Consumer forum directs Spice Mobile to compensate irate user

Following an affidavit filed by a Haryana-based doctor, the South West District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum has asked Spice Mobile to pay a fine amounting to Rs.18,000. The mobile phone manufacturer, as alleged in complainant Dr.Asha Sharma’s affidavit, failed to fix or return her cellphone that she had given to the company's service centre for repairs.

A bench presided by Narendra Kumar has now directed the company, Spice Mobile, and its service centre to either jointly or otherwise pay the complainant the specified amount. 

Forum slaps a fine of Rs.18,000  (Image credit: Getty Images)

In their verdict, the bench stated, “We find no reason to disbelieve her sworn testimony and hence come to the irresistible conclusion that opposite party 2 (Spice Mobile) being the principal and opposite party 3 (Spice Service Centre) being agent are guilty of deficiency in service for not replying to her legal notice, nor repairing the handset or returning the same despite it being received on September 20, 2010 by the service centre. We, therefore, allow the complaint and direct opposite party 2 and 3 either to jointly or severally pay complainant (Dr Asha Sharma) the price of the mobile handset amounting to Rs 5,000. They shall also pay her Rs 10,000 for mental and physical harassment and for alleged loss of data stored in the handset, along with cost of litigation of Rs 3,000.”

Haryana-based Dr.Asha Sharma reportedly bought a Spice mobile for Rs.5,000 on June 4, 2012. In her complaint, Sharma elaborates that the handset developed several faults that included device hanging and stopping automatically while charging. She went on to add that later the device stopped functioning altogether. On September 20, 2010, Sharma gave her phone at the service centre for repairs. In  her complaint, Sharma alleges that the service centre did not return the mobile, after which she went ahead and issued a legal notice, seeking refund of the phone's price, notice fee, compensation and litigation cost.

Sharma alleges, however, that she did not receive a reply to the notice sent to the opposite parties. Spice Mobile on its part, however, rubbished Sharma's allegation. 

As per reports late last month, South-II District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum held Nokia India guilty of indulging in unfair trade practice, following a complaint by Delhi resident Rohan Arora. Nokia India was directed by the forum to pay Arora a sum of Rs.67,000 for allegedly not only selling Arora a defective phone, but also failing to either repair the device or refund the cost.

Reports added further that Arora had returned the phone to Nokia in 2007 to either have it repaired or replaced. He, however, claims that the defective handset was replaced with an old instrument riddled with the same problem. Arora added that Nokia India refused to refund the cost of the device. The case against the company moved ahead ex-parte, since it had appeared only once before the forum. 

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