Passenger refunded Rs 5 less on cancelled ticket, railways directed to pay Rs 10,000

Refund Rs 5 short

• The complaint alleged that he had booked two railway tickets from Hisar to Ludhiana on February 28, 2023, for himself and his father.
• He paid Rs 330 through a State Bank of India (SBI) debit card. He cancelled the tickets a day before travel due to an urgent reason.
• According to the ticket details, Rs 240 was deducted as cancellation charges and he was entitled to a refund of Rs 90.
• The complainant alleged that only Rs 85 was credited to his bank account.
• After unsuccessful attempts to obtain an explanation from railway officials and helpline services, the complainant approached the consumer commission alleging deficiency in service and unfair trade practice.
• He claimed to have suffered mental agony, tension and physical harassment due to deficiency in service and unfair trade practice by the railways.
• The railways contended that the Rs 5 deduction was made by the complainant’s bank, State Bank of India, and therefore, there was no deficiency on its part.
• It was further submitted that the complainant never approached them earlier, nor did he serve a mandatory notice to them before filing the present complaint.
• During the proceedings, the railways relied on a Railway Board notification issued in 2017, which provided for a Rs 5 charge by SBI as a refund fee for effecting the refund.

‘Complainant condemned unheard’

The commission noted that the cancelled ticket did not mention any such refund fee and there was no evidence that the information had been prominently displayed at booking counters, as required under the notification itself.

“It is not the case of the OPs that the entering of an agreement with State Bank of India wherein State Bank of India was authorized to deduct the refund charges, was widely published or prominently displayed at the booking counter of each Railway station in order to make the passengers aware of such stipulation whereas the Notification dated 20.01.2017 specifically stipulates that such information shall be conspicuously displayed at the counters having POS machines,” the commission noted.

It further observed that the said notification was produced by the railway department at the fag end of the proceedings and that the station master, Ludhiana and divisional manager, being the senior in the hierarchy of the railway, were not aware of such arrangement between the railways and the State Bank of India.

The commission further remarked that the complainant was condemned unheard.

“Further no opportunity of being heard was provided to the complainant before deduction of amount. Even after the deduction, the OPs did not share any reason for charging the refund fee to the complainant and as such, the complainant has been condemned unheard,” the commission observed.

It held that the principle of natural justice was violated and the railways infringed the statutory rights of the complainant, i.e., the right to be informed as envisaged in the Consumer Protection Act.

Partly allowing the complaint, the commission directed the railways to refund the deducted Rs 5 and pay composite costs of Rs 10,000 to the complainant.

The order further stipulated that failure to pay within the prescribed period would attract a penalty of Rs 200 per day until payment is made.