Alan Bernard argues the new consumer authority must examine whether banks’ accumulating charges unfairly burden struggling Jamaicans.
Opposition Senator Alan Bernard has made a pointed case for Jamaica’s incoming Jamaica Consumer and Competition Authority to take on banking fees as a priority consumer issue. Speaking in the Senate on Friday during debate on the JCCA Bill, Bernard argued that the new authority—which will replace the Consumer Affairs Commission and Fair Trading Commission—should be empowered to study banking practices through both consumer-protection and competition lenses.
Bernard emphasized that the concern is not about preventing banks from charging fees or undermining the Bank of Jamaica, but rather about determining whether the market operates fairly for consumers. He highlighted how individual charges—a $200 fee here, a $300 fee there, transaction and service charges—may seem trivial in isolation but accumulate into genuine financial strain for pensioners, minimum-wage workers, small business operators, and households already stretched by the cost of living.
“The fact that an individual amount may be too small to justify expensive litigation is precisely why strong consumer institutions matter,” Bernard told Parliament, according to the Jamaica Observer. He pointed to Section 24 of the Bill, which grants the Consumer and Competition Tribunal power to modify terms deemed “manifestly unfair to a consumer,” and pressed for clarity on whether this protection extends to banking services.
Bernard posed a direct question to Industry Minister Senator Aubyn Hill: can consumers challenge banking fees before the new authority on grounds of unfairness, or does another institution hold that jurisdiction? He stressed that Parliament must identify which body determines whether banking charges are manifestly unfair, separate from mere disclosure requirements.
The Senator framed banking fees as a test of the merged authority’s effectiveness. Success, he argued, should be measured not by institutional consolidation alone, but by whether Jamaican consumers gain greater marketplace power, easier access to redress, and whether powerful suppliers face greater accountability. In closing debate, Senator Hill noted that consumers typically lodge banking complaints with the Bank of Jamaica, though the Bill ultimately passed with three amendments.
The Jamaica Consumer and Competition Authority Bill consolidates two existing consumer-focused agencies—the Consumer Affairs Commission and the Fair Trading Commission—into a single body with expanded powers to study market practices and protect consumer interests. The legislation was piloted by Minister Aubyn Hill and passed the Senate with amendments.
Banking fees and charges represent a widespread concern across Caribbean economies where consumers, particularly low-income households, face accumulating financial burdens from financial institutions with significant market power. Jamaica’s legislative debate reflects broader regional questions about consumer protection frameworks and whether merged regulatory bodies can effectively challenge entrenched banking practices.
Sources and attribution
Written & Edited by Orlyn Edwards. Published by Caribbean Air Force Media.
Category: Business · Island routing: Jamaica