Consumer Rights

Consumer protection: Seller equally liable for any defective product

The District Commission pointed out that under consumer law, the seller is equally accountable for ensuring that the buyer receives a defect-free product

Apple, Croma asked by consumer panel to refund customer's iPhone cost

Mumbai's District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission ruled that the manufacturer (Apple) mentioning 'unauthorised modifications' is not a resolution to a customer's grievance

Plea in SC seeks 'right to know' on product quality, seller details

A petition has been filed in the Supreme Court seeking to declare that consumers have a "right to know" about the quality, purity and certification of products, besides details of distributors and sellers for redressal against unfair restrictive trade practices. It has also sought directions to the Centre and the states to ensure that every distributor, trader and shop owner displays details of registration, including name, address, phone number and number of employees at the entry gate in bold letters on a display board visible to people. The plea is slated to come up for hearing on July 21 before a bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta. The petition filed by petitioner Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay said "right to know" was crucial for consumers to make informed choices and to protect themselves from unfair or restrictive trade practices and unscrupulous exploitation. "Right to know helps consumers avoid falling prey to a fraudulent or deceptive distributor, dealer, trader, sel

Consumer court raps MakeMyTrip over fraud, orders ₹1.37 lakh payout

A consumer court has held MakeMyTrip (MMT) guilty of deficiency in service as well as adopting unfair trade practice for not acting on fraudulent transactions and deducting cancellation charges on a customer's air tickets as it asked the firm to pay him compensation. Observing the online travel firm "cannot shirk from its responsibility of keeping customers' financial and private details safe", it asked MMT to pay the remaining airfare of Rs 61,608, remaining airfare for illegal transaction of Rs 6,260 with 6 per cent annual interest from November 1, 2019, Rs 50,000 for mental agony, harassment and Rs 20,000 for legal expenses (total Rs 1.37 lakh) to the customer. The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, Mumbai Suburban (Additional), in its order on June 30, noted the travel portal was also guilty of deducting cancellation charges "without any clear (and) mutually agreed terms and policy with the complainant (customer)". The company's response to the verdict was ...

IBC not meant to shield violators of consumer rights from prosecution

The Supreme Court observed that staying the penalties imposed by the National Commission would set a dangerous precedent, allowing developers to delay justice by invoking insolvency proceedings

Uber gets CCPA notice for asking users to tip in advance for quicker rides

Union Minister Pralhad Joshi slammed Uber's practice as unethical and exploitative, while the consumer protection body issued a notice to the cab aggregator over the move

Restaurants can't compel customers to pay service charge, says Delhi HC

The HC decision came on a clutch of petitions moved by the Federation of Hotels and Restaurant Associations of India (FHRAI) and the National Restaurant Association of India (NRAI)

SC's ruling on interim moratorium to keep errant developers in check

Ruling that such moratorium doesn't shield anyone from paying regulatory dues is a blow to unscrupulous businesses, they say

Coaching institutes refund Rs 1.56 cr to students after govt intervention

More than 600 students have received refunds of Rs 1.56 crore from coaching institutes after the intervention of the Department of Consumer Affairs. According to an official statement on Saturday, the department has "successfully secured refunds amounting to Rs 1.56 crore for over 600 aspirants and students in the education sector." These students, enrolled in coaching centres for civil services, engineering courses and other programmes, were previously denied rightful refunds despite following the terms and conditions set forth by the coaching institutes, it added. The relief was made possible through grievances filed by the students via the National Consumer Helpline (NCH), which facilitated a streamlined process for dispute resolution. "The swift action by the Department has helped students receive compensation for unfulfilled services, late classes, or cancelled courses, ensuring they do not bear the financial burden of unfair business practices," the statement said. In its .

Consumer court orders Rs 500K compensation for unnecessary Covid treatment

The Malappuram District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission has ordered a private hospital and a doctor in Kochi to pay Rs 5 lakh as compensation for providing unnecessary Covid-19 treatment to a patient who had tested negative. The ruling came in a complaint filed by Soji Reni, a resident of Kakkadampoyil, in Malappuram. According to the complaint, Soji Reni and her husband sought treatment at the hospital on 26 May 2021 for certain health issues. However, the hospital allegedly concealed the fact that she had tested negative for Covid-19 and proceeded with Covid related treatment, causing undue physical and mental distress. According to the complaint, an antigen test was conducted, but the result was indeterminate and later an RT-PCR test was performed to confirm the diagnosis. Despite the test showing negative, the hospital failed to inform the patient and instead proceeded with Covid-19 related treatment, it added. Soji Reni, admitted to the intensive care unit, was unable

Consumer forum bans persistent loan offers, unsolicited calls by firms

The Ernakulam District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission has prohibited a finance company from repeatedly harassing a Kochi resident with unsolicited loan offers over the phone. Nithin Ramakrishnan, a resident of Panampilly Nagar in Kochi, filed a complaint with the panel after enduring continuous and intrusive calls from Bajaj Finserv that disrupted his peace of mind. According to the petitioner, despite numerous requests to stop, Bajaj Finserv and its subsidiaries continued making unsolicited calls, causing significant inconvenience. Even after the complaint was filed on March 14, 2023, the company persisted, calling him three to four times daily from different numbers, particularly during work hours. The complainant argued that such actions infringed on his right to privacy and a peaceful life. Despite assurances to include his number on their Do Not Disturb (DND) list, the company failed to address the issue and continued its intrusive behaviour. The Commission found that

National Consumer Helpline to launch AI features, partners with 1,000 firms

National Consumer Helpline (NCH) is set to introduce artificial intelligence-based features including speech recognition and multilingual chatbots as part of a major upgrade to its consumer grievance system. The helpline has also announced partnerships with over 1,000 companies to expedite complaint resolution. The new AI capabilities, dubbed NCH 2.0, will allow consumers to file complaints through voice input in their local languages, marking a significant technological transformation of the consumer protection platform that currently operates in 17 languages. The helpline has seen dramatic growth in usage, with monthly calls surging to 141,817 in January 2024 from 14,795 in January 2015. Monthly complaint registrations have tripled to 112,468 in 2024 from 37,062 in 2017. "These technological upgrades are aimed at making the grievance filing process more seamless, efficient, and inclusive," the Department of Consumer Affairs said in a statement. The partnership programme, known a

Mangaluru police bust multi-state scam targeting e-commerce giant

The Mangaluru police have uncovered a multi-state, multi-crore scam with the arrest of two men accused of defrauding an e-commerce giant across India, officials said on Saturday. The suspects, Raj Kumar Meena (23) and Subhash Gurjar (27) from Rajasthan, are alleged to be part of a large-scale fraud spanning over 10 states, including Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Assam, Karnataka, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, and Bihar. Mangaluru City Police Commissioner Anupam Agarwal described the arrests as a significant breakthrough. A case has been registered at Urwa police station in Mangaluru. The scam, reportedly, involved orders worth Rs 11.45 lakh placed under a false identity. The accused used the name Amith, to place orders, for two high-value cameras and other items, providing a fictitious address near the KSRTC bus stand in Mangaluru. Upon delivery, Meena collected the items and provided the OTP while Gurjar distracted the delivery personnel. They, then, swapped the original stickers on the Sony camer

Govt examining mandatory product disclosures by quick commerce firms

The government is verifying mandatory disclosures on packaged products sold through quick commerce companies, a senior government official said on Tuesday, signalling potential regulatory action against non-compliant firms. Consumer Affairs Secretary Nidhi Khare told reporters the government is examining whether these companies are adhering to the Legal Metrology Act, which requires disclosure of key product information. "We are examining mandatory disclosures on packaged products sold via quick commerce companies," Khare said. The act mandates that packaged goods sold both online and offline must display information including maximum retail price, expiration date, weight, manufacturer details, and consumer grievance addresses. Khare indicated that the Consumer Affairs Ministry may take action against quick commerce companies found to be in violation of these disclosure requirements. The move comes as quick commerce gains popularity in India, with companies promising ultra-fast ..

Amid rising service complaints, CCPA issues notice to Ola Electric

The notice, issued on October 3, cites the 'potential violation' of key provisions of Consumer Protection Act, 2019

National Consumer Helpline facilitates Rs 1 cr refund to coaching students

The National Consumer Helpline (NCH) has facilitated a refund of Rs 1 crore in enrolment fees to students and aspirants of various competitive exams, including UPSC Civil Services and IIT entrance, the government said on Sunday. The refunds were processed at a pre-litigation stage following intervention by the Consumer Affairs Ministry after students from across the country raised grievances against coaching centres offering classes for various competitive exams. Consumer Affairs Secretary Nidhi Khare said, "This action reaffirms our commitment to ensure that coaching institutions adhere to fair practices and honour the rights of consumers." The NCH initiated a drive to resolve these grievances on a mission-mode after receiving numerous complaints regarding unfair practices by coaching centres, particularly their refusal to refund enrolment fees, an official statement said. NCH received 16,276 grievances from students in 2023-2024, up from 5,351 in 2022-2023 and 4,815 in 2021-2022.

Godrej refrigerator variant fails energy rating test: How to check yours?

The energy rating of any appliance measures between one to five, with five being the most energy-efficient level. This impacts the final value of the product as energy-efficient products are costlier

Busting dark patterns, mediation on agenda of consumer affairs ministry

DoCA will create a platform to put consumers in touch with officials to help resolve their grievances before they reach litigation stage

Advocates can't be held liable under Consumer Protection Act, says SC

The Supreme Court on Tuesday held that advocates are not liable for deficiency of services under the Consumer Protection Act 1986 and cannot be sued for poor service before consumer courts. A bench of Justices Bela M Trivedi and Pankaj Mithal said the legal profession is sui generis (unique) and the nature of work is specialised and cannot be compared with other professions. "Advocates have to respect client's autonomy, not entitled to make concessions without express instructions from client and transgress authority. Considerable amount of direct control is with client of advocate. This strengthens our opinion that contract is of personal service and excluded from definition of service under Consumer Protection Act," the bench said. The judgement came on plea filed by bar bodies, such as Bar Council of India, Delhi High Court Bar Association and Bar of Indian Lawyers, and other individuals challenging a 2007 verdict of the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC), ..

NCDRC to hear consumer cases on hybrid mode from Apr 15 on pilot basis

The National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) has decided to hear the consumer dispute cases on a hybrid mode on a pilot basis from April 15 onwards. In its latest practice direction issued on April 10, the NCDRC said that the national commission will conduct the hybrid mode hearings (physical/video conferencing) of the cases from its premise. The consumer affairs ministry in a post on X said that it is a significant step towards easing consumers' experience in seeking resolution of their consumer cases. The VC/hybrid hearing links for all the benches will be provided on NCDRC cause list for the convenience of the counsel and parties. "Hence, there is no need to send a VC link to the counsel/parties by the national commission," the commission said. It added that the counsel and parties should have a minimum internet connection of 2 Mbps. The counsel representing the case and parties appearing in person can join the VC/hybrid hearing of the concerned bench at the ite