The Consumer Protection Law introduced potential monetary fines for "suppliers" of consumer products in the UAE in the event that any "harm" is suffered by consumers in the "ordinary use" of the product. Such fines may be between AED5 thousand and AED200 thousand, depending upon the precise nature of the infringement. In the event that the same violation is repeated within one year, the fine may be doubled. "Suppliers" are broadly defined, covering manufacturers, sellers, distributors, traders, importers and exporters.

Under the Consumer Protection Law, consumers have a right to "compensation for personal or material damages", with any agreement to the contrary being null and void. In addition, under the CPD Implementing Regulation consumers have a right to right to "compensation and fair settlement of his legitimate claims, including to be compensated for the bad quality goods, unsatisfactory services, or any other practices that may cause harm to the consumers". Any consumers who have a complaint are entitled to approach the CPD with that complaint, with the CPD then having the power to represent the affected individual(s) in any action against the supplier.

Suppliers and / or their commercial agents are under a general obligation to offer repair services and make available spare parts for products they manufacture or sell, with any contractual clause waiving that obligation will be void. When goods are manufactured locally and the consumer are not offered such services, the burden of any resulting liability is shared jointly by the manufacturer and seller.

When a supplier discovers an underlying defect in its product the Consumer Protection Law obliges them to notify both the CPD, and any affected consumers, before replacing, repairing and /or paying back the value of the good to the consumer. While not entirely clear from the drafting of the Consumer Protection Law (when read alongside the CPD Implementing Regulation), there appears to be a distinction drawn between a contractual "guarantee" or "warranty" (with the terms being used interchangeable, depending upon the translation taken), which can be time limited, and a statutory "guarantee" which seems to apply indefinitely in the case of "defective" products, regardless of any contractually agreed warranty period. Anecdotally we are aware that the CPD is willing to disregard any contractually agreed warranty period in an instance where an underlying defect in a product is discovered.

The CPD Implementing Regulation sets out detailed requirements around the notification including a comprehensive list of information which must be provided to the CPD, providing details about the affected product, the nature defect and the number of items sold in the UAE. In addition, the supplier will be required to provide a draft copy of the advertisement which must be published in order to disclose the issue with the product to consumers, as well as potentially requiring a locally produced testing report to verify the nature of the defect.

The Federal CPD (as well as the Emirate level consumer protection departments) takes a strongly pro-consumer attitude and, in the event that any fault or wrongdoing is discovered, it will look to aggressively protect the rights of UAE consumers.

The safety and quality of products (whether produced in the UAE or imported) is regulated by the Emirates Authority for Standardisation and Metrology ("ESMA"), which oversees all matters relating to standards, measurements, quality and standardisation of products. ESMA has recently established an online platform (Mannaa) for the reporting and recall of "unsafe" products (which is mandatory, under the Product Safety Law) , with details of recently recalled products being published regularly on its website.

In the event of a failure to comply with the Unsafe Product Law a UAE Court may issue fines of up to AED3 million, as well as potentially confiscating (and ordering the destruction of) the infringing products and even cancelling the supplier’s business licence.

The regulatory authorities for pharmaceuticals in the UAE are the UAE Ministry of Health and Prevention, the Department of Health Abu Dhabi, the Dubai Health Authority and the Sharjah Health Authority. These authorities monitor the licensing of pharmacists and pharmacies, the registration of pharmaceuticals as well as compliance with the advertising guidelines for drugs. The Municipality in Dubai deals with food related recalls.

The Department of Economic Development of each emirate has created a CPD in line with the provisions of the Law, and any consumers who have a complaint will approach the CPD with their complaint, who will represent the affected party in any action against the supplier.

Since they were established, these CPDs have adopted a pro-consumer attitude and, in the event that any fault or wrong doing is discovered, will look to aggressively protect the rights of a consumer who has been harmed.

The safety and quality of products (whether produced in the UAE or imported) is regulated by the Emirates Authority for Standardisation and Metrology, which oversees all matters relating to standards, measurements, quality and standardisation of products.

The regulatory authorities for pharmaceuticals in the UAE are the UAE Ministry of Health, the Health Authority Abu Dhabi, the Dubai Health Authority and the Emirates Health Authority. These authorities monitor the licensing of pharmacists and pharmacies, the registration of pharmaceuticals and advertising guidelines for drugs. The municipality in Dubai deals with food related recalls.