DEFINITIONS
1) ADVERTISEMENT:
Advertisement means any audio or visual publicity,
representation, endorsement or pronouncement made
by means of light, sound, smoke, gas, print, electronic
media, internet or website and includes any notice,
circular, label, wrapper, invoice or such other
documents.
2) COMPLAINANT:
Complainant means a consumer; or any voluntary
consumer association registered under any law for the
time being in force; or the Central Government or any
State Government; or the Central Authority; or one or
more consumers, where there are numerous consumers
having the same interest; or in case of death of a
consumer, his legal heir or legal representative; or in
case of a consumer being a minor, his parent or legal
guardian.
3) COMPLAINT:
Complaint is a statement made in writing to the
National Commission, the State Commission or the
District Forum by a person competent to file it,
containing the allegations in detail, and with a view to
obtain relief provided under the Act.
4) CONSUMER:
A consumer is a person or a group who intends to order,
or use purchased goods, products, or services primarily
for personal, social, family, household and similar
needs, which is not directly related to entrepreneurial or
business activities.
5) CONSUMER DISPUTE:
Consumer dispute means a dispute where the person
against whom a complaint has been made, denies or
disputes the allegations contained in the complaint.
6) DEFECT:
Defect means any fault, imperfection or shortcoming in
the quality, quantity, potency, purity or standard which
is required to be maintained by or under any law of the
time being in force under any contract, express or
implied or as is claimed by the trader in any manner
whatsoever in relation to any goods.
7) DEFICIENCY:
Deficiency means any fault, imperfection, shortcoming
or inadequacy in the quality, nature and manner of
performance which is required to be maintained by or
under any law for the time being in force or has been
undertaken to be performed by a person in pursuance of
a contract or otherwise in relation to any service.
8) GOODS:
Every kind of movable property other than actionable
claims and money; and includes stock and shares,
growing crops, grass, and things attached to or forming
part of the land which are agreed to be severed before
sale or under the contract of sale.
9) MISLEADING ADVERTISEMENT:
Any advertisement or promotion through Television,
Radio, or any other electronic media, Newspapers,
Banners, Posters, Handbills, wall-writing etc. to
misrepresent the nature, characteristics, qualities or
geographic origin of goods, services or commercial
activities so as to mislead the consumer.
10) RESTRICTIVE TRADE PRACTICES:
Restrictive trade practice means any trade practice
which requires a consumer to buy, hire or avail of any
goods or, as the case may be, services as a condition
precedent for buying, hiring or availing of other goods
or services.
11) SERVICE:
Service means service of any description which is made
available to
potential users and includes, but not limited to, the
provision of facilities in connection with banking,
financing, insurance, transport, processing, supply of
electrical or other energy, telecom, boarding or lodging
or both, housing construction, entertainment,
amusement or the purveying of news or other
information, but does not include the rendering of any
service free of charge or under a contract of personal
service.
12) SPURIOUS GOODS:
Spurious goods mean such goods which are falsely
claimed to be genuine.
13) TRADER:
Trader in relation to any goods, means a person who
sells or distributes
any goods for sale and includes the manufacturer
thereof, and where such goods are sold or distributed in
package form, includes the packer thereof.
14) UNFAIR TRADE PRACTICES:
Unfair trade practice means a trade practice which, for
the purpose of promoting the sale, use or supply of any
goods or for the provision of any service, adopts any
unfair method or unfair or deceptive.
15) APPROPRIATE LABORATORY:
Appropriate laboratory means a laboratory or an
organisation—
(i) recognised by the Central Government; or
(ii) recognised by a State Government, subject to such
guidelines as may
be issued by the Central Government in this behalf; or
(iii) established by or under any law for the time being
in force, which is
maintained, financed or aided by the Central
Government or a State Government
for carrying out analysis or test of any goods with a
view to determining whether
such goods suffer from any defect.
16) E-COMMERCE:
E-commerce means buying or selling of goods or
services including
digital products over digital or electronic network.
17) ELECTRONIC SERVICE PROVIDER:
Electronic service provider means a person who
provides technologies
or processes to enable a product seller to engage in
advertising or selling goods or
services to a consumer and includes any online market
place or online auction sites.
18) ENDORSEMENT:
Endorsement in relation to an advertisement, means
any message, verbal statement, demonstration; or
depiction of the name, signature, likeness or other
identifiable personal characteristics of an individual; or
depiction of the name or seal of any institution or
organisation, which makes the consumer to believe that
it reflects the opinion, finding or experience of the
person making such endorsement.
19) MANUFACTURER:
Manufacturer means a person who makes any goods or
parts thereof; or assembles any goods or parts thereof
made by others; or puts or causes to be put his own
mark on any goods made by any other person.
20) PRODUCT AND PRODUCT LIABILITY:
*Product means any article or goods or substance or
raw material or any
extended cycle of such product, which may be in
gaseous, liquid, or solid state
possessing intrinsic value which is capable of delivery
either as wholly assembled or as a component part and
is produced for introduction to trade or commerce, but
does not include human tissues, blood, blood products
and organs.
*Product liability means the responsibility of a product
manufacturer or
product seller, of any product or service, to compensate
for any harm caused to a
consumer by such defective product manufactured or
sold or by deficiency in services relating thereto.
