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Consumer Rights
Presented by :
Priyanshi Verma (d/o Mr. Sandeep Verma)
XA
Index
Who is a Consumer
Duties of a Consumer
Exploitation of Consumers
Consumer Movement
Consumer Protection Act
COPRA Act
Rights and Responsibilities of A Consumer
A consumer is the one who purchases the
product for his/her own need and uses
or consumes it. A consumer cannot resell
the good, product or service but can
consume it to earn his/her livelihood and
self-employment.
Buying quality products at a reasonable price
To check the weights and measures before making purchases
Reading the label carefully to avoid purchase from fake brands
Beware of false and attractive advertisements
Beware of misleading schemes
To produce the bill, cash received warranty, etc.
Sale of adulterated goods, i.e., addition of inferior
substances to the product being sold.
Sale of sub-standard goods, i.e., sale of goods which
do not confirm to the prescribed quality standards
Use of false weights and measures leading to losses
Supply of defective goods
Misleading advertisements, i.e., advertisements falsely
claiming a product or service to be of superior quality,
grade or standard.
The consumer movement is an effort to
promote consumer protection through an
organized social movement, which is in many
places led by consumer organisations.
As such, consumers play a vital role in the
economic system of a capitalist economy.
Without consumer demands produces would
lack one of the key motivations to produce –
to sell to the consumers.
The important objectives of the consumer movement are as follows –
• To restore the balance in the buyer-seller relations in the market
place.
• To protect and promote the consumer interests.
• To safeguard consumer rights.
Consumers play an essential role in the economic system of the nation, and their
consumption system affects the economy.
The Consumer Protection Act, 2019 was introduced in the Lok Sabha as a
replacement of COPRA, 1986 on 8 July 2019 by the Minister of Consumer
Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, Ram Vilas Paswan. It was passed
by Lok Sabha on 30 July 2019 and later passed in Rajya Sabha on 6
August 2019.
The bill received assent from the President Ram Nath Kovind on 9 August,
and was notified in The Gazette of India on the same date. The Act came into
effect by 20 July 2020, while certain other provisions of the Act like
establishing the Central Consumer Protection Authority came into effect from
24 July 2020.
COPRA ACT
The Consumer Protection Act was passed in 1986, and it came into force from
1 July 1987. The main objectives of the Act are to provide better and all-round
protection to consumers and effective safeguards against different types of
exploitation such as unfair trade practices, etc.
In 1986, a three – tier judicial machinery was set up under COPRA at the
District, State and National levels. Various claims are dealt by the courts.
The act provides a platform for a consumer where they can file their complaint,
and the forum takes action against the concerned supplier and compensation is
granted to the consumer for the hassle he/she has encountered.