How to File a Complaint in Consumer Court?

The whole process of filing a complaint or case in the consumer court is straight forward and it can be done without a lawyer by yourself on plain paper. In this article, we will briefly explain ‘How to File a Complaint in Consumer Court?‘, The consumer courts are set-up across the country and the list of their addresses will be provided in this post.

Consumer Rights / Eligibility

A consumer is eligible to take legal action and file a complaint in consumer court if their rights are violated, which include:

• Right to Basic Needs
• Right to Safety
• Right to be Informed
• Right to Choose
• Right to Representation / be Heard
• Right to Redress
• Right to Consumer Education
• Right to Healthy Environment

To make it simple, a consumer can file a complaint in the consumer court if the following circumstances occur:

• If the customer isn’t given full disclosure of price, quality, and details of product.
• Customer isn’t issued a receipt upon request.
• Refund policy is not mentioned clearly.
• The product or service turned out to be defective/faulty.
• The product or service turned out to be counterfeit.
• In case of unfair trading practices.
• Warranty Fraud.
• In case of false or misleading representation / advertisement of product or service.

Requirements

The consumer must ensure that he/she has complete proof to file the complaint in the consumer court, including all evidence of the problem, receipts (proof of purchase), and other related documents to back their complaints.

How to File Complaint in Consumer Court?

The process to file a complaint or case in the consumer court is relatively simple and straight forward, however, it will require some time on the part of the consumer. The following steps briefly explain ‘How to file a complaint or case in the consumer court?’.

1. 15-Days Legal Notice

A consumer must first serve a fifteen days legal notice on plain paper to the provider or the defective item or faulty service, and asking to pay the damages to the consumer within fifteen days of the receipt of legal notice, otherwise the consumer may file a claim for redressal of his / her grievances before the consumer court.

The consumer must make sure of the following:

1. The legal notice should be serviced to the manufacturers / sellers of the product and to the service provider, in case of provision of service, especially through registered post / mail with written acknowledgement.
2. There is a limitation of 30 days (from date of purchase) to file the complaint in the consumer court.
3. The consumer must serve a 15-day legal notice to the seller before filing the complaint in the consumer court.
4. The case must be filed in the consumer court immediately on the expiry of the 15 days notice sent to the seller.

2. Filing Case in Consumer Court

If the matter is not resolved through the legal notice, then consumer may file a case / claim on plain paper for redressal of his / her grievance before the consumer court.

It must be noted that a lawyer is not required to file a complaint in the consumer court and it can be done by the consumer himself / herself on a plain paper. Furthermore, there is no court fee required for filing of the complaint before consumer court.

The consumer needs to take the legal notice along with all other proof and documentation to the consumer court (addresses provided in this post) and get the documents drafted and verified under oath. The consumer will then file the complaint at the office of the consumer court and wait for the judge to approve the case.

The judge may inquire about more information into the matter and once approval is given, the notices will be sent to the defendant (seller) via courier and a given date of hearing will be provided. It must be noted that the consumer will be required to pay for the courier charges for the notice being sent to the defendant.

The court will try to solve the matter through negotiations but if these fail a date of hearing will be given and a judgement is usually given the same or on the next hearing date. However, if the consumer is filing the complaint in the consumer court on his own, he / she are required to be present at every hearing. If this is not possible, it is recommended to get a lawyer to make the process easier and more convenient.

Consumer Courts in Lahore

Consumer Courts in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP)

Consumer Courts in Sindh

If you any questions regarding how to file a complaint in the consumer court – leave a comment below.

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