Charging Rs. 50 Over MRP, Chandigarh District Commission Holds Van Heusen And Aditya Birla Fashion & Retail Ltd. Liable For Unfair Trade Practice

Brief Facts:

The Complainant visited the retail store operated by Van Heusen in Delhi. Van Heusen advertised a promotional offer wherein the purchase of one article entitled the consumer to receive two additional articles of equal or lesser value for free. Acting upon this offer, the Complainant purchased clothing items from Van Heusen amounting to Rs. 899/-, along with two additional articles of the same value. To the Complainant's dismay, it was discovered that instead of the agreed-upon Rs. 899/-, Van Heusen charged Rs. 949/- for the articles, exceeding the stipulated price by Rs. 50/-.

Despite the Complainant's objections to this overcharge, Van Heusen took no remedial action. Feeling aggrieved, the Complainant approached the District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission-I, U.T. Chandigarh (“District Commission”) and filed a consumer complaint against Van Hussen and Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Limited (owner of Van Heusen in India).

Van Heusen and Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Limited didn't appear before the District Commission. Therefore, they were proceeded against ex-parte.

Observations by the District Commission:

The District Commission noted that the Complainant purchased articles/clothes from Van Heusen under the premise of a promotional offer. It noted that the Maximum Retail Price (MRP) was Rs. 899/-, inclusive of all taxes. It noted that incongruity established that Van Hussen and Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Limited overcharged the Complainant by Rs. 50/-, which included taxes that were purportedly already included in the MRP. Therefore, the District Commission held Van Heusen and Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Limited liable for deficiency in service and an unfair trade practice.

Consequently, the District Commission directed Van Heusen and Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Limited to refund Rs. 50/- to the Complainant along with interest at a rate of 9% per annum from the date of filing of the consumer complaint. It also directed them to compensate the Complainant with Rs. 1500/- for the mental agony and harassment caused along with Rs. 2,000/- for the litigation costs.

Case Title: Sahil Dawar vs Van Heusen and Anr.

Case Number: CC/484/2023

Advocate for the Complainant: Ankit Aggarwal

Advocate for the Respondent: Ex-parte

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