Pepperfry fined Rs 95,144 for denying exchange/refund for wrong sofa delivery in Hyderabad

Hyderabad: The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission-I has directed Pepperfry Limited to pay Rs 95,144 to a city resident for delivering a wrong product and refusing an exchange and refund.

Case details

Kotti Naga Sri, a resident of Banjara Hills, ordered the product ‘Haiden Velvet RHS Sectional Sofa in Blush Pink Colour’ after seeing it on the Pepperfry site. Naga Sri paid Rs 55,144 for the sofa.

Upon opening the product, Naga Sri noticed that the product on the site and the product delivered were completely different. She stated that the sofa she ordered was shown as 35 inches in the product description but the one that was delivered only had 19 inches of seating space while the rest was taken up by the design. Further, she said that the delivered sofa had a different colour, quality and comfort level than the one she ordered.

The technician raised a complaint about the delivery of the wrong product

Frustrated by the wrong details about the product on the site Naga Sri approached a technician of Pepperfry, who also found that the delivered sofa was different from the one ordered from the site. He raised a complaint about the delivery of the wrong product to the company.

On August 24, 2023, Naga Sri received an email from Pepperfry informing her that the assembly service of the sofa failed, admitting that the item delivered was wrong. However, they denied any requests for the exchange of the product or a refund of the amount. On September 9, 2023, Naga Sri sent a legal notice to Pepperfry. The opposite party, in spite of receiving the legal notice, did not reply.

Pepperfry did not respond to the legal notice

Naga Sri knocked on the doors of the consumer forum for justice. Despite being asked to appear before the commission on December 8, 2023, Pepperfry failed to make appearance. As Pepperfry failed to file a written version within the statutory period prescribed under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, they were set ex-parte vide docket proceedings on January 22, 2024.

In the present case, the commission noted that Pepperfry remained absent for reasons best known to them and the documentary evidence of Naga Sri remained unchallenged and unrebutted.

“Further, it is clear from the documents submitted that Pepperfry admitted that the assembly service could not be completed as the item delivered to the complainant was incorrect. Therefore, the act of sending a wrong/incorrect product and later on refusing to refund or replace the same amounts to deficiency in service and unfair trade practice on the part of Pepperfry Limited,” the commission ruled.

The court stated that since Naga Sri’s grievance might have certainly caused immense mental agony to her, she is entitled to just and reasonable compensation. The court asked Pepperfry to pay Rs 95,144 to the complainant: Rs 55,144 as a refund for the product, Rs 25,000 as compensation and Rs 10,000 towards litigation costs.