Selling defective machine to Chandigarh medical lab costs dealer dear
The State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission has directed a dealer to refund an amount of Rs 26,83,874 (after deducting 25% deprecation value) to the owner of a clinical lab over the sale of a defective machine.
The commission has also directed the company, Siemens Healthcare Private Limited, to pay compensation of Rs 1,10,000.
Observing the seriousness of the issue, the commission said any wrong result generated by such a machine can lead to life-threatening consequences.
Dr Rupa Sahgal, proprietor of Sahgal Clinical Lab, in a complaint filed before the commission said she, being a pathologist, is running a clinic/laboratory at Chandigarh. She decided to purchase a machine from Siemens Limited, which was required to conduct various blood tests, at a cost of Rs 35,78,498 on June 29, 2014. The machine, however, began malfunctioning soon after the purchase, resulting in erratic test reports. The complainant said she wrote emails to the company complaining about the repeated malfunctions and no definite solution had been found.
The company denied the allegations, saying the machine was handed over to the complainant in mint condition. Following proper installation and validation, a final installation report had also been obtained.
They attributed the erratic results to temperature not being adequately maintained in the complainant’s laboratory/clinic. They added that their engineers provided finest and prompt services to the complainant upto her satisfaction during warranty and AMC period, as is reflected from the Field Service Reports dated 2016 to 2021.
After hearing the arguments, the commission said it was apparent that the machine sold to the complainant was defective in nature and that’s why it required repairs on a number of occasions. In this case, the defects in the machine have the potential to lead to the issuance of erroneous or misleading medical results.
The commission noted that the stakes were so high that any wrong result generated by such a machine can lead to life-threatening consequences before directing Siemens Healthcare Private Limited to refund the amount of Rs 26,83,874 i.e. after deducting 25% from the billed amount of Rs 35,78,498 to the complainant alongwith interest @9% p.a. to the complainant.
Besides, the company was directed to pay a compensation of Rs 75,000 for causing mental agony and harassment and Rs 35,000 as cost of litigation.
