In a recent order, the State Consumer Forum has dismissed the petition of a diagnostic centre that its intention to use a medical equipment for making a profit does not come under the Consumer Protection Act,1986; the only exception is when it’s purchased for self-employment or eking out a livelihood
HYDERABAD:A product purchased for the purpose of making profit does not make its possessor a consumer, at least, in the view of the consumer disputes redressal forum. In a recent order, the State Consumer Forum has dismissed the petition of a diagnostic centre that its intention to use a medical equipment for making a profit does not come under the Consumer Protection Act,1986.Echocardiography system, an electronic device used to picture sonography of the heart, was purchased by Safe Emergency Hospitals for picturing patients’ cardiovascular health.
However, the `23 lakh worth of equipment was not installed in the hospital even four months after its delivery. The petitioner claimed that the machine was used and asked for a refund through a complaint. In his petition, G Chakrapani said he suffered a financial loss to the tune of `10 lakh. Besides claiming a full refund along with 24 per cent interest, he also claimed for `5 lakh for the physical and mental agony caused by the loss. The state commission, basing on some rulings given by the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) in the past, ruled that if a product or service is purchased for commercial use, the buyer cannot be considered a consumer.
“According to the law, if any person purchases goods for resale or commercial use, he is not a consumer. The same holds true for services as well,” said V Gouri Sankara Rao, chairman of Confederation of all Telangana consumer organisation, adding that the only exception is when the items are bought for self-employment or livelihood.“Many people still approach the consumer forums in such cases in order to avoid the cost of litigation in courts,” he added.
‘Insurance sector to touch $280 billion’
The insurance industry in India was expected to grow to up to 280 billion US Dollars from its present volume of 84.72 billion US dollars by 2020 as the country is poised for higher economic growth, said Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu. He was speaking at the valedictory session of the 4th South Asian Insurance Regulatory Meet, Naidu said the investments made by firms in various sectors amounted to `30. 76 lakh crore by the end of 2017, of which over `2. 40 lakh crore was in the infrastructure sector.