The Consumer Protection Act 2019

The Consumer Protection Act, 2019 replaced the Act of 1986. It gives consumers speedy and inexpensive ways to get justice. It covers all of India and all businesses, including e-commerce (online sellers).

A consumer, under the Act, is a person who buys goods or avails services for a consideration (a price) that is paid, promised, or to be paid later, whether offline or online. A person who buys for resale or a commercial purpose is not a consumer: a shopkeeper buying 50 fans to resell cannot complain as a consumer.

Who can file a complaint (a complainant):

• a consumer;
• a registered voluntary consumer association;
• the Central or a State government;
• the Central Consumer Protection Authority;
• a legal heir of a consumer who has died;
• a parent or guardian of a minor consumer;
• one or more consumers with the same interest.

Key words: a defect is a fault in goods; a deficiency is a fault in a service; spurious goods are goods falsely claimed to be genuine; and product liability means the maker or seller must compensate for harm caused by a defective product.