Consumer courts in city see a sharp rise in miscellaneous complaints

The two UT district forums have jointly witnessed 34,738 cases being filed since its inception. Of this, a total of 30,316 are under the miscellaneous category. The UT State Commission, which caters to appeals and direct complaints claiming compensation of over Rs 20 lakh, has witnessed 9,147 cases since inception. Here also, the others category has witnessed a total of 5,707 cases, the maximum of all.

In the well-defined categories, cases of insurance rule the roost at 1,664. Time and again, the consumer forum has been issuing instructions to insurance companies not to repudiate righteous claims on flimsy grounds. They have also been recently applying for punitive damages if the insurance company prepares a false ground or document to justify themselves.

Next in line are the complaints related to the banking sector. The consumer forum received 865 such complaints. Complaints against telecom companies are at 514 while cases of medical negligence have mounted to 166.

Officials at the consumer court say that contrary to the last decade, when the forum merely witnessed cases related to banks and insurance, more and more complaints against unfair trade practices, pest control companies, courier companies, biscuit companies and against coaching institutes are being witnessed.

In September this year, a resident of Sector 49, Harjinder Pal Singh, was awarded a compensation of Rs 25,000 after he moved the forum alleging a packet of Bector biscuits was 100 grams underweight.

The dealers of a water filter in Sector 45, New Milan Associates, were also directed to refund the amount of a defective water filter while it was in the warranty period. A courier company, Deep Seed Express, was also directed to pay Rs 90,000 compensation after they failed to deliver a consignment to the NRI son of a complainant.

A Mohali resident, Gurmeet Singh, was also awarded a compensation of Rs 25,000 after he was dissatisfied with the services of a plumber. “All this is attributed to the increased consumer awareness, now people from all quarters and different walks of life approach the forum. Consumer is the king in today’s era and it’s a different revolution of a kind,” says advocate Deepak Aggarwal.