Consumers are wary of industries such as telecommunications, real estate and car sales.
Montreal, April 12, 2022 - Option consommateurs today unveils the results of its first Industry Confidence Barometer which shows that consumers are distrustful of companies, particularly those in the telecommunications, real estate and car sales sectors.
The Barometer, based on a survey conducted forOption consommateurs by Léger, shows that almost half of Canadians have no confidence in the eight industries with which they regularly interact.
These eight industries are retail, travel, banks and financial institutions, insurance, food, car sales, real estate and telecommunications.
The retail, travel and banking/financial institutions sectors garner the highest level of confidence, even though the highest score is only 60%.
Telecommunications, on the other hand, is at its lowest level, with only 48% of respondents expressing confidence in companies in this sector. Real estate and the car sales industry follow with only 51% confidence.
The Barometer uses four main themes to determine the level of consumer confidence. Respondents were asked about the accuracy of information received by the merchant, the clarity of contracts, respondents' general opinion of the industry, and the level of trust placed in companies to adequately protect personal data held.
Only 41% of consumers believe that telecoms companies' contracts are clear, 42% believe that the price advertised by the retailer corresponds to the price paid, and 42% believe that retailers in this industry adequately protect their personal data.
The car sales industry also performs poorly when it comes to the accuracy of information conveyed, with almost half of respondents reporting that the merchant in this sector failed to disclose important information about the good or service.
"The Barometer allows us to see that industries have work to do to restore trust with consumers, whether in the accuracy of the information transmitted, the clarity of their contracts or the way they handle their customers' personal information. The results remind us of the importance of having public bodies with the means to monitor companies and issue sanctions; this would enable consumers to be less distrustful and force industries to change their practices", insists Christian Corbeil, Managing Director ofOption consommateurs.
The Barometer was built using survey data from a randomly selected sample of 2,504 Canadians via Léger's LEO web panel, from March 3 to 13, 2022.
The results of the Barometer and other aspects of the survey such as consumer financial concerns, online shopping and negative option contracts are available on the Option consommateurs website.
The Industry Confidence Barometer project was made possible thanks to funding from the Office of Consumer Affairs of Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada.
About Option consommateurs
Option consommateurs is a non-profit association whose mission is to defend the rights and interests of consumers. It focuses on issues related to personal finance, business practices, financial services, privacy, energy, debt and access to justice.
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For more information or an interview :
Marie-Ève Dumont, Communications Consultant
514-777-6133
