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The Department of Consumer Affairs (DACO) aims to reduce the time it takes to address and resolve complaints. To achieve this, the agency will implement a new process in the coming weeks.

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This was announced by Francisco González de la Matta, acting secretary of the agency, in an interview with El Nuevo Día. He explained that he is working on a “pilot project” to handle complaints, with the goal of reducing wait times and backlogs.

“We are updating six regulations, including adjudicative procedures,” said the official, who anticipates they will be ready in November.

He noted that, by law, each complaint must be addressed and resolved within 180 days. However, in practice, this timeline is not always met. With the revised regulations, the goal is to resolve most complaints within 180 days or less.

Last year the agency received more complaints than in 2022, since there was an increase in vehicle complaints. The total number of complaints was 10,600, according to the secretary, but he could not specify how many were related to automobiles, nor how much the increase was in comparison to the previous year.

He also mentioned that, in recent times, complaints from condominiums have been among the most frequent. “We receive many complaints from condominium residents. These include disputes over decisions made by the board, issues with common property, parking problems, and voting matters.”

When asked about complaints related to the installation of solar panels, González de la Matta noted that “the number is reasonable.” The agency receives about twenty complaints per month, with 70% of them being resolved. “They are being addressed diligently.” At the beginning of 2023, DACO created a working group to handle these complaints, and the agency has been resolving an average of 80 cases per month.

DACO also oversees the gas industry, though in the past it has acknowledged lacking sufficient resources to protect consumers from unfair practices, particularly by wholesalers. The secretary stated that the agency continues to monitor gas prices and addresses any complaints that arise.

El Nuevo Día also inquired whether the agency has reviewed the minimum price that coffee farmers must be paid per bushel. The last revision took place in January 2023, after eight years without changes. The order was meant to remain in effect for one year, but this issue is not currently among the acting secretary’s priorities.

With three months remaining in this four-year term, González de la Matta will focus on educating merchants about the agency’s regulations and informing consumers about their rights and how to assert them. This, in addition to streamlining the complaint process and creating the Office to Combat Trade Discrimination.

González de la Matta joined DACO in February of this year when he was appointed deputy secretary. He is an attorney who previously worked at the law firm Cancio, Nadal & Rivera, and spent a year and a half in private practice in San Juan before joining DACO.

Upon the resignation of former secretary Lisoannette, González de la Matta assumed the role of acting secretary in July. This is his first experience working in government.

Why did he agree to go into government work? this newspaper asked. “I have always liked public service. In my close family, there are several public servants... They approached me, I didn’t evaluate it too much and I accepted,” he said, while narrating that his father was an agronomist in the Department of Agriculture and he has a great aunt who worked in what is now the Department of Labor.

González de la Matta is 30 years old. He studied law at Inter American University, focusing mainly on Corporate and International Law. He was also an athlete, practicing swimming, volleyball, and soccer — the latter being his favorite sport. He was the captain of his university’s team and still plays in two senior leagues.

The interviewee is the fourth official to occupy the secretary’s position during this four-year term. Over the past 15 years, DACO has had 10 different secretaries. Currently, the agency has 146 employees and plans to recruit three additional inspectors before the end of the year.

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This content was translated from Spanish to English using artificial intelligence and was reviewed by an editor before being published.