Consumer protection in El Salvador

The main legal basis is the Ley de Protección al Consumidor, together with its regulations and sector-specific laws. Providers must give complete, accurate, clear and timely information, show prices, honor offers, issue invoices and provide contract copies where applicable. Consumers are protected against misleading advertising, abusive contract clauses, unauthorized charges, discriminatory treatment and unsafe, expired or altered goods. Warranty rights and appropriate withdrawal or refund mechanisms also apply according to the transaction and the relevant legal conditions. The DC provides nationwide access through its offices, temporary mobile points, online service at defensoria.gob.sv/enlinea, the Defensoría 2.0 app, telephone 910 and WhatsApp at 7844-1482. Its Centro de Solución de Controversias (CSC) handles individual disputes through a free, simple and confidential process. A consumer can contact the provider first when appropriate, but direct contact is not always required. The DC may seek an avenimiento, meaning an agreement between the parties. If the provider does not resolve the matter, the case may proceed to a conciliation hearing and then to the Tribunal Sancionador when no agreement or attendance results. The Tribunal can impose administrative sanctions and order restitution or reinstatement for individual, collective or diffuse interests. For an individual complaint, useful evidence includes a DUI or passport, invoice, receipt, payment voucher, contract, advertisement, offer, messages, screenshots and other payment records. In an avenimiento process, the provider has a target of 18 business days to respond. The CSC has a statutory maximum of 12 months for individual matters and 18 months for collective-interest matters. A consumer can also submit an aviso de infracción when an offer or advertisement may harm the public interest even without an individual purchase or loss. Purchases and contracts may involve delivery, warranties, delayed or different performance, payment reversals, installment payments and contracts of adhesion. A contract of adhesion is a prewritten form whose terms the consumer generally accepts without negotiating each clause. The provider should make it accessible before acceptance, explain it, give the consumer a copy and avoid abusive clauses. In cases covered by the law, reversión de pagos may apply when a consumer exercises retracto, receives no delivery or service, receives something different or defective, or faces a payment-system error. The consumer normally makes a written request to the provider, and the refund target is 15 days. For mismatch or defects, the request period is generally 8 days after delivery or service. Retracto generally applies to off-premises and online transactions, normally within 8 business days and before the service begins, with a refund target of up to 15 days. Administrative costs are limited by the legal commercial interest rate. Installment buyers can generally repay early without a penalty, subject to statutory exceptions. Digital providers established in El Salvador must disclose their legal or commercial name, NIT, notification address, telephone number, email, payment and delivery conditions, warranty, retracto, payment reversal, complaint channel and terms. The consumer should receive an order summary before acceptance and confirmation by the next calendar day. Digital transaction records must be kept for 10 years, and delivery may not exceed 30 calendar days when no other period was agreed. Websites, platforms and applications used for electronic commerce belong in the DC Registro Único de Proveedores de Bienes y Servicios en Comercio Electrónico. The DC also offers a preventive Sello de Garantía. Transactions with informal, foreign or unidentified sellers may have weaker protection under the Ley de Protección al Consumidor, especially when the seller cannot be identified or reached. Financial consumer matters can involve both the DC and the Superintendencia del Sistema Financiero (SSF), which supervises covered financial entities. The SSF Oficina de Atención al Usuario accepts consultations and complaints through its form, at 2699-9999 and atencionalusuario@ssf.gob.sv, Monday to Friday from 8:30 to 16:30. A financial provider may charge only agreed interest, commissions and recargos and must disclose the total cost clearly. It may not add an unsolicited financial product or charge. Credit approval terms remain stable during their validity period, which is at least 10 business days. Early repayment is generally free, subject to statutory exceptions. Consumers can request account statements, finiquito documents and access, correction or cancellation of credit-history data. A finiquito should be issued within 15 days after final payment. An AID correction has a maximum period of 5 business days; negative data generally has a 3-year limit, paid debt is generally retained for no more than 1 year and a small paid debt for no more than 6 months. Credit-card providers may not add a card surcharge or price difference, charge unagreed fees or disregard a dispute while it is under review. Statements should arrive at least 15 days before the due date. Travel complaints may be handled through the DC Portal del Viajero. Air-ticket protections arise under the Ley Orgánica de Aviación Civil and the Montreal Convention. An airline or travel provider may not force a passenger to buy passenger or baggage insurance. Cancellation, delay or denied boarding can create duties involving rerouting, food and drinks, accommodation when needed and baggage compensation for loss, damage or delay. For tickets bought online or through a call center, retracto generally applies up to 8 business days before travel, with a refund target of up to 15 days. The Autoridad de Aviación Civil handles aviation-specific matters, while the DC handles economic and contract complaints. Package-tour and time-share complaints remain within the DC consumer channel. For electricity, billing anomalies and irregular charges now fall under the Dirección General de Energía, Hidrocarburos y Minas (DGEHM), following the transfer of regulatory competence from SIGET effective 17 July 2026. Legacy SIGET procedures should be checked for the transition. Telecommunications remain under SIGET, including billing, unauthorized supplementary charges, service quality, interruptions and amounts not refunded after a complaint to the provider. The DC remains available for consumer-law breaches across sectors. Medicine authorization and safety matters belong primarily to the Dirección Nacional de Medicamentos (DNM), while professional or clinical conduct complaints may belong to the Consejo Superior de Salud Pública (CSSP) Oficina Tramitadora de Denuncias. These bodies do not replace urgent medical treatment or a claim for financial compensation. Fraud involving social-media marketplaces, advance payments, fake credit websites or unpaid event tickets requires prompt preservation of evidence. The DC may help with payment reversal only when the legal conditions and provider jurisdiction fit the case. Possible estafa, meaning fraud as a criminal offence, should be reported to the Fiscalía General de la República (FGR). Consumers should verify that messages use the official @defensoria.gob.sv domain, and they should not pay people who claim to be DC officials. Tribunal Sancionador information can be checked through 2132-8500. An official signal from 30 July to 6 August 2026 showed the greatest volume of DC attention in financial services, telecommunications, appliances and home goods, and services; the leading reported motives were improper charges, breach of contract or offer, over-indebtedness and abusive collection. These figures indicate current practical demand, not national prevalence. Consumer protection does not replace every civil-law claim, banking matter or purchase decision. Civil courts may be needed for disputes outside the administrative process, while the SSF or other sector regulator may be the correct first institution for a supervised service. A complaint is strongest when it identifies the provider, transaction, promised performance, concrete loss or remedy requested and supporting evidence. Check the applicable deadline promptly, especially the 8-business-day periods for retracto and certain defects or mismatches, the 15-day refund periods and the 30-calendar-day default delivery period for electronic commerce.