Overview of Consumer Complaint

You can take immediate action if you are facing problems with a product or service you have acquired! You can file a Consumer Complaint at the end; however, you should send a legal notice to the vendor or service which is really essential.

Customers have the right to request compensation in consumer court/forum & file Consumer complaints against the company if they fail to serve good service or useful products. Consumer got several rights under the 'Consumer Protection Act, 1986' as a consumer. You can also seek relief under the law by filing a Consumer Complaint if a seller has sold you a defective poor product or a service provider has delivered insufficient service.

A Consumer Complaint is a formal complaint counter to a seller or service provider and is filed before the suitable consumer forum, which is known as consumer court. The Consumer Complaint is filed even after receiving a legal notice when the seller or service provider fails to resolve it. The Consumer Complaint carries documentary evidence and details about the poor service /or product and the compensation and relief pursued by you. Consumer Courts in India are known to provide quick and effective legal assistance because they are distinct from other courts and established exclusively to deliver relief to consumers.

Who is a Consumer?

Any individual who purchases services or products for personal use and not for business or resale is known to be a consumer. A consumer is someone who is prejudiced by advertisement and marketing or is the decision-maker whether or not to buy an item at the store. Consumers denote to any person who purchases certain goods for a consideration that has been promised or paid to partly paid and partly promised or pay, or found under any deferred payment system.

What are the Rights given to a Consumer?

The Consumer Protection Act guarantees you the following rights as a consumer in India. Those are as follows:-

• Right to Safety

  The consumer has the right to be protected against any potentially dangerous products or hazardous or any services.

• Right to Information

  The consumer has the right to information about the services or products you are purchasing.

• Right to Choose

  You are entitled to access different products and services as a consumer, at competitive price that you are capable of choosing as per your requirements.

• Right to Be Heard

  You have the right to make your considering heard and seek redressal if your consumer rights have been infringed by a seller or service provider, through the numerous consumer courts in every district.

• Right Against Unfair Trade Practices

  You are also granted various rights as a consumer against any unfair trade practices, such as refusal to issue a bill, "No Exchange"/"No Refund"/"No Bargaining" strategies, etc.

Where do you file a Consumer Complaints?

The Forum you can approach is decided grounded on the compensation you are claiming and the value of the goods & services purchased. The Consumer complaint can be filed in the District/State, where the purchase was completed and/or service was rendered and from where the seller resides or conducts his/her business.

The place mentioned in terms of service for dealing with disputes should be chosen for filing the Consumer complaint if the sale or purchase was made online on the seller's website.

What Are The Benefits and Remedies Offered To Filing Consumer Complaints?

• A complete refund of the amount you have paid for the Goods or services.
• Reimbursement of all 'legal costs' incurred in filing the Consumer complaint.
• The defect will be rectified in the goods or service shortages.
• Replacement to the defective product.
• The seller may be well-ordered to discontinue his/her imbalanced trade practice.
• Full/Partial Compensation for any loss or suffering (as well as 'mental agony').
• If the 'sale or purchase' was made online, the place mentioned in terms of service for dealing with disputes should be chosen for filing the Consumer complaint on the seller's website.
• The Consumer complaint can be filed in the District/State, where the purchase was made, or the service was rendered or in the place where the seller resides or conducts his/her business.

What are the Documents required to File a Consumer Complaint in India?

• Application compilation before the Consumer Court Containing an index page
• Vakalatnama/Letter of Authority (In case any other person is representing in your behalf of your case)
• Application for condoning of the delay (It is used in case of delay in Submission of Complaint)
• Copies of documents considering the case
• Copies of Notices sent to the seller, vendor or service provider
• Copies of Consumer Complaint and Notices (Recommended with five copies with additional copies for each opposite party)

In According to the 'Consumer Protection Act', you can file a Consumer Complaint if you satisfy the following condition. Those are as follows:-

• A consumer is an individual who 'purchases goods' or 'avails services' for his/her 'personal' use (but not for 'resale' or 'commercial' purposes).
• Any registered volunteer organization that works or acts on behalf of consumers (For example: The Consumer Guidance Society of India)
• A group of consumers who concede common interest.
• Legal heirs of a deceased consumer.
• Relatives of a consumer.
• The legal guardian of a consumer, in case the consumer is a minor.

What is the step-wise procedure to file a consumer complaint online?

A helpline has been launched by the Department of Consumer Affairs "consumerhelpline.gov.in" to advise, create awareness, and redress consumer grievances. It also acts as a central registry for lodging grievances of consumers. The government of India runs the consumer online resource and empowerment center with the 'Consumer Coordination Council' and 'Department of Consumer Affairs' to solve consumer grievances and Consumer complaints, which is also known as grievance redressal system.

File a Consumer Complaint

Send a Written Notice

The very first step is to send a written notice to the Seller/provider or Manufacturer enlightening the problem and the reason why you are hopeless and not satisfied with the product or service.

It is mostly recommended that you should consult a lawyer for claims over Rs. 10,000. It will help you send the notice on the official letterhead. This will also specify and indicate to the seller that you are pretty serious about taking legal action.

Wait for Seller to Reply Back

The company will likely answer your issue once you send the legal notice and may offer you reasonable compensation. You must know what reasonable compensation at this stage is acceptable to you. Courts will not entertain if you demand a very high amount as compensation, because it will place you nowhere. You have the right to approach the 'consumer forum' if there is no response within the stipulated time (15 days).

Choose the Correct Judicial Forum

You can approach the appropriate consumer forum/commission based on the value of goods or services you have bought or the compensation you claim. Those include District Forum, National Commission, or the State Commission. You have the option of filing the Consumer complaint yourself or assigning an advocate to represent on behalf of you before the commission/forum.

File a Written Consumer Complaint

Each forum has an approved format you must obey while filing the ‘written Consumer complaint.’ You must attribute all the relevant documents supporting your consumer complaints such as receipts, invoices, communication in writing (emails and SMS), delivery challans, etc. It is significant to submit the legal notice that you have approached the seller or service provider so that the Court is inclined that you tried to resolve this dispute outside Court.

Pay the Court Fee for Compliant

You must pay a court fee to file a consumer complaint. The Court will direct the seller to compensate you, including all your legal costs if the case is decided in your favor, such as court fees and lawyer fees.

How to File a Consumer Complaint?

The Consumer complaint can be registered on a plain paper, which means that a stamp paper is not required for declaration. The Consumer complaint should comprise the details of the complainant and the conflicting party. The Consumer complaint should incorporate the following information:-

• Name and whole Residential address of the opposite party/parties.
• Total Amount paid for Goods and Services.
• Name and whole Residential address of the complainant
• Date of purchase of services or goods availed.
• Details of the Consumer complaint, whether against the supply of defective goods/ collection of excess price/ Unfair Trade Practice/ deficiency in service provided, should explicitly be mentioned in the Consumer complaint petition.
• The relief sought for under the Consumer Protection Act.
• Details of goods purchased with numbers or details of services entertained
• The complainant or his authorized agent must sign the Consumer complaint.
• Bills/receipts and copies of connected memos, if any.

CorpBiz Procedure for Consumer Complaint

Filing Consumer Complaint is a compulsory step in the terms of fundamentals in the existence of a consumer grievance if no legal notice has been responded satisfactorily by the seller. The Consumer Complaint shall be prepared with careful consideration, and plenty of time should be allowed for all stages of the drafting and negotiation. It is advisable that an attorney with 'Consumer Protection experience' must be appointed to overwhelm many of the potential pitfalls that creep around within Consumer Complaints.

CorpBiz recommends you that you should be in contact with an advisor to understand the requirement in detail. The elementary information would be mandatory from your end to start the process. The lawyers will begin working on your document once all the information is provided, and the payment is received. Also, you will acquire the first draft of your authorized documents within a few business days. You can evaluate the document, and intimate for the corrections in case of any modifications in the Notice and Complaint.

Why CorpBiz?

CorpBiz is one of the platforms which coordinate to fulfill all your legal requirements and connect you to consistent professionals. Yes, our clients are pleased with our legal service! Because of our focus on simplifying legal requirements, they have consistently regarded us highly and providing regular updates.

Our clients can also track at all times the progress on our platform. If you have any questions about the Consumer Complaint for the Litigation process, our experienced legal advisors are just a phone call away. CorpBiz will ensure that your communication with professionals is charming and seamless.

What do you mean by Consumer Court?

Consumer rights are protected under several Acts such as Sales of Goods Act, The Indian Contract Act, etc. The aggrieved persons can file a civil suit in the event of a violation of a consumer's right, which is expensive and time-consuming. Whereas the Consumer Protection Act, 1986, is an Act passed to protect the rights and interests of a consumer specifically. Therefore, to deal with suits filed by consumers, statutory bodies "known as Consumer Courts" are established under this Act.

Hierarchy of Forums

A consumer complaint is filed on the basis of the value of the transaction given below is the hierarchy of forums. Those are as follows:-

• Supreme Court
• National Commission (New Delhi) Consumer Complaint Value above 1 Cr.
• State Commission (Value from 20 Lakhs to 1 Cr.
• District Forums (Consumer Complaint Value Below 20 Lakhs

Jurisdiction of the Consumer court

The jurisdictions of the courts are based on the hierarchy of the consumer courts. The jurisdictions of consumer courts can which can be classified under pecuniary, territorial, and appellate jurisdictions.

Pecuniary Jurisdiction

• The District Consumer Dispute Redressal Forum up to an amount that does not exceed 20 lakhs - has the pecuniary jurisdiction.
• The State Consumer Dispute Redressal Commission, where the claim exceeds 20 lakhs but does not exceed one crore rupees - has the pecuniary jurisdiction.
• The Nation Consumer Dispute Redressal Commission, where the demand exceeds the amount of 1 crore rupees - has the pecuniary jurisdiction.

Territorial Jurisdiction

After establishing pecuniary jurisdiction, territorial jurisdiction is to be taken into consideration. A Consumer complaint may be filed in the court within those local bounds where it satisfies the below-mentioned criteria. Those are as follows:-

• When the opposite party voluntarily works in or resides in those local restrictions.
• You can apply the same laws applicable to contract law where the cause of action arises from determining if the cause of action arises from it.
• When a transaction was done online, the Territorial jurisdiction can be focussed.
• Transactions were done online successfully negates territorial jurisdiction. Territorial jurisdiction is in any of the multiple places; the cause of action arises. In this case, which also comprises where the appellant resides.

Appellate Jurisdiction

• The consumer may appeal to the state commission if a consumer is not pleased by the district forum's decision.
• The consumer may appeal to the national commission if the consumer is aggrieved by the decision ended by the state commission.
• The consumer may approach the Supreme Court for an appeal if a consumer is not satisfied by the decision made by the national commission.