A DTI complaint is a written allegation that the Consumer Act or a Trade and Industry Law was violated in a consumer transaction, which is how DTI Department Administrative Order 20-02 defines it. Before you file, write down the facts the way a complaint letter the DTI can read sets them out. The DTI’s own pages put mediation ahead of any formal case, so the steps below follow that order.
What the DTI handles and what it sends elsewhere
The DTI’s complaints page carries a matrix of consumer agencies. It sends these concerns away from the DTI:
Gambling is not listed in that matrix. The DTI’s FAQ on jurisdiction describes its own reach as consumer products not under the Department of Health or the Department of Agriculture.
Steps to file a DTI complaint
Check that the DTI is the right office, using the matrix above.
Write the complaint letter or fill the Complaint Form.
File with the Mediation Division, a DTI Regional Office or a Provincial Office.
Go through mediation.
Lodge the formal complaint with the Certificate to File Action.
What to put in the DTI complaint
The DTI’s e-Sigaw page lists the contents of a complaint letter. These are the four parts:
Complete name, address, e-mail and contact number of complainant and respondent.
Narration of facts.
Demand.
Scanned proof of the transaction and a government-issued ID of the complainant.
consumercare@dti.gov.ph, or the Director, Fair Trade Enforcement Bureau, 5th Flr., Trade and Industry Building, 361 Sen. Gil J. Puyat Ave., 1200 Makati City
Outside Metro Manila
The provincial office directory on the complaints page
DTI head office
Filinvest Bldg., 387 Sen. Gil J. Puyat Ave., 1200 Makati City; 1-DTI (384) / (632) 7791.3100
Time limits in DAO 20-02
Stage
Limit
Where it is printed
Notice of Mediation issued
three working days
Rule III
Mediation
seven working days from service, extendable by not more than ten
Rule III Section 4
Formal complaint after the Certificate to File Action
ten working days from service
Rule III Section 6
Decision
fifteen working days from submission
Rule IV Section 13
Read each limit in the order itself, which the DTI lists on its DAO 20-02 download page.
The formal complaint and the two-year window
The DTI’s FAQ lists what a formal complaint holds:
A verified, dated and signed Complaint Form with names and addresses.
A concise statement of facts.
Sworn statements of witnesses or documentary evidence.
The reliefs prayed for.
A Certificate of Non-Forum Shopping.
The Certificate to File Action.
Article 169 of RA 7394 sets two years from the time the transaction was consummated for actions under the Act. DAO 20-02 adds that the prescriptive period resumes to run if no formal complaint is filed within ten working days after service of the Certificate to File Action. Keep every date, and read the DTI’s FAQ on the deemed-submitted rule: a case is deemed submitted for decision upon the lapse of ten working days from receipt of the Notice of Adjudication, per Section 10 of Rule IV.
FAQ
Is mediation required before a DTI complaint?
The DTI's FAQ says mediation is mandatory and a condition precedent to filing a consumer complaint, which can be filed once the Mediation Division issues a Certificate to File Action.
How long does DTI mediation last?
DAO 20-02, Rule III Section 4, says mediation is completed within seven working days from service of the Notice of Mediation, and the parties may agree to extend it by not more than ten working days.
What fee do I pay for a DTI complaint?
The DTI complaint pages saved for this site print no filing fee. Ask the office that receives your paper what it charges.
Does the DTI take complaints about gambling?
The matrix of consumer agencies on the DTI's complaints page does not list gambling. It lists the agencies for banks, telecoms, insurance, securities and deposit insurance.
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