Courier firm fined Rs 20,000 for not delivering cards

Anticipating a grand wedding for his son, S R Aggarwal, a resident of Sector 30...

Anticipating a grand wedding for his son, S R Aggarwal, a resident of Sector 30, was extremely disappointed when half of the invited guests did not turn up for the ceremony. Later, Aggarwal discovered that of the 204 invitation cards sent through the DTDC courier company, 109 were never delivered.

The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum has directed DTDC to pay Rs 20,000 as compensation for gross deficiency in services. “By failing to deliver the cards, the firm has not only failed to perform its duty but also caused humiliation to the complainant,” said president of the forum, Jagroop Singh Mahal.

In his complaint, Aggarwal stated that at the time of placing the order, the courier company had assured him that cards would be delivered anywhere in India within 48 hours. The cards, for the marriage ceremony to be held on March 2, were handed over for delivery on February 20.

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According to the complainant, DTDC did not provide the proof of delivery despite several telephonic reminders. Also, of the 80 cards shown as delivered on the company’s website, 29 cards did not reach their destination.

In its reply, DTDC stated that all the invitations were promptly delivered to the addressees. “Only those cards which were addressed wrongly could not be delivered. The status of delivery was duly informed to the complainant and also made available on the company’s website,” said the counsel for DTDC. The counsel further stated that the complainant was entitled to only Rs 100 as damages according to the terms and conditions of the booking.

The forum said that in its reply, the company had failed to mention the exact number of received and the ones which remained undelivered. “Even the delivery sheet on which signatures of the addressees are obtained has not been produced before the forum to prove the company’s claim,” added the forum.

The forum said that as such, the liability of the courier company amounts to Rs 10,900 considering Rs 100 for the 109 cards. But after considering the compensation, penalty totalled Rs 20,000.