With liberalisation and globalisation and greater thrust towards privatisation accompanied with heightened awareness on account of increased availability of information and media exposure today’s consumer has changed radically. There is a growing concern for environment protection and healthy consumption.
At the same time the consumer wants greater value for the money spent by him. However, inspite of best efforts during the course of consumption a consumer may encounter many problems. Some of the significant problems are listed below :-
Grievance Redressal mechanism under CPA
An aware consumer can approach Consumer Protection Act at three different levels. For complaints that involve payment of compensation upto Rs. 20 lakh, the consumer can approach District Consumer Court. For complaints above Rs. 20 lakh but less than 1 crore, consumers can approach State Consumer Commission. For complaints above one crore, the aggrieved person will need to approach the National Commission for redressal of his grievance.
Documents required for complaints
In order to substantiate complaints the consumers should have following documents :-
Who can file a complaint?
A complaint can be filed by:
Grounds to File a Complaint
Any allegation in writing made by the complainant against the trader or service provider should enlist :-
Limitation period
A complaint can be filed within two years from the date on which the cause of action has arisen. However, a complaint may be entertained after the period if the complainant had sufficient cause for not filing the complaint within such period by recording its reason for condoning such delay.
Format of Complaint
A complaint filed in the District Forum should contain the following information :-
Maximum Retail Price
The concept of maximum retail price (MRP) has not really been very well understood by the consumer. Issues relating to MRP could be broadly summed up as below :-
Role of regulators in helping the consumers
The battle for consumer protection has to be fought by many agencies. The Consumer Protection Act has been rightly defined as the “Magna Carta of Consumers”. However, since the authority of products and services available in the market is huge the Central Government has realised the importance of regulating the functioning of important industries in public interest. Industry regulators have been set up in various sectors so as to enable the consumers suitable redressal on their grievance pertaining to these industries.
Independent regulatory agencies are empowered to regulate the specific industry relevant to their area of function. Regulators are meant to be independent in not just by the political establishment but from the market players as well. Ability of an institution to deliver consistent regulatory environment over time and their level playing field for all stake holders is a crucial determinant of regulatory efficiency.
Need is also being felt for setting up regulatory mechanism for other service sector agencies such as broadcast and cable, airport and others.
