TRADE DESCRIPTIONS ACT 2011

LAWS OF MALAYSIA ONLINE VERSION OF UPDATED TEXT OF REPRINT Act 730 TRADE DESCRIPTIONS ACT 2011 As at 11 January 2022 This text is ONLY AN UPDATED TEXT of the Trade Descriptions Act 2011 by the Attorney General’s Chambers. Unless and until reprinted pursuant to the powers of the Commissioner of Law Revision under subsection 14(1) of the Revision of Laws Act 1968 [Act 1], this text is NOT AN AUTHENTIC TEXT. TRADE DESCRIPTIONS ACT 2011 Date of Royal Assent … … … … 05 August 2011 Date of publication in the Gazette … … … … 18 August 2011 Latest amendment made by Act A1639 which came into operation on … … … … 11 January 2022 PREVIOUS REPRINTS First Reprint … ... ... ... 2018 3 LAWS OF MALAYSIA Act 730 TRADE DESCRIPTIONS ACT 2011 ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS PART I PRELIMINARY Section 1. Short title and commencement 2. Interpretation 3. Appointment of Controller, Deputy Controller, Assistant Controllers, etc. 4. (Deleted) PART II PROHIBITION OF FALSE TRADE DESCRIPTIONS 5. Prohibition of false trade description 6. Trade description 7. False trade description 8. (Deleted) 9. (Deleted) 10. Applying a trade description to goods 11. (Deleted) 12. Possession for supply PART III MISSTATEMENTS OTHER THAN FALSE TRADE DESCRIPTIONS Section 13. Interpretation 14. False or misleading indication as to price of goods 15. Price deemed to include tax 16. False representation as to supply or approval of goods or services 17. False or misleading statements as to services, etc. 18. False or misleading statement in advertisement 19. Presumption of liability on advertisers, etc. 20. False or misleading statement in relation to contest, games, etc. 21. Contravention of Part III to be an offence PART IV DEFENCES 22. Offences due to fault of another person 23. Defence of personal or domestic use 24. Defence of mistake, accident, etc. 25. Innocent publication of advertisement PART V PROHIBITION OF IMPORTATION OF CERTAIN GOODS, ETC. 26. Prohibition of importation of goods bearing false indication of origin 27. Abetting of offences committed abroad Trade Descriptions PART VI POWER TO DEFINE TERMS, TO REQUIRE INFORMATION TO BE GIVEN, ETC. Section 28. Definition orders 29. Informative marking and certification orders PART VII INVESTIGATION AND ENFORCEMENT Chapter 1 Investigation and complaints 30. Investigation by the Assistant Controller 31. Complaints to the Assistant Controller Chapter 2 Information gathering powers 32. Power of the Assistant Controller to require provision of information 33. Assistant Controller may retain documents 34. Access to records 35. Confidentiality 36. Privileged communication 37. Giving false or misleading information, evidence or document 38. Destruction, concealment, mutilation and alteration of records Chapter 3 Powers of arrest, search and seizure 39. (Deleted) 39A. Power of arrest 5 Section 40. Power to enter premises and inspect and seize goods and documents 41. Power to enter premises with search warrant 42. Power of entry and search and seizure without a warrant 43. Access to recorded information or computerized data, etc. 44. Tipping-off 45. Warrant admissible notwithstanding defects 46. List of things seized 47. Forfeiture of goods 48. Release of things seized 49. Seizure of perishable goods 50. No cost or damages arising from seizure to be recoverable 51. Obstruction 52. Power to make test purchases 52A. Power to take sample 53. Evidence of agent provocateur is admissible 54. Presumption and examination with regards to sample 55. Power of investigation PART VIII GENERAL 56. Exemption 56A. Power to order compliance 57. Contract unaffected by contravention 58. Market research experiments 59. General penalty 60. Jurisdiction to try offences 61. Delegation of powers 62. Institution of prosecution 63. Compounding of offences Trade Descriptions Section 64. Principal liable for acts of servant or agent 65. Offences by body corporate 66. Reward for information 67. Public Authorities Protection Act 1948 68. Protection of officers and other persons 69. Power of Minister to make regulations 70. Repeal 71. Savings and transitional SCHEDULE 7 9 LAWS OF MALAYSIA Act 730 TRADE DESCRIPTIONS ACT 2011 An Act for the purpose of promoting good trade practices by prohibiting false trade descriptions and false or misleading statements, conduct and practices in relation to the supply of goods and services, and by prohibiting, restricting or otherwise regulating or controlling the use of any statement, expression or indication which is likely to discriminate or boycott any product or goods or to discourage, forbid, hinder or influence any person from using or consuming any product or goods in the course of trade or business, and to provide for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto. [1 November 2011, P.U. (B) 540/2011] ENACTED by the Parliament of Malaysia as follows: PART I PRELIMINARY Short title and commencement 1. (1) This Act may be cited as the Trade Descriptions Act 2011. (2) This Act comes into operation on a date to be appointed by the Minister, by notification in the Gazette. Interpretation 2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires— 10 Laws of Malaysia ACT 730 “this Act” includes any subsidiary legislation made under this Act; “goods” includes ships, aircrafts, vehicles, animals, plants and crops and all kinds of movable property; “electronic” means the technology of utilizing electrical, optical, magnetic, electromagnetic, biometric, photonic or other similar technology; “advertisement” means every form of advertising (whether or not accompanied by or in association with spoken or written words or other writing or sounds and whether or not contained or issued in a publication) by the display of notices or by means of catalogues, price lists, circulars, labels, cards or other documents or materials or by the exhibition of films or of pictures or photographs, or by means of radio or television, or in any other way including through electronic means; “ship” includes any boat and any other description of vessel used in navigation; “precious metal” means gold, silver or platinum in its fine form or gold, silver or platinum alloy; “supply” means— (a) in relation to goods, the supply, including resupply, by way of sale, exchange, lease, hire or hire-purchase of the goods; and (b) in relation to services, the provision by way of sale, grant or conferment of the services, by any means including through electronic means. “Minister” means the Minister charged with the responsibility for domestic trade and consumerism; Trade Descriptions 11 “Controller” means the Controller of Trade Descriptions appointed under section 3; “Assistant Controller” means the Assistant Controller of Trade Descriptions appointed under section 3; “service” means a service of any description, whether industrial, trade, professional or otherwise but does not include anything done under contract of service; “premises” means any place, stationary or otherwise established or set up by any person, whether such place is with or without enclosure, and includes vehicles, aircrafts, ships and any other vessel; “standard of fineness”, in relation to articles made of precious metals, means the number of parts by weight of fine gold, silver or platinum in one thousand parts by weight of precious metal; “publish”, in relation to an advertisement, means to place the advertisement before the public or any member of the public by any means, including through electronic means; “Deputy Controller” means the Deputy Controller of Trade Descriptions appointed under section 3. Appointment of Controllers, etc. Controller, Deputy Controller, Assistant 3. (1) The Minister may appoint, from among public officers, a Controller, such number of Deputy Controllers, Assistant Controllers and other officers as may be necessary for the purposes of this Act. (2) The Controller shall perform the duties imposed and exercise the powers conferred on him subject to the general direction and control of the Minister. 12 Laws of Malaysia ACT 730 (3) The Deputy Controllers, Assistant Controllers and other officers appointed under subsection (1) shall be under the direction and control of the Controller. (4) The Deputy Controllers may perform all the duties imposed and exercise all the powers conferred on the Controller. (5) The Controller and Deputy Controllers may perform all the duties imposed and exercise all the powers conferred on the Assistant Controllers. (6) An officer appointed under this section when acting against any person under this Act shall, on demand, declare his office and produce to the person against whom he is acting such authority card as the Controller may direct to be carried by such officer. (7) An officer appointed under this section shall be deemed to be a public servant within the meaning of the Penal Code [Act 574]. 4. (Deleted by Act A1607). PART II PROHIBITION OF FALSE TRADE DESCRIPTIONS Prohibition of false trade description 5. (1) Any person who— (a) applies a false trade description to any goods; (b) supplies or offers to supply any goods to which a false trade description is applied; or Trade Descriptions 13 (c) exposes for supply or has in his possession, custody or control for supply any goods to which a false trade description is applied, commits an offence and shall, on conviction, be liable— (A) if such person is a body corporate, to a fine not exceeding two hundred and fifty thousand ringgit, and for a second or subsequent offence, to a fine not exceeding five hundred thousand ringgit; or (B) if such person is not a body corporate, to a fine not exceeding one hundred thousand ringgit or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years or to both, and for a second or subsequent offence, to a fine not exceeding two hundred and fifty thousand ringgit or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years or to both. (2) The terms used in this section and wherever else occurring in this Act shall be interpreted in accordance with sections 6, 7 and 10. Trade description 6. (1) A trade description is an indication, whether direct or indirect and by any means given, of any of the following matters with respect to any goods or parts of goods: (a) nature or designation; (b) quantity, length, width, height, area, volume, capacity, weight, size or gauge; (c) method of manufacture, production, processing or reconditioning; (d) composition; 14 Laws of Malaysia ACT 730 (e) fitness for purpose, strength, performance, behaviour or accuracy; (f) the standard of fineness of articles made of precious metal; (g) any physical or technological characteristics not included in the preceding paragraphs; (h) date of expiration of the goods; (i) testing by any person and results thereof; (j) quality otherwise than as specified in the preceding paragraphs; (k) approval by any person or conformity with a type approved by any person; (l) place or date of manufacture, production, processing or reconditioning; (m) person who manufactured, produced, processed or reconditioned the goods; (n) other history, including previous ownership or use. (2) The matters specified in subsection (1) shall be taken— (a) in relation to any animal, to include sex, breed or cross, fertility and soundness; (b) in relation to any semen, to include the identity and characteristics of the animal from which it was taken and measure of dilution. Trade Descriptions 15 (3) Where the application of any description is prohibited under the provisions of the law specified in the Schedule except where applied to goods which comply with the requirements of that law, no such description applied in accordance with the requirements of that law shall be a false trade description. (4) The Minister may amend the Schedule referred to in subs