Bengaluru: A Jalahalli resident ordered an iPhone but his excitement quickly turned to disbelief when a “used” and “fake” device was delivered. He took the legal route, and the First Additional District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission recently ordered a full refund.The saga began when 39-year-old Ashoka Bhat decided on April 9, 2023, to buy a black iPhone 14 Pro Max for Rs 1.3 lakh and placed the order on Amazon. On April 11, he received the package, which he said contained a used product that didn’t look original. He requested a refund.
While Amazon initially asked him to wait for three days, it later apologised and sought a return of the product. However, Amazon and Appario Retail, which sold the product, claimed Bhat returned the “wrong” item. A legal notice sent to the two entities went largely unheeded, with Amazon saying the actual product was not returned. Bhat filed a consumer complaint on July 10 seeking a refund.In its defence, Appario Retail, based in Haryana, said the order was delivered by Amazon through an authorised agent. It added that the grievance concerned with delivery issues, over which it had no role.Amazon, located at World Trade Centre, Rajajinagar, said the order was placed with Appario, an independent seller, and the tax invoice was issued by Appario, not Amazon, showing the sale was strictly between them. Payments went directly to Appario through an independent nodal account, separate from Amazon’s accounts. Amazon added that it initiated a return and refund process, but an enquiry revealed that Bhat returned the wrong product.After going through all the documents and hearing both sides, the commission stated that the companies did not produce any evidence that the product delivered matched the order placed. Bhat’s multiple correspondences and eventual legal notice, coupled with Appario’s failure to file affidavits, demonstrated that the complainant did not receive the genuine product, it said.The commission observed: “The customer, obviously having trust in the Amazon company, placed the order to purchase the iPhone… Hence, in our view, Amazon was fully responsible for delivering the product as per the specification given by the customers.”“Amazon did not examine the delivery boy to disprove the case of the complainant, or produce any cogent evidence that the product delivered is the same as the order placed by the complainant.”The commission, comprising president Syed Anser Kaleem and member Sharavathi SM, on Jan 12, ordered Amazon and Appario to refund the full amount to Bhat, and Rs 2,000 in litigation costs.
