'Forums not meant to enrich consumers with unreasonable, highly excessive relief'

Ramkrishan Upadhyay

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Chandigarh , March 1

Consumer forums are not meant to enrich consumers at the cost of the service provider by awarding unfair, unreasonable and highly excessive compensation.

The State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, UT, observed this while rejecting an appeal of a city resident, who demanded an enhancement of the compensation awarded by the district forum.

Harish C Jain, the appellant, had challenged the decision of the forum pronounced on July 23, 2019.

In the order, the forum had directed a travel agency, Your Tour Advisor Pvt Ltd, Ghaziabad (UP), to refund Rs20,000 paid as advance for a package, along with Rs10,000 as compensation for harassment and Rs7,000 as litigation expenses to the appellant.

Jain had approached the forum against the travel company alleging that the company had failed to provide the services as promised to him.

In his complaint, he had stated that he had booked a tour package of Goa at the total cost of Rs61,200 on August 2, 2018, and transferred a sum of Rs20,000 to the account of the travel agency on the same day. Despite booking and advance payment, the company never sent hotel vouchers as well as other relevant documents regarding stay/booking at Goa. Therefore, he made last-minute arrangements and booked another hotel at Goa by paying Rs86,864. Due to the ‘negligence’ of the travel agency, he had to pay Rs61,344 extra, he claimed.

Aggrieved against the order passed by the forum, the consumer filed an appeal before the commission and prayed for granting a relief of Rs61,344 as extra expenses borne by him.

After hearing of the arguments, the commission dismissed the appeal, while stating that the compensation should be commensurate with loss and injury suffered by the complainant. The compensation is required to be fair, just and not unreasonable and arbitrary.

The commission observed: “It is the prerogative of the complainant as to how much amount was to be spent by him, whether Rs61,344 or lakhs. The consumer forums are not meant to enrich consumers at the cost of the service provider by awarding unfair, unreasonable and highly excessive compensation. We are of the view that the forum had rightly granted relief to the complainant.”

What commission observed

After hearing of the arguments, the commission dismissed the appeal, while stating that the compensation should be commensurate with loss and injury suffered by the complainant. The compensation is required to be fair, just and not unreasonable and arbitrary.