Case studies on each consumer right class 10
Answers
1. Medical Services Fall Within the Scope of the CPA
Do medical services fall under CPA? When there was a little confusion in this regard, the Indian Medical Association (IMA) decided to get this question resolved once and for all.
IMA approached the Supreme Court, asking them to declare that medical services are out of the scope of the CPA. They gave the following arguments to support their claim:
Medical professionals are governed by their own code of ethics made by the Medical Council of India.
In the medical profession, it is hard to guarantee the end result of treatments. Many external factors which are out of the control of the professional can impact the outcome. So, allowing consumer claims will cause people to file a case whenever a treatment didn’t work out.
There are no medical science experts in the Consumer Court.
Medical service provided by government hospitals will not fall under the Act especially when the service is provided for free.
These were decent points. After consideration, the court settled the claims in the following manner.
Court Decision
Medical services provided by any professional (private or government) will be covered by CPA. Meaning people can file a case in a Consumer Court if the service provided is not in confirmation with the Act.
Except:
Doctors and hospitals who treat patients for free cannot be sued by a person who availed their services for free.
In a government hospital, where services are provided free of charge – the Consumer Protection act would not apply.
Apart from these two exceptions, the Act will apply when a person gets treated in government hospitals for free, when a poor person gets treated for free, and when insurance money is used for treatment.
2. Tired of the False Claims Made by Skin and Hair Care Products Yet?
Maybe you are not tired yet or you are too tired to question. However, a 67-year-old man from Kerala’s remotest areas was tired of these consistent lies and how companies got away with them.
In 2015, K Chaathu complained against Indulekha (beauty product manufacturers) and Mammootty (an actor who was the brand ambassador of the company) for putting up misleading ads. The tagline of the soap was ‘soundaryam ningale thedi varum’ which meant ‘beauty will come in search of you. The ads also claimed that people using the soap will become ‘fair’ and ‘beautiful’ but the 67-year-old didn’t become fair or beautiful.
Compensation Paid
Indulekha paid him ₹30,000 in an out of the court settlement while the initial claim of Chaathu was ₹50,000. When he was asked about this, he said that this case was never about the money but about how these companies put up advertisements every day with false claims. And it is not okay to let these people get away with it.
Key Takeaways
Advertisements are made to sell the products, so exaggeration of results is too common. But this doesn’t make it okay to make false claims just for the sake of selling the products. Making false claims in violation of the CTA.
Case Study 1:
Reji's Suffering
- Reji was admitted to a private clinic in the state of Kerala for the purpose of his tonsillectomy operation.
- He was given improper anesthesia because of the hospital's carelessness and deficiency.
- Because of this incident, he showed a few symptoms of brain abnormalities.
- His father decided to file a complaint concerning this issue.
- He filed it in the State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission.
- He claimed compensation worth ₹ 5,00,000 for the medical negligence.
- The petition was dismissed because of a lack of evidence. Although, Reji's father appealed again. This time, in the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission in New Delhi.
- Then, he was awarded compensation.
Case Study 2:
Power of RTI
- Amritha did not get any news of the results after having to sit for an interview for the job that she dreamt of.
- The administrative officials did not entertain her queries.
- This led to her filing an application using the RTI Act.
- It said that it was her complete right to be acknowledged with the results at the earliest.
- Post this event, she was given reasonable reasons for the delay in the result announcement. She was also given a call letter for further appointments.
Case Study 3:
A Refund
- Abirami joined a two-year course at a local coaching institute in New Delhi.
- She paid ₹ 61,020 as fees for the whole course.
- She decided to drop out after one year because the teaching quality was not as satisfactory.
- She was denied a refund which made her file a case in the District Consumer Court.
- The Court then directed the institute to refund the amount of ₹ 28,000 and said that she had the right to choose.
These were the case studies on consumer rights.
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