A Bangalore woman filed a lawsuit against the furniture giant IKEA for charging ₹20 for a carry bag with the brand’s emblem, and earlier this month the plaintiff was awarded ₹3,000 in relief. According to a report, Sangeetha Bohra, a resident of Jogupalya in Bangalore, visited the IKEA in Nagasandra on October 6 of last year.
Bangalore Woman Sued IKEA For Charging ₹20 For A Bag
The woman saw that she was charged ₹20 for a carry bag despite having made purchases totalling ₹2,428. She voiced her concerns to the staff about why she had to pay more for a carry bag. Further, she requested that it be made available to consumers free of charge. However, she was forced to pay the amount when they claimed that it was their policy.
In a legal notification issued to the Indian branch of the Swedish company 11 days later, she claimed a refund and said that requiring all clients to carry a bag bearing the company’s name constituted “advertising,” which is “spurious” and an “unfair trade practices.” By responding that forcing customers to purchase bags with their logo is not unfair, the business refuted the accusations. Refund requests from the wife were also turned down.
The woman subsequently filed a complaint with the Shantinagar branch of the Bengaluru Urban First Additional District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission in March. The company’s legal counsel characterised her complaint against the retail behemoth as fraudulent, frivolous, vexatious, and subject to dismissal.
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The Company Denied The Allegation
Ikea’s legal representative claimed that there is not a direct nor an indirect requirement for customers to purchase paper bags. And there is nothing suspicious about their sale or any additional fees. But in their ruling made on October 4, the judges of the consumer court noted that the business was guilty of unfair trading practices. Further, the seller must pay all costs associated with getting the items into a condition where they can be delivered to the buyer.
Additionally, the court mandated that the business return the ₹20 it had been charged for the carry bag, plus interest. Additionally, to pay another ₹1,000 as restitution for harassment and an additional ₹2,000 to cover court costs.
Earlier in May, the Madurai District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission had ordered Apple India to either replace a consumer’s damaged laptop with a brand-new one. It has to be defect-free or to pay the user the actual worth of the machine, which costs ₹1.28 lakh with 12% interest. The Commission ordered Apple India to pay the complainant ₹1 lakh in damages and ₹5,000 for the filing fee.
The complainant had sent Apple India a letter requesting that they replace the damaged laptop with a new one. He claimed to have spent ₹1.28 lakh on the laptop in 2021. However, there were problems with the laptop’s functionality.
According to the complaint, he observed concerns with performance and booting. Also, he expressed concern about overheating. Then he filed a complaint and claimed that this was the result of a manufacturing flaw.
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He lamented that the laptop had crashed, had stopped responding to orders, and could not be reset to normal operation.
Cover Image Courtesy: Wikimedia
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