Procedure to file Consumer Complaints

Who is a consumer?

According to the Consumer Protection Act of 1986, a person who purchases products or uses any services for consideration that has been paid, promised, or partially paid and partially promised under any system of deferred payment, etc. is considered a “consumer.” In other terms, a consumer is someone who purchases goods or services and pays the full price or a portion of it, based on a contract with the seller.

What are the rights of a consumer?

As per the Consumer Protection Act, there are certain rights granted to the consumers, they are listed below:

• Right to Safety-Consumers has the right to be protected from products that pose a risk to their health and property. The Act forbids the marketing and sale of any product that has not undergone a quality test and has been registered with the proper authorities. Before purchasing a product, a consumer must examine the ISI or AGMARK, etc. Check for registrations from the medical board of India and the FSSAI, for instance, if someone tries to sell you a health supplement and says it would help your child grow.
• Right to Choose- Consumers have the right to select a product from a range of options at a fair price. This means that it is your legal obligation to obtain fundamental products and services of sufficient quality and at a reasonable cost.
• Right to be Informed- Any precautionary measures that must be taken in order to use the goods or services must be disclosed to the customer. When purchasing hand sanitizer, for instance, the warnings that the product is highly combustible must be displayed on the container in readable text or photos.
• Right to Consumer Education– Consumers have the full right to education and information so that dishonest businesspeople cannot deceive uninformed clients. In order to raise public awareness, the government uses posters, banners, and radio and television advertisements.
• Right To Be Heard- If a customer has suffered a loss because of the seller’s immoral actions, they have the right to be heard by the appropriate court. Both business and non-commercial clients are covered by this privilege.
• Right to Seek redressal- A consumer has every right to file a complaint about unfair business practises or deceptive consumer exploitation. It also involves the right to a just resolution of the customer’s sincere complaints. Consumers who have legitimate complaints must file them.

What is the procedure of filing a consumer complaint?

In the event of a service failure, consumers are entitled to bring their case to the consumer court. A complaint has been filed electronically in accordance with the New Consumer Protection Act of 2019. The electronic option is made much easier and you can file your complaint in one of the following forums depending on the value of the claim:

• District Consumer Redressal Forum – when the value of claim is up to Rs. 1 crore.
• State Consumer Redressal Commission – when the value of the claim is between Rs. 1 crore to Rs. 10 crores.
• National Consumer Redressal Commission – when the value of the claim is more than Rs. 10 crores.

How are the remedies available to the consumer experienced deficiency in service?

The remedies can be sought by the consumers in the following three steps:

Step 1: Try first to use the service provider’s “customer care,” which is the term for their grievance procedure. The platforms for resolving complaints are frequently used since they want to win people over. When grievance redressal is inadequate or nonexistent, a problem occurs.

Step 2: By issuing a legal notice requesting proper remedy, the consumer can first attempt to fix the issue before taking it to court. Most of the time, businesses respond to that, and if they don’t, you can go to the Consumer Court.

Step 3: The customer has complete authority to file a legal complaint against the service provider in the consumer forum if the provider fails to address the problem and refuses to make up for the loss that occurred to them. There is no requirement to issue a legal notice beforehand, therefore the consumer is free to approach the consumer forum directly if they so choose.

A complaint must contain all necessary information about the complainant and the service provider, including name, address, facts, the proposed remedy, an affidavit, and other supporting documentation.