Amazon Fined INR 40K by Mumbai Court for Not Delivering INR 100 Rakhi

E-commerce giant Amazon has been ordered by a Mumbai consumer dispute redressal tribunal to reimburse a disgruntled customer INR 40,000, including legal fees, for failing to deliver a Rakhi valued at INR 100.

A bench of the District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission for the Mumbai suburban area issued an order on February 11 directing the deposit of the money within 60 days of the order's issuance.

According to the order, in August 2019, the customer placed an online order for a Rakhi. Nevertheless, Amazon subsequently cancelled the transaction after the delivery date and returned the INR 100 that was paid at the time of purchase.

What Exactly the Complaint States?

According to the complaint, a now-defunct courier business was tasked with delivering the merchandise. Additionally, according to the plea, Amazon dispatched the disputed Rakhi on July 25, 2019, over a week before the order was placed.

After discovering similar grievances from other parties, the complainant issued a legal notice to the e-commerce giant requesting INR 4.5 lakh in compensation for alleged unfair trading practices and service deficiencies.

Following its hearing of the complaint, the commission ordered the e-commerce giant to pay the compensation sum after finding it guilty of "deficiency in service and adopting unfair trade practice".

Amazon’s Response and Tribunal Observation

Amazon argued in front of the consumer court that it was only a third-party, impartial facilitator that let sellers list on the platform. Additionally, the e-commerce site asserted that it has no control over the sale transaction and cannot be held accountable for the listing.

The tribunal responded by pointing out that there was no documentation proving that Amazon had sent INR 100 to "Dhanashree Rakhi," the Rakhi seller, implying that the money was in the e-commerce platform's account. By doing this, the tribunal confirmed that the complainant and Amazon were the parties to the transaction, and it further said that the e-commerce platform was in charge of the delivery.

 According to the order, Amazon has an obligation to the complainant and to her money. Every time a customer clicks on the online marketplace's website, money is made. As a result, before accepting the order, the other party (Amazon) has an obligation to confirm the seller's location and status.

 The Consumer Court noted that as Amazon was in possession of the aforementioned Rakhi, it was accountable for ensuring its prompt delivery; failing to do so constituted a service failure and an unfair business activity.

In addition to claiming that the non-delivery of the Rakhi to her brother's son caused her "emotional hurt and harassment", the complainant failed to provide any convincing evidence in support of the INR 4.5 lakh compensation request, the consumer grievance redressal tribunal noted.

However, the commission mandated that Amazon pay INR 10,000 in legal fees and INR 30,000 in compensation.