The Consumer Protection Act mandates that all the cases must get settled within 90 to days. Consumer Court Sep What is a Consumer Court? Summoning and enforcing the attendance of witnesses or any defendant. Discovery and production of any document or any other material object. Receiving evidence on affidavits 4. Testing of products from the appropriate laboratory. Additional powers of the Consumer Forums are: 1.
Production of any books, accounts, documents or commodities from any person. Obtaining information for the purpose of proceeding from any person. Enter and seize documents like - papers, documents, commodities for the purpose proceedings. The Consumer Forum can also issue an order to the opposite party for doing following things: 1. To return the price to the complainant or pay the amount as compensation 4. To remove the defects in the products or services. To discontinue the unfair trade practice.
To not offer the hazardous goods for sale. To avail an adequate costs to the complainant. Who can file a case in Consumer Court? The Central Government The State Government One or more consumers on behalf of the various consumers having common interest.
You need not hire a lawyer for filing the suit. Fill this complaint form and submit it to the commission. On a plain paper, mention the details of the complainant and the opposite party. Otherwise, you can consult consumer grievance redressal forums which also help consumers in filing and forming petition at nominal charges. The consumer should file the complaint in the district forum which has under its jurisdiction the other party's residence or office of profit or the area where the project is located.
You can also file the complaint online: www. Selling or offering to sell hazardous goods or services which pose a threat to life and safety when used or availed provided the trader could know that the goods or services are hazardous by due diligence. Once the grounds are established, the next step is to estimate the pecuniary limit for the complaint.
Under the Consumer Protection Act there exists a three-tier redressal forum. The pecuniary jurisdiction lies if the value of the claim exceeds 1 crore. It is pertinent to note that an Amendment has been passed and published in the Gazette in which enhances the pecuniary limit of jurisdiction for the forums. However, the Act is still not in force. That is where Consumer Courts play a major role and provide for a grievance redressal platform," adds Advocate Akshay Agarwal.
A notice to be sent by the aggrieved party to the service provider who provided the goods or the services. The notice communicates the intention of the complainer to resort to litigation and informs him about the defects in the goods or the deficiency in the service or any unfair practice. The notice is also an attempt to settle the complaint without approaching the Forum i.
If the service provider is not willing to offer compensation or any other remedy, the next step is to file a formal complaint under the Consumer Protection Act, The filing of the Complaint does not necessarily require a lawyer.
The complaint can be filed by the aggrieved person. The following details must be specified in the complaint:. Copies of material evidence and relevant documents that support your case in Consumer Court are important.
These documents include:. A copy of the bill, receipt of delivery, packaging of a product, a record of online booking of the goods bought. Choose the appropriate forum for filing the complaint in accordance with the pecuniary jurisdiction which is estimated in reference to the total value of goods and services bought or availed and the amount of compensation sought. A prescribed fee is required to be paid along with the complaint filed depending on the forum.
The court fee depends upon the value of goods bought and the amount of compensation sought. The person who wants to file a case in the Consumer Court is also required to submit an affidavit in the court. The affidavit must state that the facts presented and statements made by the consumer are true to their knowledge.
The complainant can make the complaint on a plain paper, which is then notarized and can be filed in person or through an authorized agent. The Court Fee for valuation of suit upto 1 lakh is nil for those holding Antyodaya Anna Yojana cards and in all other cases is Rs. Further, for suits valued upto 5 lakhs, the court fee is Rs , for suits valued upto 10 lakhs the court fee is Rs and for those up to Rs 20 lakhs the court fee is Rs The Court Fee is to be submitted through a demand draft made out to the President, Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum, name of district.
The complainant may either file an original complaint provided it falls within the pecuniary jurisdiction limit provided by law or file an appeal from the order of the District Forum within 30 days of the order being passed.
The Court Fee for complaints valued between Rs 20 lakhs and Rs 50 lakhs is Rs 2, while the court fees for complaints valued upto Rs 1 crore is Rs 4, The Court Fees is to be deposited in a similar way as mentioned above via a demand draft in favor of the Registrar, name of State Commission to be payable in that particular State only.
The Documents of Record i. The documents must bear the correct name and address of the parties. A copy of Interim orders passed by the District Forum or related Petitions to the case to be attached and submitted along with an Affidavit. Application for Condonation of Delay if any with reasons to be submitted along with an Affidavit.
The Consumer can either file a complaint directly, if it is within the pecuniary jurisdiction or file an appeal from the order of SCDRC within 30 days of the passing of the order.
Refund of the price paid by the Consumer while purchasing the product and additional compensation for damages suffered if any and cost of litigation, if claimed. Removal of Defects i. Compensation may be awarded to the complainant if it has been proved that physical, mental or any other loss or damage was suffered owing to the usage of the goods or availing of the services.
The Authority is empowered to impose a complete or conditional ban on the aforementioned practices which may be unfair or restrictive in nature. A consumer complaint should be filed within two years from the date on which the cause of action or deficiency in service or defect in goods arises. However, the law allows the Consumer to file a complaint after the statutory period of two years if the District Forum is satisfied that the complainant has sufficient reasons for not filing the complaint within the statutory period.
The delay can be condoned if it is reasonable and can be accounted for. The law allows the complainant and the Accused to file an appeal against the order of the forum at all three levels to ensure that there is no injustice. The hierarchical order for filing an appeal is:.
Thus, under the Consumer Protection Act protection has been extended to the Consumers to protect them against unscrupulous traders or sellers and to safeguard their basic rights. It provides protection, a mechanism to settle disputes and the establishment of forums exclusively for Consumer Protection Cases. The complaint has to be filed in the appropriate consumer forum as per the amount involved. The jurisdiction and appeal courts are mentioned in the following table:. Defect in a product or service refers to the substandard quality or a prima facie imperfection in the product or good.
The defect can be in reference to the durability, quality, quantity, standards, composition, purity, hygiene or adulteration. It is to be measured or checked in reference to the standards required to be maintained as per the law in force or so decided by the parties or otherwise claimed by the seller or trader.
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