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According to a statement from the Ministry of Commerce published by the Saudi Press Agency on September 24, 2026, the ministry conducted 383,000 inspection tours across commercial establishments and handled 443,000 consumer protection reports during the first nine months of the year. The ministry launched 58 recall campaigns in that period that covered 222,410 vehicles along with 8,508 separate products to address defects and support consumer safety. It has also started using artificial intelligence systems to process incoming commercial reports, direct regulatory actions and apply risk-based monitoring in the precious metals and gemstones sector.
The ministry statement noted that the National Program to Combat Commercial Concealment, a joint initiative with 13 government agencies, completed more than 34,000 inspection tours by the end of September. Program data identified 1,066 initial suspected concealment cases and 77 violations of market regulations during those activities. The program has incorporated artificial intelligence to develop a concealment index, build an electronic platform for reporting suspected violations and guide field inspection teams while new regulations for correcting breaches of the anti-concealment law were issued.
Ministry figures released in April through the Saudi Press Agency showed that the first quarter of 2026 alone accounted for more than 120,000 inspection visits and 182,884 processed consumer complaints. Those three months also included more than 6,000 electronic inspections of online stores and 10 recall campaigns that covered 5,560 vehicles and consumer items. The nine-month totals reflect the continued rollout of both physical visits and digital monitoring tools throughout the year.
The Ministry of Commerce reported that consumer complaints addressed in 2026 have spanned contractual disagreements, product quality issues and online transaction problems. Recall campaigns have targeted technical faults in vehicles and household goods to prevent potential harm to users. Coordination among multiple government bodies has supported the concealment program’s inspection and enforcement work.
Earlier ministry disclosures compiled in 2026 indicated that full-year 2025 operations involved 539,000 inspection visits and the handling of more than 647,000 commercial complaints with online stores generating the largest share. The current year’s adoption of artificial intelligence builds directly on those prior regulatory volumes. The ministry continues to expand its use of data-driven methods to identify risks and improve response times across commercial sectors.
