Selling unuseable old products unfair

I often listen to a Canadian jazz radio station. The other day I heard an interesting advertisement that caught my attention. This was from a mattress retailer in Canada, who promised to sell mattresses at a huge discount. He explained that mattresses are made in pairs, and when a person purchases only one of them, the other gets left out. Such single ones are collected from the factory by this retailer to sell them as pairs.

The mattresses vary outwardly in so far as the fabric, colour or design is concerned, but how does it matter? After all, you put a bed sheet over it and it gets covered, said the advertisement.

Now, when you buy such a pair at a big discount, you know that the mattresses will look different in so far as the outer fabric is concerned. But as far as the quality of the mattress is concerned, you will expect it to be as good as any other new mattress. If not, you have every right to demand a replacement or a refund.

I quote this in the context of all those factory outlets in India that sell a variety of goods, including clothes, shoes and also household electric and electronic goods. Now, in respect of clothes and shoes, they are mostly unsold stock, retailed at a marked down price. If these goods turn out to be defective — suppose the colour of the fabric fades or the sole of the shoe comes apart — the shopkeeper cannot take the plea that the consumer has no right to a refund or a replacement vis-à-vis these goods.

Similarly, I see in different parts of the country, shops selling a large variety of electronic goods as second hand. While some sell only goods of a particular brand, some others sell different brands. From refrigerators, washing machines and television sets to music systems and computers, these shops sell goods at a very good discount and are a good buy, if you do not mind a few scratches, or a couple of dents here and there on the surface, or the body of the product, mostly caused by mishandling during transportation.

However, I have come across many complaints wherein people have been told that since these were bought at shops selling second-hand goods, they are not entitled to even a free replacement of the defective part, let alone a full replacement, or a refund. This is totally incorrect and consumers would do well not to believe such misleading statements.

Please remember that even if you have bought second-hand goods, you have the right to a fair deal and redress of your complaints. Even a product labelled as second hand should be (1) of merchantable quality; (2) fit for the purpose for which it is sold; and (3) useable. Even more important, the product should fit the description, or fulfil the assurances about the quality made by the dealer. Or else, the dealer would be guilty of an unfair trade practice (for making a false or a misleading statement about the quality, or its performance), and the product will then come under the definition of a defective product (under the Consumer Protection Act), for which you, as a consumer, would be entitled to redress of your complaint.

Let me be more explicit. If, for example, at the time of purchase, the retailer has pointed out a defect, and you have knowingly bought it, you cannot obviously complain about that defect after purchase. However, if the product has any other defect, then certainly you have every right to demand a free replacement of the defective part, or a full replacement of the machine, or even a refund, depending on the nature of the complaint and the enormity of the problem.

Obviously, when you are buying an old machine, you will want to know why it is so described and what are the defects in this. The dealer, for example, shows you the dents and assures you that barring those external defects, the product is in excellent condition and will perform like any other new product of the same brand. Now, having purchased the product after the retailer pointed out the defects, you cannot obviously complain later about the dents that were shown to you.

However, if you find that the appliance suffers from any other defect, or fails to perform satisfactorily, then you have every right to demand a satisfactory redress of your complaint. In fact, when you buy such products, you have to make sure that the retailer gives you a warranty card along with the receipt.

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