Car buyers find it tough to get promised ‘exchange bonus’

Kumar did the needful,and applied to the company for the exchange bonus. His claim was rejected on the ground that proof of the transferred RC had been submitted after 105 days. Kumar said he was not told of this pre-condition at the time of purchasing his car,but the dealer stuck to his stand. Aggrieved,Kumar filed a case in Chandigarh Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum-II.

In their reply,the manufacturer and the dealer stated that the exchange claim was valid only if all documents were received within 120 days of sale,and the RC of the old car had been transferred within 105 days of the new purchase.

After considering the case,the Forum held that the complainant had submitted the documents well before 120 days,and hence was eligible for the exchange bonus. The Forum noted that in a case decided earlier,the Chandigarh Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum had held that the exchange bonus is to be given by the manufacturer,and not by the dealer. Hence,the liability for deficiency in service should also be fastened on the manufacturer.

In this light,the Forum directed the manufacturer and the dealer to jointly pay Rs 15,000 to Kumar as the exchange bonus,and Rs 10,000 as compensation and cost of litigation.

But in another case,the buyer was not held entitled to any compensation,since she was aware of the pre-conditions but did not submit the required documents on time.

Indira Sapru,a resident of Sector 7 in Panchkula,had complained to Chandigarh Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum-II that she purchased a car from a dealership in Chandigarh in August 2009. She stated that the manufacturer had promised an exchange bonus of Rs 10,000 to buyers,who previously owned a car and sold it within three months of the new purchase.

Sapru said she submitted the documents required for claiming the exchange bonus,after selling her old car,within the three-month period. Since the Registration Certificate (RC) had not been transferred in the name of the new owner yet,she submitted an affidavit from the new owner,testifying that he had purchased the old car.

The Forum held that the buyer had not fulfilled the required pre-condition of getting the RC transferred in the name of the new owner,within the stipulated time. In this light,the Forum directed the dealer to pay Rs 10,000 to the complainant,as promised by the exchange offer.