to check that our documents remain CPA-proofed during that time. They will apparently advise us in the event of someone suing us on a CPA-related matter. Now, to be fair, I can see that there are businesses for which this would certainly be a valuable and even necessary service. However, for us, it really did not seem to make sense.

So here is your business, walking along the bank of the river (metaphorically speaking, of course), doing what it has always done – what it does best – suspecting nothing, perhaps not realising the implications of the changed environment in which it now finds itself. Is there quicksand in its path? Is the ground going to suddenly give way beneath your feet, trapping you in a tight spot? What form will this new danger to your business take?

Well, I've already mentioned one of the new “quicksand pits” that are to be found in this relatively new CPA-related business environment. That is of course, the companies that offer to CPA-proof your business. Please don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that these companies are necessarily a waste of time and money, or that they are bad. I'm not saying that you should not seriously look into making use of their services. What I am saying is be aware – be careful, don't be led, or rather misled by a changed legislative landscape and the fears or uncertainty that are to be found in it. Choose carefully and make sure that you are getting value-for-money service.

In the normal run of things, we all tend to get lulled into a sense of security; we've “been here” so often and for so long that we consider our business to be in safe territory. What we all have to be aware of at the moment is that the environment has changed. It may look the same from our viewpoint within our businesses, but it has changed. The ground may look just as firm as usual, but that does not mean that we aren't about to step into quicksand. The economic landscape may look the same as ever, but its not. We might be distracted by other, more easily visible dangers, such as collapsing markets, and falling currencies, but the less obvious quicksand of new, strictly monitored legislation, looking to set precedents, can damage or sink your business even more quickly than the fall of the Dollar.

So, what are some of the things that businesses should be looking out for in this changed legislative landscape? Here are a few pointers.

1.    The purpose of the CPA is not to punish or place adverse restrictions on honest businesses that are treating their clients fairly.

2.    With this in mind, review your business' client-service policies and ensure that you are being completely fair to your clients – from their perspective, not yours. I find it always helps to place myself in the position of my clients and ask what I'd like, or expect if I was them.

3.    Ensure that your contracts, agreements and client-service meet the standards set by the CPA for your particular industry. Carefully consider various options for this process. There are not only new businesses that specialise in this process, but also lawyers and accounting firms that have taken a special interest in this legislation. Where pertinent, consult your industry's governing body, as they have a vested interest in your success, and should be up to speed on industry-specific areas of the CPA.

4.    As I said in Part One of this series on the CPA, businesses that are truly providing their clients with great service, have very little, if anything to worry about in terms of the CPA, since its stated purpose is to improve client-service.

Remember, offering great service to your clients may seem expensive in the short term, but in the longer term, it almost always pays off. So, embrace the the CPA legislation, get your business up to code, and watch it pay off in customer loyalty, word-of-mouth advertising, and lots of new clients.

If I may sum up in three pithy comments:

As with quicksand, panic and fear are the enemy. Only calm, reasoned action can save you.

Paying fresh attention to where you're going and how you're getting there will not only keep you out of the “quicksand”, but will also provide new vistas of opportunity and riches along the way.

On any journey into new or changing territory, it always pays to make friends with the locals. (i.e. your clients)

Author: Robin Bownes.