The State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission in Chandigarh levied a fine of ₹30,000 on Flipkart, OnePlus, and a mobile phone retailer for the sale of a used phone disguised as new.

The Commission was hearing a complaint by Ashwani Chawla. Chawla had ordered a new OnePlus 11R 5G through Flipkart on July 17, 2023, via a seller named Bathla Teletech.

After using the phone for a few days, Chawla encountered significant issues, leading him to visit a OnePlus service centre. It was then revealed that the phone had been activated four months prior to his purchase.

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The service centre directed him to the manufacturer (OnePlus), seller (Bathla Teletech), and online marketing platform (Flipkart). However, the complainant received no responses and he eventually bought a new phone. Disappointed, he sought redress from the Commission.

In the past many such instances of fraud have come to pass. In many cases, the counterfeit product is sold under the guise of the real product. In the past, there have been instances of products being intercepted. In one of the instances, a brick was sold instead of a phone.

The Commission ordered the opposite parties to refund Rs 40,941 for the mobile phone and an additional Rs 49 charged for handling. They were also instructed to jointly and severally pay Rs 10,000 to the complainant for deficiency in service, unfair trade practices, and harassment, along with another Rs 10,000 for litigation expenses. Additionally, they were directed to pay Rs 10,000 to the Consumer Legal Aid Account of the State Commission.

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This story originally appeared in the Free Press Journal and is published here under a mutual content-sharing agreement.