Prices, receipts and returns under Nigeria's FCCPA
What Nigeria's FCCPA expects of a shop on displayed prices, used goods, written records and returns, and how till receipts and refunds support it.
By Achekam · · 4 min read · For Retail businesses in Nigeria
The sign by the door of a phone accessories shop in Ikeja reads "No refund, no exchange." The shelf label on a charger says one price and the cashier rings up another, because the label is from last month. A customer asks for a receipt and is told the printer is not working. Each of those is ordinary in a busy shop. Each also runs into Nigeria's consumer protection law.
The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act, the FCCPA, sets out duties for every business that sells to consumers. The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, the FCCPC, explains them on its consumer rights pages. This article takes the rules a shop meets every day, one by one, and then shows how a shop's till records can back it up.
Say it plainly, and charge what you display
The FCCPC states that section 114 of the FCCPA requires businesses to provide information about their products and services in plain language that consumers can easily understand. It also states that section 115 requires businesses to fully disclose material facts, including prices, and that displayed prices must be equivalent to the point-of-payment or cash-out price.
For a shop, that means:
- shelf labels, price boards and online listings show the price the customer will actually pay;
- when prices change, labels change the same day, before the till price does;
- extra charges, such as for delivery or installation, are stated up front, not added at the counter;
- terms that matter, such as warranty conditions, are written in words a customer understands.
The second point is the one that slips most easily. Under section 115 the label and the till should never disagree, so decide in advance that staff will honour the displayed price and fix the label, rather than argue at the counter.
Used, second-hand or reconditioned goods
The FCCPC states that section 117 of the FCCPA obliges businesses to inform consumers conspicuously and adequately when products are used, second-hand or reconditioned. Phone and laptop shops, furniture dealers and appliance resellers meet this every day.
"Conspicuously" leaves no room for small print. A practical approach:
- Label the item itself, not just the shelf, with "used", "second-hand" or "refurbished" as appropriate.
- Say the same on the receipt line for that item.
- Tell the customer before payment, and make sure staff know they must.
Written records on request
The FCCPC states that section 118 of the FCCPA requires businesses, except where impracticable, to provide written records of transactions when a consumer asks, itemising the goods or services sold and any applicable taxes. "The printer is not working" is a weak answer. A shop should have a way to produce the record later if it cannot print at the moment of sale.
Returns: the right the sign cannot remove
The FCCPC states that section 122 of the FCCPA gives consumers the right to return products, except in limited circumstances, as long as the product remains in good condition and is returned within a reasonable time. It also states that section 129 makes void and of no effect any notice or agreement that purports to limit, exclude or waive a business's liability for defective performance, fraud, negligence or misrepresentation, or to waive implied obligations.
Read together, those two sections suggest that a blanket "No refund, no exchange" sign is unlikely to protect the shop. A better approach is a written returns policy that works with the law:
| Situation | Sensible policy |
|---|---|
| Faulty goods | Repair, replace or refund, and record the fault |
| Goods in good condition, returned within a reasonable time | Accept the return as the law expects, and record it |
| Goods damaged by the customer, or not in good condition | Explain why the return is refused, in writing |
| Items in an excluded category | State the exclusion clearly before the sale |
Define what the shop treats as "a reasonable time" for its kind of goods, and train staff to apply it consistently. The FCCPC's rights and responsibilities page sets out the consumer rights in this part of the FCCPA, including information, quality, returns and fair dealing.
The till as the shop's record
When a dispute arises, the shop is in a far stronger position if every sale, refund and exchange left a record. In Achekam:
Receipts. The till receipt is a PDF made by the server from the posted sale, showing every payment, VAT by rate and the business's tax number. It can be printed, downloaded or e-mailed to the customer. Because it is made by the server from the posted sale, a broken printer at the counter does not stop the shop from sending the customer a receipt afterwards, which helps with section 118. Look at a printed receipt with section 118's itemising requirement in mind. How payments by card, transfer and other methods appear is covered in till payment methods in Nigeria.
Refunds. A supervisor or manager can refund all or part of a till sale with a reason, as its own document linked to the sale, with the goods put back into stock. The linked document shows when the return happened and why, and the reason field is where staff write "faulty on arrival" or "returned unused within the period" so the policy is visibly applied. If the goods were faulty, decide separately whether they should go back to the supplier rather than onto the shelf.
Store credit. A till refund can be given as store credit, issued as a voucher. Use it where the customer chooses it, not as a way to avoid a refund the law expects. Refund options in general are covered in refunds, voids and store credit.
Take down any "No refund, no exchange" sign this week, replace it with a short written returns policy, and walk the shop floor checking that every shelf label matches the price at the till.
General guidance only, not advice on your own circumstances. Tax and payroll rules change: check the current position with the authority or your adviser.
