Complaints about price rises have doubled in the past six months. Public exasperation over what it perceives as systematic overcharging has clearly reached breaking point. Edward Power reports
'Rip-off Ireland" is a phrase increasingly associated with the post-Celtic tiger era. Many of us suspect that cynical vested interests have exploited high inflation and the introduction of the euro to engage in shameless profiteering.
The Consumers' Association reports a 100 per cent surge in complaints about price rises in the past six months. Public exasperation over what it perceives as systematic overcharging has clearly reached breaking point.
Research on the issue is disparate and contradictory but there is clear evidence that increases in the cost of goods and services significantly outpaced inflation following the introduction of the euro. "Unusual increases" were identified in a June 2002 report by Forfás, the State's trade and enterprise think-tank. Prices climbed disproportionately in 10 of the 12 categories that comprise the consumer price index. Doctors' fees recorded the highest increase at 7.6 per cent, while publicans were shown to have tacked more than 5 per cent onto the cost of beer and wine. Dentists, hairdressers, cinemas, opticians and pharmacists were also found to have raised charges substantially.
The impact on the economy was immediate and drastic: the Republic's cost of living accelerated dramatically to become the second highest in the euro zone, behind Finland and substantially ahead of France and Germany. Nearly a year after its publication, the Tánaiste is understood to be currently studying the report.
Less obvious are the remedies available to those convinced overcharging is rife. Advocates of ministerial intervention overlook one of the fundamental tenets of free market economics, says the Director of Consumer Affairs, Carmel Foley. It is individuals, rather than the State, who must confront alleged overcharging in the first instance; consumers are the ultimate - indeed the sole - arbiters of value for money with government and voluntary agencies holding little influence.
Her message is stark and uncompromising: if you feel you are being ripped off, you should not be shy about protesting. Unfortunately, too many of us are passive consumers, content to pay now and moan later, says Foley.
"As a lobby group, Irish consumers are not very militant. Unlike our peers on the Continent, we don't have a tradition of activism or of reacting to unfair pricing. If anything we have always been remarkably tolerant," Foley explains. "Consumers are hugely loyal to brands and have been shown to remain loyal even if prices increase. At a personal level, each of us can take responsibility for overcharging. If we suspect we are being asked to pay too much for a good or service, then we often have the option of saying No."
While there is a perception that certain sectors have been especially quick to increase prices, no one industry has attracted a discernibly higher level of complaints, says Foley. People have taken issue with the escalating cost of alcohol, groceries and restaurants - but we have not confined our dissatisfaction to these sectors. We have railed against florists, barbers and utilities providers. In fact, many of us suspect that virtually every sector of the business community is attempting to hoodwink use. Although some traders may have capitalised on confusion over the euro and escalating inflation to hike their charges, Foley argues that it should be recognised that as a nation we have cultivated a taste for more expensive consumables over the past five years.
"People may believe that they are paying more for their groceries than previously but perhaps they should step back and look at what they have put in their basket. Once upon a time it may have been your common-or- garden loaf, whereas now it may be a Frascati or whatever. We are much more fond of pampering ourselves than maybe we used to be and we have to acknowledge that this comes at a price."
Complainants often wonder why the Government does not seek to cool inflation through price controls - a view rejected by the director as naive and simplistic.
"Politicians do not have a magic wand when it comes to this issue. We have a free market economy and businesses are allowed to charge whatever they believe the market can sustain. Introducing price controls would be a retroactive step. Consumers must realise that they are the ones who ultimately decide how much they are prepared to pay for a certain product. Some traders will charge whatever they feel they can get away with. We are the ones who decide if they can indeed 'get away' with sustained price hikes."
