The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) held a stakeholder consultation on the feasibility of having date of installation as the date from which warranty period should be calculated rather than date of purchase. Companies have been asked to send their views on the issue in the next 15 days, an official statement said on Saturday.
“Since warranty period as per the policies set by manufacturers starts from purchase date, and not date of installation, there is shortfall in the warranty period as consumers can only begin using the product after it has been installed on their premises,” it noted in a statement.
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CCPA also asked manufacturers to take measures may be explored to “prevent abuse of this mechanism” and to ensure that consumer interest is adequately safeguarded.
“There was a general consensus among the companies to address the issue in a proactive manner keeping in view concerns of consumers,” the statement added .
The meeting was chaired by Nidhi Khare, Chief Commissioner, CCPA and was attended by representatives from major electronic appliance companies including Reliance Retail, L.G., Panasonic, Haier, Croma and Bosch.
Khare stressed that consumers should be clearly informed about the starting time period of warranty period. She also said companies should ensure that global best practices are followed in India and that consumer grievances relating to warranty period must be addressed in a proactive and prompt manner.
“Consumer rights as defined under Section 2(9) of the Act, includes the right to be informed about the quality, quantity, potency, purity, standard and price of goods, products or services, as the case may be, so as to protect the consumer against unfair trade practices,” CCPA added.
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