CCPA Action on Walkie-Talkies: In this era of online shopping, people are ordering everything they need from the internet. It also includes personal mobile radios ie walkie-talkies. But the promotion and sale of walkie-talkies by providing incomplete information to the customers is now burdensome to the companies. The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has taken strict action in one such case. Hogar Technologies and Innovation LLP, a company selling walkie-talkies, has been fined Rs. A fine of 1 lakh has been imposed. The action is part of a larger drive to curb misleading advertisements and unfair business practices on online platforms.
A game to mislead consumers
A bench headed by CCPA Chief Commissioner Nidhi Khare and Commissioner Anupam Mishra heard the case. Investigation revealed that many important information was missing from the walkie-talkie advertised on the seller’s website. The operating frequency these devices work on was not clearly written on the website. Besides, there is no mention of licenses and government approvals required to use them. The authority says that hiding such information makes the common consumer feel that he can use it legitimately without any government permission. This can unwittingly put consumers in major legal and financial trouble.
The seller’s arguments didn’t work
During the hearing, the walkie-talkie seller presented several arguments in his defence. The seller said he has a valid ‘Dealer Possession Licence’. Also, all its devices are covered with ‘Equipment Type Approval’ certificate as per prescribed standards. The seller also contended that there is no direct online purchase and sale through its website. The purpose of the website is only to provide information to the public and collect leads for business.
The CCPA rejected all these contentions of the seller. The authority categorically stated that mere approval of the government does not give freedom to any advertiser not to provide full and correct information to the consumer before purchase. It also made it clear that promotional claims made on the website come under the ambit of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, even if there is no direct sale from the website.
What the rule says about walkie-talkies
Special rules were made in 2018 regarding low power radio devices. According to these rules, only walkie-talkies operating on frequencies in the 446.0 to 446.2 MHz band can be exempted from licence. However, for this also some conditions have to be followed. If any device operates on frequencies outside this fixed band, it becomes necessary to obtain government regulations and licenses. This is why the CCPA has repeatedly emphasized that when selling a product, its operating frequency and license terms must be clearly stated.
From 12 companies Rs. A fine of 58 lakhs has been recovered
The CCPA itself took cognizance and started investigating walkie-talkies being sold on e-commerce platforms without complete information. In this investigation, more than 16,970 such listings were caught that did not follow the rules. Following this, notices were issued to 13 e-commerce companies for violating the rules.
The authority has so far passed final orders against 12 companies in this case. They have been fined a total of Rs 58 lakh for giving misleading advertisements. In which a fine of 10 lakh rupees each has been imposed on 5 companies and a fine of 1 lakh rupees has been imposed on 7 other companies. Some companies have also challenged these orders in courts and the Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, where cases are still pending. However, the commission has directed one company to deposit the penalty amount.
