The Consumer Protection Act, 1986 lists out six consumer rights such as right to choose, right to safety, right to be informed, right to be heard, right to redress, right to education. Apart from the six rights, there are also other consumer rights such as right to basic needs, and right to healthy environment.
According to free dictionary"One that consumes,especially one that acquires goods or services for direct use or ownership rather than for sale or use in production or manufacturing"
Consumer is basically a person or any legal entity who is the end user of specified goods or services.
1.Right to Choose:
Consumers have the
right to buy the products of their choice. A consumer should be given freedom
to choose any product as per his/her requirements, preferences, and purchasing
power. As a result of this right, manufacturers or sellers offer different
models or designs of the same product category. This right facilitates
promotion of competition and overcoming monopoly.
Some business firms
unduly induce the consumers to buy substandard or defective products. At times
some established companies do not permit retailers to sell the products of the
competitors. Such actions result in eliminating competition and restricting the
choice of goods and services.
2. Right to Safety:
A consumer has
the right to be protected against certain goods, which are dangerous to human
health/life. Consumer has the right to receive an assurance from the producer
about the quality, reliability and performance of goods.
For products like electrical
appliances, automobiles etc. considerable safety is required. Similarly food
articles, medicines and other products should be free from toxic substances
that are harmful for humans, therefore, businessmen must produce goods that
conform to established standards. Manufacturers or sellers who sell products
which do not adhere to health and safety standards must be penalized. However,
in reality, there are several cases of adulteration of food items, fruits are
sprayed with calcium carbide, poor quality of dyes are used in textiles,
vegetables contain excessive lead content due to chemical
fertilizers/pesticides, and so on. Hardly any action is taken by Government
authorities in such cases.
3. Right to be Informed:
A consumer has the right to know the basic
information about products in respect of:
· Price
and quality.
· Date
of manufacture and the expiry date.
· Instructions
for handling or use of the product.
· Ingredients
used in products like food, cosmetics, medicine.
· Manufacturer
or firm's name and the place of manufacturing.
· Side-effects
of the use of the products.
· Warranty
period.
· After-sale-service,
etc.
Manufacturers must
provide relevant information on the package or labels. The information
regarding warranty and after-sale-service in the case of equipments or durables
needs to be provided in the service contract or on the invoice. The information
should not be false and misleading. Also, a consumer has the right to be
protected against false and misleading information in the advertisements.
4. Right to be heard:
This right gives an
opportunity to consumers to register their complaints and grievances relating
to products which they use. Through this right, the complaints of the consumers
are heard and given due attention by the concerned authorities.
The consumers can
complain regarding poor quality of the product, poor after-sale-service, etc.
The consumer can make a complaint to the manufacturer or seller regarding the
deficiency of the product or service. If seller does not resolve the complaint;
the consumer can approach consumer associations like Consumer Guidance society
of India or the Govt. authorities.
5. Right to Redress:
The consumers can seek redressal against unfair practices (poor
quality, faulty after-sale-service, etc.) by
manufacturers or sellers. This right enables consumer to get compensation,
if he has suffered a loss or is put to inconvenience due to the fault of the
manufacturer or supplier. A consumer has right to get the product repaired or
replaced or refund of money.
6. Right to Consumer Education:
The rights aims at
educating consumers of their rights. this rights makes consumer well informed
and conscious of his rights. Government authorities and consumer associations
can educate consumers in respect of:
· Features
and special marks of quality such as ISI mark.
· Information
on the Packages that needs to be considered.
· Rights
of consumer.
· Redressal
agencies for seeking compensation.
· Procedure
to file consumer complaints.
The Government can
undertake media awareness among the consumers of their rights. For instance Govt.
undertakes the campaign 'Jaago Grahak Jaago '.
In addition to six basic rights, the
following two other consumer rights need to be considered:
7. Right to Basic Needs:
Consumers are human
beings, and they have basic needs relating to food, clothing and shelter. They
also need to have basic education and health services. Government is
responsible to provide basic human needs of its citizens.
Government fulfills basic human needs:
· Govt.
provides food items at subsidized prices to poor people through Public
Distribution System (PDS).The Govt. of India has also introduced the Food
Security Act in 2013.
· The
Govt. provides free houses to poor people under Indira Awas Yojana.
· Relating to education, the
Govt. has introduced 'Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 to provide free
and compulsory education for all children in the age group of 6 to 14 years.
The Govt. of India has also introduced the Right to Education Act.
· The
health services are provided free of cost at Govt. health centers.
8. Right to Healthy Environment:
Consumers have the
right for clean and healthy environment. Therefore, Govt. has introduced
pollution control measures to be adopted by business firms. If business firms
do not adopt pollution control measures, their business activities can be
suspended and they may have to pay heavy penalty.
Business firms must use
natural resources with care. In the interest of the consumers and society,
business firms should not misuse or over-exploit natural resources.
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