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I have an annual maintenance contract, which was valid till January 31, 2004, for my personal computer with M/s G. I. Informatics, 67B, Maharaja Tagore Road, Dhakuria, Calcutta 700031. Unfortunately, the company has not attended to a hard disk problem that occurred in September 2003 in spite of several phone calls and a letter (dated October 10, 2003). Please suggest a suitable course of action.
Dr B. Bhattacharyya,
K.M. Naskar Road, Calcutta 700040
Company response: It is quite surprising that Dr B. Bhattacharyya has put up such a strong complaint against us despite the fact that we have always responded to his maintenance requirements in accordance with the said contract. We have successfully discharged our duties and to his satisfaction till the time the contract was valid. With regard to the incident he has mentioned, we must point out that he was not present at his given address at the time our representatives visited him. This happened twice despite prior knowledge of the visits, which we conveyed through the telephone. However, if he is still available at his address, we are willing to attend to his problem.
A. Chatterjee,
Customer support,
G. I. Informatics Services,
Calcutta 700031
• From the complaint letter and the company response, it is evident that there has been some communication gap between the two parties. It is the principle of law that during the valid period of an annual maintenance contract, a company is bound to provide service. In the present case, there seems to have been no departure from the said principle. I would, therefore, advise you to contact the company and allow them to address the problem in your computer.
A little too late
I invested Rs 25,000 in fixed deposits with M/s Yule Financing and Leasing Co. Ltd, 8, Rajendra Prasad Sarani, Calcutta 700001. The said deposits matured on September 16, 1999. Since then a series of letters have been issued to the company but the maturity value is yet to be delivered. My advocate had issued a legal notice on October 25, 2003, asking the authorities to hand over the sum by November 11 of the same year. This too yielded no result. I am 84 years old now and need the money to continue my medical treatment. I want to know how I can get back my money.
Amiya Kumar Bhowmick,
Bagha Jatin Pally,
Calcutta 700092
No response from company
• Your letter amply reveals the company’s poor service. It is quite shocking that it did not even honour your legal advisor’s notice. The deposits have matured more than four years ago and cannot be as such entertained before the Consumer Fora. The limitation period, as per Section 24A of the Consumer Protection Act, is only two years. However, if you have any document that indicates correspondence between you and the company in the two years following maturity, then the limitation period can be adjusted. If not, then your case stands no chance of being taken to the forum.
Shoddy deal
In response to an advertisement by M/s Spectrum Magazine Ltd, I had subscribed to the A&M magazine for a period of five years. Accordingly, I paid Rs 2,695 through my credit card on November 10, 2000. As per the terms of the offer, the company was supposed to send me a number of gifts within 10-12 weeks of payment. In May 2001, they sent me a letter stating that the gifts would reach me by end-June. In July 19, 2001, they sent another letter saying they would replace the original items with three new gifts. Strangely, I am yet to receive even one gift from them. Also, the magazine is not being delivered for over two years now. My three letters of complaint seem to have been completely unnoticed. What should I do now?
Jibana Nanda Jena,
Bowbazar, Calcutta 700001
No response from company
• Non-receipt of the magazine in spite of full payment reveals deficiency in service. You may very well initiate a proceeding against the publisher on this count. However, please remember that non-receipt of gifts cannot be held against the company because you have as such not paid any sum for these.
Uneasy silence
I had deposited Rs 2,000 in a fixed deposit with Phoenix International Finance Ltd. The deposit matured on November 25, 2001, and the original receipt sent to the registered office of the company through registered post with A/D. Till date, I have not heard from the company. I had also faxed the photocopy of the receipt and other details on July 22, 2003. I seek your help in this regard. What should I do next?
Biswajit Nandy,
Durgapur, District Burdwan
No response from company
• It is unfortunate that in spite of completing all formalities you have not got your dues. You have not stated on which date you received the A/D card that would show when your papers reached the company office. With that you might be able to establish that in spite of receiving the papers the company has delayed payment. Anyway, the limitation period for approaching the Consumer Fora is two years. But if you can substantiate the reason for your delay in moving the forum, then you should take the company to task.
Defying orders
I had invested Rs 2,500 in a fixed deposit with Lloyds Finance Ltd, 234/3A, Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose Road (the office later moved into Chatterjee International, 16th floor, 33/A J. L. Nehru Road, Calcutta 700071). The deposit matured on November 27, 2000, but the company has still not paid up the principal sum and the interest. On visiting the office, some officials assured me that they would despatch the money soon. I came to know later that the company has obtained an order from the Company Law Board for repayment of maturity value through a scheme of deferred instalment. Now it seems that it has honoured the said order. Please suggest a course of action.
Sisir Kumar Manna,
Mirzapur, District Murshidabad
No response from company
• It is shocking that the company is treating its clients in this manner. This is another example of poor service and you are perfectly entitled to either approach the Company Law Board asking for modification of its order or move the consumer forum against the company. Recently, in a revision petition (no. 1932-45 of 2002) the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission held that “a depositor can file a complaint for the amount due, either under the Consumer Protection Act or approach the Company Law Board under Section 45QA. But once he files an application under Section 45QA, he cannot file a case before the consumer forum.” It is now for you to decide your course of action.
