Jahanvi Agarwal
A few Jindal Global Law School (JGLS) law students found out that manufacturers of electronic appliances were improperly starting the warranty period from the date of the order rather than the date of installation.
Millions of people in India bought appliances, and this had an impact on the warranty time frame. They also learned that electronic service providers were being used to carry out this. They eventually discovered that these millions of gullible customers were being offered extra warranties that they shouldn’t have needed if the initial guarantee was given correctly.
Therefore, the students filed a complaint before the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) in January in accordance with the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 (CPA) to take prompt action to protect the specific rights of Indian consumers.
THE COMPLAINT: CAUSE FOR CONCERN
- The complaint draws attention to the arbitrary and frequently imbalanced standard form papers used in retail customer transactions, which lead to unethical and exploitative business practices.
- In the Indian market, shopping via the Internet is still expanding and evolving. There are several difficulties/challenges associated with the transition from physical to online marketplaces, such as the sizeable delay between the date of order and the date of installation.
- Although customers are not in possession of or owners of the items, warranties continue to be triggered from the date of order. Contracts with sellers have yet to reflect this shift.
- According to a survey by complainants, the majority of consumers think that the warranty term starts on the day of delivery.
- Due to a lack of information from electronic service providers, unaware customers still experience this problem while purchasing online.
THE LEGAL POSITION:
- Manufacturers of electronic appliances erroneously start the warranty period for items purchased online from the date of order rather than the date of installation. The warranty conditions just indicate that it lasts for a year and don’t specify when it starts. Incorporating ambiguous language into warranty certificates is detrimental to customers and done with the intention of taking advantage of them.
- The Sale of Goods Act of 1930 is violated by this warranty period activation. When the product is in a deliverable state, ownership of the rights and hazards relating to it passes to the customer.
- There is also a violation of The Consumer Protection Rules, 2020 since they require that e-commerce businesses offer clear information. Electronic service providers are recognized in the present instance as complicit in this illegal behaviour.
- Furthermore, once the purported warranty time has passed from the order date, manufacturers start continuously marketing and selling extended warranty items to customers.
PRACTICES IN DIFFERENT COUNTRIES:
- Manufacturers’ silence on the subject when a warranty starts is not an accident; it is deliberate. The complainants have asked the CCPA to utilize its regulatory authority to step in and stop manufacturers from abusing the Indian consumer in this way.
- It is also important to keep in mind that the European Union (EU) requires member states to give an additional level of protection under Clauses 40 and 41 of EU Directive 2019/771 and that all products are legally guaranteed for a minimum of two years. Not only this but Clause 17 of Directive 1999/44/EC.
AIM OF THE COMPLAINT:
- The complainants anticipate that the CCPA will utilize its authority to look into the unethical business practices used by manufacturers and service providers of electronic equipment, particularly when it comes to selling, advertising, and warranties for these products.
- Every customer who has been a victim of these practices is entitled to damages for any losses or injuries they have sustained as a result of the illegal termination or unlawfully funded extension of their warranties.