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QUESTIONS A
NOTICE
In the Q/A session of the business campaign, we received many queries.
We were not able to answer many queries due to time contraints. The
Q/A commenced at 1:45 pm till 2:15 pm. We had to still perform Dhuhr
Salaat. The remaining queries will answered and placed on the website
over a period of 3 days. The questions are not edited.
Q: Gazetted
government tariffes which is fixed charges, i.e. minimum; a) Can one
give discounts? b) If yes in Shari’ah, is a criminal act according to
law? c) Can one give kick backs in the form of paying for the clients
car instalments or Umrah and Hajj trip?
A: In principle, it is necessary to follow
those laws of the country that are not un-Islamic. There is scope in
the Shari’ah for government tariffs. According to the Shari’ah, it is
incorrect to go against government gazzetted tariffs. Therefore, the
answers to your queries are:
1. It is not permissible to give discounts beyond minimum government
gazetted tariffs;
2. If giving kick backs is against the law, then it is not permissible
to do so;
Q: 1) Trade-in
vehicles – 2 vehicles for 1 = riba? 1 vehicle + money for other
vehicle…, 2) Selling for commission basis – goods not in one’s
possession, 3) Selling goods on consignment? Umar Farouk
A: 1) It is permissible to trade in two vehicles in exchange of one
vehicle. The extra vehicle will not be interest. Similarly, if one
trades his vehicle and money for another vehicle, that too will not be
interest.
2) It is permissible to be an agent and receive commission for that.
An agent simply takes an order. He does not sell the item.
Q: One member of a
family defrauded us and left the country. His family undertook to
settle on his behalf. Unfortunately, only those that threatened the
family have got paid. What recourse do we have, e.g. pressurising by
legal / SARS, other authorities, etc. Also how does the Shari’ah view
the deception / lies of this family?
A: The undertaking of paying the debt is a promise which is morally
binding on the family.
The family should do whatever is possible within their means in
fulfilling the debts of the family member. In principle, the family is
not responsible. It is incorrect for creditors to apply undue force on
the family in extracting monies due to them.
Q: In terms of
offsetting interest/bank charges, is it permissible to have an
arrangement with the bank that if you keep a minimum of, e.g. R8000,
they don’t pay you interest not do they charge any bank charges in
lieu of services? Haroun
A: It is permissible to make such an arrangement with the Bank.
Q: How often
should we remove interest from the Bank. If a person keeps the
interest for a longer period with the hope of offsetting a larger
amount of Bank charges, is this Jaaiz?
A: One should dispose of the interest in the bank as soon as possible.
It is incorrect to leave the interest in the bank with the intention
of it increasing and to offset bank charges.
Q: Interest
received from so-called Shari’ah compliant unit trusts: when the
dividend advices are sent to clients, a note is attached stating that
a certain percentage of the income is from impure sources. Muslim
clients are advised to dispose of this amount. The dividends are
usually reinvested and not paid to clients. How does not dispose of
the interest in this case? It is possible to offset the interest
received from unit trust income against the administration fees
charged by the fund managers?
A: Ideally, the client should dispose of the interest. However, if the
administration does not pay the interest in lieu of administration
charges to the client, then that is permissible.
Q: Termination of
my water/light accounts: The deposit owing to me was R620.00. The
department sent me a cheque 2 months later for R635.00 stating that
R15 was interest. Can I pay the R15 from my pocket and deposit the
entire amount into my account? A Motara
A: The cheque will have to be deposited and then R15 be taken out
separately. |