Online dispute resolution as a mechanism to enhance consumer trust in e-commerce : how can Saudi Arabian law be improved?

Abstract

This thesis highlights the importance of online dispute resolution, and the role that consumer trust plays in e-commerce within the Saudi Arabian context. Although a new law regulating e-commerce transactions has been recently enacted in Saudi Arabia, consumers still seem to exhibit some lack of trust in this form of commerce and face difficulties when disputes arise. Under the new e-commerce law, traditional litigation is assigned for resolving consumers’ disputes and the law still lacks a convenient online procedure for resolving disputes linked to e-commerce transactions. Furthermore, the law still lacks certain features that would facilitate easy access to justice, such as procedural rights and a unified process for overcoming consumer disputes. In a bid to develop the legal framework in Saudi Arabia and to overcome the aforementioned issues in Saudi e-commerce law, the thesis explores relevant theories of consumers’ access to justice and consumer protection. Moreover, it analyses and compares different practices of online dispute resolution in different jurisdictions to suggest an ideal procedure for resolving consumer e-commerce disputes in Saudi Arabia. Drawing on the theoretical foundation and comparison of practices in some jurisdictions, the thesis suggests reforms to the Saudi legal system that would give consumers easier access to justice and proposes a unified online dispute resolution procedure. The significance of this proposal lies in its attempt to offer a way in which a consumer can gain easier access to justice and avoid complexity, which would, in turn, enhance consumers’ trust in e-commerce, and ultimately foster the development of e-commerce in Saudi Arabia.