Finding your consumer office (OMIC) and regional consumer agency

Terms used

• OMIC — The OMIC is your town council's consumer information office, which advises you, takes complaints and mediates with businesses.
• Hoja de reclamaciones — The hoja de reclamaciones is the official complaint form a business must give you when you ask for it.
• Mancomunidad — A mancomunidad is a group of neighbouring towns that share services, sometimes including a consumer office.
• Expediente sancionador — An expediente sancionador is the formal procedure a regional authority opens to fine a business for breaking consumer law.

Key rules

• First stop: Start with your town's OMIC, or the regional consumer office if your town has none.
• No orders: Neither an OMIC nor a regional office can order a refund or compensation.
• Fines: Fines on a business go to the administration, not to you.
• Binding decision: Only arbitration, an out-of-court dispute body or the courts can force a result.

Start with your town's OMIC

Go first to the OMIC in your town or city. It is the closest office, and it is free to ask for help. Search for "OMIC" plus your town name, or ask at your town hall.

An OMIC can:

• explain your rights as a consumer
• take your complaint and the hoja de reclamaciones (the official complaint form)
• ask the business to reply and try to reach a settlement
• pass your case to the regional consumer authority or to arbitration

What an OMIC cannot do

An OMIC cannot order a business to refund you or pay compensation. It cannot fine the business either. Any settlement only happens if the business agrees.

If your town is small, it may have no OMIC. A shared office for several towns (a mancomunidad) or the regional office may serve you instead. Ask your town hall which one covers you.

Find your regional consumer office

Every autonomous community has its own consumer directorate. It sits inside a regional department of consumer affairs, health or economy, and the name differs by region. Examples are the Agència Catalana del Consum in Catalonia, the Instituto Galego do Consumo e da Competencia in Galicia, and the Dirección General de Consumo in Andalucía, Madrid and Valencia.

To find yours:

1. Search the regional government website for "consumo" plus the name of your community.
2. Or use the national Ministry of Consumer Affairs website, which lists the regional bodies.
3. Check that the office you find is the current one. Department names change when regional governments change.

In Ceuta and Melilla, the city government runs the consumer service.

What the regional office can do

The regional office also receives complaints and can mediate. It can also open sanction proceedings (an expediente sancionador) against a business that breaks consumer law, and impose fines.

Those fines go to the administration. You do not receive them as compensation.

If you need a binding result

If the business will not settle, you need a route that can force a decision:

• consumer arbitration, if the business has signed up to it
• an out-of-court dispute resolution body
• the courts

The OMIC or regional office can tell you which of these fits your case. The directory and the questions below list other bodies that can point you to the right office, including consumer associations and the European Consumer Centre.

Consumer bodies directory: OCU, FACUA, ADICAE, ECC Spain and regulators

Who to contact about a consumer problem

• Municipal consumer office (OMIC): Start here for most problems: ask for advice and file a complaint about a business in your town. Search your town hall's website for 'OMIC'.

• Regional consumer directorate: Go here if your town has no OMIC or your complaint needs a regional office.

• City government consumer service (Ceuta and Melilla): Use the consumer service run by your city government, as these two cities have no autonomous community office.

• Ministry of Consumer Affairs: Use its website to find the list of regional consumer bodies if you are unsure which office covers you.

• ECC Spain (European Consumer Centre): Contact it for free advice on EU consumer rights and for help when you have a dispute with a business in another EU country, Norway or Iceland. It mediates informally and points you to the right dispute body, but it cannot issue binding decisions or represent you in court.

• Consumer associations (OCU, FACUA): Ask them for guidance on where to take your case; they can point you to the right office.

Frequently asked questions

Can an OMIC order a business to refund me?

No, an OMIC cannot order a business to refund or compensate you. It can only ask the business to reply and try to reach a settlement, which works only if the business agrees. If you need a binding result, use consumer arbitration (if the business has joined it), an out-of-court dispute body, or the courts.

Do fines on a business give me compensation?

No, fines on a business do not go to you. Regional consumer authorities can open sanction proceedings and impose fines for breaches of consumer law, but the money goes to the administration. To get your money back, you still need a settlement, arbitration or a court case.

What if my town has no OMIC?

If your town has no OMIC, go to the regional consumer office instead. Smaller towns are often served by a shared office of several towns (a mancomunidad) or by the regional office.