BackConsumer Protection Act rules for e-retailers to be effective by this weekend
E-commerce platforms have to acknowledge the receipt of any consumer complaint within forty-eight hours and redress the complaint within one month.
PremiumConsumer Protection Act 2019 came into force on Monday as the Union Minister of Consumer Affairs, Ram Vilas Paswan addressed reporters in a virtual press conference. He said, "the rules for prevention of unfair trade practice by e-commerce platforms will also be covered under this Act. However, e-commerce rules will get notified by the end of this week, while rules on direct selling will take some more time."
Paswan is hopeful that the law will empower consumers and help them in protecting their rights.
The Consumer Affairs Minister emphasised that the entities will face penal action for any non-compliance of the new rules for electronic retailers, including mandatory display of 'country of origin' on their products. The new rules will come into force by the end of this week.
"The 'Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020' will be applicable to all electronic retailers (e-tailers) registered in India or abroad but offering goods and services to Indian consumers," Ram Vilas Paswan told reporters in the virtual press conference.
Consumer Affairs Secretary Leena Nandan said the rules have been finalised after taking inputs from the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), under the aegis of the commerce ministry, so that they do not contravene with the overall e-commerce policy.
As per the rules, the e-commerce players will have to display the total 'price' of goods and services offered for sale along with break-up of other charges.
Under this act every e-commerce entity is required to provide information relating to return, refund, exchange, warranty and guarantee, delivery and shipment, modes of payment, grievance redressal mechanism, payment methods, security of payment methods, charge-back options, etc. including country of origin which are necessary for enabling the consumer to make an informed decision at the pre-purchase stage on its platform, said Paswan.
He futher added that e-commerce platforms have to acknowledge the receipt of any consumer complaint within forty-eight hours and redress the complaint within one month from the date of receipt under this Act.
"The New Act introduces the concept of product liability and brings within its scope, the product manufacturer, product service provider and product seller, for any claim for compensation," said the Minister.
The Act provides for punishment by a competent court for manufacture or sale of adulterant/spurious goods. The court may, in case of first conviction, suspend any licence issued to the person for a period of up to two years, and in case of second or subsequent conviction, cancel the licence.
They are also not allowed to "manipulate the price" of the goods and services offered on their platforms to gain unreasonable profit and discriminate between consumers of the same class or make any arbitrary classification of consumers affecting their rights under the Act.
As reported by PTI, e-tailers will also have to provide information on available payment methods, the security of those payment methods, any fees or charges payable by users, the procedure to cancel regular payments under those methods, charge-back options, if any, and the contact information of the relevant payment service provider.
That apart, e-tailers are required to display prominently to its users details about the 'sellers' offering goods and services, including the name of their business, whether registered or not, their geographic address, customer care number, any rating or other aggregated feedback about such seller, and any other information necessary for enabling consumers to make informed decisions at the pre-purchase stage.
However, the rules will not permit any inventory e-commerce entity, including single-brand retailers and multi-channel single-brand retailers, to "falsely represent itself as a consumer and post reviews about goods and services or misrepresent the quality or the features of any goods and services, reported PTI.
Under the new Law, the e-commerce firms should not display false advertisements to market the goods and services.
Under the rules, no inventory e-commerce entity will be allowed to refuse to take back goods, or withdraw or discontinue services purchased or agreed to be purchased, or refuse to refund consideration, if paid, if such goods or services are defective, deficient spurious, or if the goods or services are not of the features as advertised or as agreed to, or if such goods or services are delivered late from the stated delivery schedule, said PTI.
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