Saturday 10 / May / 2025
Muscat: The Public Authority for Consumer Protection (PACP) has issued a decree penalising any individual who sells goods from door-to-door.
Dr. Said bin Khamis Al Kaabi, Chairman of the Public Authority for Consumer Protection, issued a new decision No. 10/2019, which states that “suppliers are prohibited from visiting homes and residential areas for the sale of goods, or to offer services without a consumer requesting it”.
According to Article 2 of the decree, “An administrative fine of no less than OMR200 and not more than OMR1,000 will be imposed on anyone who violates the provision of this decision.”
Speaking exclusively to the Times of Oman, an Egyptian resident based in Muscat said he felt at ease with this decision.
“I feel great about the decision, and most importantly, I feel more secure. You can’t trust a stranger who knocks on your door and tries to sell you a product. What if the salesperson is there to rob me or cause harm? So, I am really happy that the authorities have taken this into consideration.”
“Also, with sales like these, I felt my privacy was being invaded as the right place for this could be a public forum; the home is not for business,” said Hassan El-Markaby, a pharmacist based in Oman.
Another expat based in Muscat said that door-to-door salespersons caused a lot of disturbance.
“Imagine you are taking an afternoon nap with your kids and you hear a knock on the door or your bell ring. I honestly used to get annoyed about it and also felt sorry for the salesperson at the same time. But now, I am happy that it has been officially banned by the officials in Oman who are making sure that people are provided with the utmost care,” a mother of three said.
