Apple, seller fined for failing to repair laptop, refusing refund : The Tribune India

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Apple, seller fined for failing to repair laptop, refusing refund

CHANDIGARH: Apple India Private Limited, Bangalore, and Unicorn Infosolutions Private Limited, Sector 35, have been penalised for not being able to repair a faulty MacBook laptop and refusing refund for the same.



Ishrat S Banwait
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, October 17

Apple India Private Limited, Bangalore, and Unicorn Infosolutions Private Limited, Sector 35, have been penalised for not being able to repair a faulty MacBook laptop and refusing refund for the same.

The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum imposed a fine of Rs 15,000 on them with a direction to refund Rs 1.28 lakh, the amount at which the product was sold.

In his complaint, Samanyu Jain claimed that he had bought an Apple MacBook Pro with touch bar on July 3, 2017, from Unicorn Infosolutions for Rs 1,27,900. He was also charged Rs 1,700 exclusively for a USB adapter.

The complainant alleged that the laptop was developing problems from the very first day. The complainant requested for a replacement as the Apple Company gives a guarantee of 14 days, but the seller refused to accept it while claiming that it had fixed the problems in the laptop.

After a few days, the complainant again faced major problems in the said laptop and eventually, approached the seller on September 4, 2017. The seller replaced the motherboard and delivered the laptop to the complainant after four days. Thereafter, the complainant again faced several issues and requested for replacement, which was not accepted.

The problems arose after multiple repairs and in the meantime, Samanyu sent emails to the opposite parties thrice. However, no action was taken. Samanyu then approached the forum after serving a legal notice on them.

Unicorn Infoslutions pleaded that the complainant visited the store with some issues with the software, which were resolved immediately and the laptop was handed over to him after thorough check and satisfaction.

It has been admitted that the 14-day replacement was applicable only in case of a hardware issue or manufacturing defect in the product. However, in the present case, there was only a software problem. It added that every time the complainant visited them, his issues were resolved to his satisfaction.

Apple India, in its reply, pleaded that the motherboard of the device was replaced and the issue was resolved. The next time he approached for some display issue and as per warranty provision, the complainant got the display replaced and the device was once again a new device. The company urged that the complainant was cooking up stories to suit his case. The complainant has not produced any evidence to prove that the device had a manufacturing defect, it added.

The forum observed that problems with the MacBook within two months of its purchase, even after spending a huge amount, was a major issue and spoke volumes of its quality. It added, “Selling a substandard product, not providing proper service and not replying to the legal notice prove that they indulged in unfair trade practice.”

The forum observed that once it was proved on record that there was an inherent defect and imperfection in the quality of product, the warranty amounts to guarantee to replace the product/ refund the amount charged for it. A consumer would not like to purchase a headache as happened in the present case.

The respondents were thus fined for causing mental agony and harassment to the complainant. They were asked to pay litigation costs and refund Rs 1,27,900 paid by the complainant.

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