Bermudian consumers often get suckered at the shops and will pay anything to look good, a Consumer Affairs? report tabled in the House of Assembly on Friday said.

Bermudian shoppers are their own worst enemy, the Consumer Affairs 2003 Annual Report said, and no matter how much they are ?educated?, locals will continue to get stung for buying fancy products that turn out to be lemons.

?No matter how many commercials, printed materials, newspaper and internet articles, radio talk shows and speaking engagements we do, many consumers still elect to buy a car because it appears attractive, or hire someone who knocks on their door or hand over large sums of money without a written agreement,? the report said. ?This behaviour tells us that regardless of how well educated the consumer is, Bermudian consumer instincts determine how they buy goods and services. Bermudians tend to be brand loyal, very trusting, overly tolerant, non-confrontational at all costs and are willing to pay an exorbitant price for a product if it looks good or enhances their image.?

Image-conscious Bermudians were often sore about buying expensive sports cars that were not designed to be driven at 35 kph, it said.

The local automotive industry generated an increase of customer angst of 36.3 percent between 2003 and 2001, with 210 complaints, the report said.

The increase in automotive complaints was attributed to repairs and the lack of spare parts.

However, car companies were also chastised at Consumer Affairs for introducing high-performance cars that need to be driven at high speeds in order to avoid engine problems, it said.

The four industries generating the most complaints ? service providers, auto marine, retail and landlords were the same since 2001.

And the number of complaints in service providers increased by a whopping 66.9 percent from 2001, with 227 complaints.

However, when the report was presented by Community Affairs and Sport Minister Dale Butler, he said the decrease of 17 cases from 2002 was attributable to increased public awareness.

?This reduction of complaints can only be attributed to an increase in awareness to the public of consumer and trader concerns brought about by the efforts of Consumer Affairs staff,? Mr. Butler said.

Consumer Affairs handled 988 complaints in 2003 compared to 1,005 in 2002, it said.