The Consumer Protection Act, 2019

New 'The Consumer Protection Act, 2019' has come into force from July 20, 2020. Replacing the old Consumer Protection Act 1986.

New Act gives more power in the hands of Consumer.

It helps consumer in seeking justice for the Deficiency in service, Unfair trade practice, Compensation for the loss/injury suffered due to sell of defective product/service [also known as Product Liability], Non refund/non-return of Product/Service by E-commerce seller within 30 days, misleading advertisement/endorsement, etc. The list is quite long.

Did you know? You can personally file a complaint in Consumer court by just writing the complaint on a PLAIN PAPER.

Why are Consumer Courts important?

Not following the final order of the Consumer Courts can put the Seller (Opposite party) in Jail for the term from 1 month to 3 years and/Or fine from 25k to 1 lakh

(*as per Section 72)

Time limit for Courts to dispose of consumer complaint?

Every Consumer Court must endeavour to dispose of the Case within

- 3 months from receipt of notice by the opposite party &

- 5 months in case product testing is required from laboratory.

[*as per Section 38(7)]

Most important, No adjournment of cases except in exceptional circumstances. That too, the Commission appointed has to give the reason in writing for such adjournment.

[*as per Section 38(7)]

Consumer courts are also empowered to give interim orders in Consumer cases.

[*as per Section 38(8)]

Fees for Making a Complaint?

There is no fee if the value paid for Goods/Service is less than Rs. Five lakhs.

From Five Lakh to more than Ten Crore value goods/services, the fee ranges from Rs.200/- to Rs.7,500/-

[*As per table in Rule 7 of CP Rules 2020]

Process of filing Complaint:

The Consumer Affairs ministry is working on introducing e-filing of Complaints. Soon we will have an e-filing system in place.

In the meanwhile, you need to file the Complaint with the District Commission, State Commission & National Commission based on the value of goods/service involved.

District Commission takes care of Complaint below 1 Crore value.

State Commission takes care of Complaint above 1 Cr to 10 Crores values.

National Commission takes care of Complaints of 10 Crores or more value.

Complaint filing procedure is almost the same for all three Commissions (with minor here & there).

You need to make at least 3 copies of your Complaint along with other documents, all self attested. With additional extra copies for every additional opposite party (if more than one opposite party).

Once you file a Complaint, the District Commission office will check your papers & has to let you know within 15 days about any error in the filing.

Once you correct the errors or in case there are no errors, within 21 days, the Commission has to Accept or Reject your case.

Once your case is accepted, further, within 21 days, notice will be sent to the opposite party by the Commission for their reply on your Complaint. The Opposing party has to either accept or reject the claim with justification in writing.

Additional 15 days can be granted to the opposite party for reply, but that too only in exceptional cases & circumstances.

Once the opposite party replies, the Commission will set the date for 1st hearing. On the date of first hearing. The Commission will listen to both the parties & proceed further.

If required, Commission might send Product to authorised laboratory for check of claim at the cost of Complainant. Laboratory has to submit the report within 45 days. Reports obtained from the laboratory will be sent to both the parties. If any party has objection to the contents of the report. The same should be filed with the Commission in writing.

After all these processes, the Commission will pass the final Order.

Now, a new twist (a new addition) in this new Consumer protection act, 2019 is availability of 'Mediation Facility' on the date of first hearing.

This means, the Commission will give an opportunity to both the parties to settle the claim mutually by accepting each other's demand. If both the parties arrive at consensus & agrees for mediation. The Commission will ask both the parties to file their consent for mediation in writing at the Commission's Office within 5 days of first hearing.

There is a separate process for Mediation. I will not go deep into that at the moment.

- If the mediation process is successful. Both the parties will sign the agreement. And the Commission will pass the final order accordingly.

- If any of the party partially agrees & partially disagrees with any of the terms of the Mediation agreement; Commission will lock the agreed terms and set the date for the hearing to discuss the remaining issue in a routine manner of proceedings.

This Mediation facility, similar to civil court proceedings, is said to be helpful in quickly settling the claim between parties. Because, no opposite party or Complainant would want to extend the matter unnecessarily when common consensus can be arrived right at the beginning.

As per new law, the Commission will no longer wait for the opposite party's presence during hearing. If opposite party fail to reply to the original notice sent by Commission within 21 days time limit, or don't reply or don't remain present during any of the date of hearing, then Commission will hear the matter ex-parte (without opposite party being present) and pass the final order based on the facts & merits of the case. This will help in avoiding unnecessary delay & adjournments.

Overall each court must try to close the case within 3 months of receipt of notice by the opposite party & 5 months in case of product testing by laboratory.

Final Order / finding by Commission will mostly consist of any one or more of following:

a) to remove the defect, discontinue unfair trade practices or services.

b) to replace the goods

c) to return the amount with interest

d) to pay compensation for any loss or Injury suffered to mind or body

And any other possible solution.

Consumer Court proceedings can not be called in question in any other court.

If any of the party is not satisfied with the order of the District Commission or State Commission or National Commission; He can approach the State Commission, National Commission, Supreme Court respectively within Specified time limit.

The Opposing party will have to deposit at least 50% of the amount ordered by the lower Commission before filing an appeal before the Upper Commission.

The State Commission will have supervisory power over the District Commission and similarly, the National Commission will have supervisory power over the State Commission.

During the proceeding, if any unfair or unlawful practice is observed/complained of or there is any major conflict of interest, then the Upper Court can transfer the case from one Office to another or from one Commission to another Or may intervene in the proceeding.

Apart from this, new acts also make provision for establishing a separate Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA). This will be an independent agency under the control of the Central Government & will look into Consumer Complaints & Suo-moto cases affecting mass Consumer interest. It will have its own Investigating wing. And it will be Investigating unfair trade practices affecting the mass population through its own Officers, district collectors & other regulators of respective industries.

New Act also gave birth to a separate "Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020". This will include rules & regulation for E-commerce market platforms & E-commerce sellers.

New act also covers very seriously the topic of misleading advertisements & endorsement by celebrities. As per new law, a particular celebrity can be banned temporarily/permanently from giving any kind of endorsement for a certain industry, if it finds any misleading claims & endorsement in the advertisement.

In short, overall a power packed Act for the benefit of the Consumers in India.

Let us utilise this law to raise voice against & to stop the unfair trade practices prevalent in the society.

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I hope this article will give you a basic idea of the new Consumer Protection Act, 2019. I have tried my best to simplify the language of law for common man's understanding. Kindly excuse me for any error, omission or for not converting the law language correctly. I am not a lawyer and this is my personal understanding of the law. Law is for everyone. Please read the disclaimer at the bottom of this blog post. I will keep on updating/editing this article based on your feedback.

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Read/Download here for more details:

The Consumer Protection Act, 2020 PDF:

https://consumeraffairs.nic.in/sites/default/files/CP%20Act%202019.pdf

Link to other related laws:

https://consumeraffairs.nic.in/acts-and-rules/consumer-protection

Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020

https://www.livelaw.in/pdf_upload/pdf_upload-378739.pdf

Consumer Protection (Mediation) Regulations, 2020

Consumer Protection (Consumer Commission Procedure) Regulations, 2020

The Consumer Protection (Consumer Disputes Redressal Commissions) Rules, 2020 & The Consumer Protection (General) Rules, 2020

District Court List:

http://ncdrc.nic.in

FAQs (Download the PDF file)

https://consumerhelpline.gov.in/ConsumerCourt.pdf

Other Sources of Information:

https://consumerhelpline.gov.in/

https://www.mondaq.com/india/dodd-frank-consumer-protection-act/971026/key-facets-of-the-consumer-protection-act-2019-and-e-commerce-rules

https://theleaflet.in/consumer-protection-act-fills-gaping-need-but-the-test-will-be-implementation/

https://mumbaimirror.indiatimes.com/coronavirus/news/new-consumer-protection-act-comes-into-force-today/articleshow/77057585.cms

https://www.mondaq.com/india/dodd-frank-consumer-protection-act/969026/an-overview-of-the-changes-to-be-introduced-by-the-consumer-protection-act-2019

https://www.barandbench.com/columns/product-liability-under-the-consumer-protection-act-2019-let-the-manufacturer-seller-beware

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Disclaimer:

These guides are not legal advice, nor a substitute for a lawyer. These articles are provided freely as general guides for legal awareness in the Society. Laws are updated/amended regularly by concerned authorities. Please check for the latest & updated laws with your legal advisor.