Consumer commission rejects online marketplace’s claim that there is no privity between customer, orders refund

A district consumer commission directed a prominent online marketplace to refund to a customer the payment he made for wireless earphones after he complained that he received the wrong product.

A district consumer commission directed a prominent online marketplace to refund to a customer the payment he made for wireless earphones after he complained that he received the wrong product. The commission rejected the company’s contention that there exists no privity of contract between it and him as the they received the payment.

The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission - III, Hyderabad, was dealing with a complaint filed by Mohd Abdul Yusuf. The opposite party (OP) was Flipkart Internet Private Limited.

The complainant stated that he had ordered the earphones and paid ₹ 1,699. When the package was delivered, the product was a different type of earphones. The complainant then contacted customer care and informed them of what happened. Later an email was sent to him seeking his Aadhaar card details but a replacement was rejected.

For their part, the OP rejected all allegations. Based on feedback from their team, they asked for Aadhaar card details. However, the complainant did not comply so the ‘return’ was cancelled. The OP further stated that they do not handle products or services.

The commission noted that the OP maintained that there was no privity of contract between the complainant and them. They also noted that the payment for the earphones was received by the OP. Given this transaction, it cannot be said that no privity of contract exists, the commission stated.

The commission ordered a refund of ₹1,699 and compensation of ₹ 1,000.