LAWS(NCD)-2015-8-255

YGENDRA SAXENA Vs. MANAGER CHHINDWARA TRACTORS

Decided On August 25, 2015
Ygendra Saxena Appellant
V/S
Manager Chhindwara Tractors Respondents

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The issue referred to this 3 Members Bench, is as to whether a person who has purchased a vehicle on hire-purchase basis from the financier is a consumer or not.

(2.) The term "consumer" has been defined in Section 2(1) (d) of the Consumer Protection Act, 1986 (for short, "˜Act "™) to inter-alia mean any person who ires or avails of any services for a consideration which has been paid or promised or partly paid and partly promised, or under any system of deferred payment but does not include a person who avails of such services for any commercial purpose. We therefore have to examine whether in a case of purchase of the pods on hire-purchase basis, the financier renders a service as defined above and receives consideration or promise of consideration from the hirer of the pods or not. If the twin conditions of rendering service as defined in the Act and receiving consideration or promise of consideration are satisfied, the hirer will be a consumer, as defined in the Act. The terms "service" has been defined in Section 2 (1 )(o) of the Act as under:-

(3.) It would be noticed from the aforesaid provision that (i) the definition' of service given in the statute is inclusive and not exhaustive (ii) the provision of facilities in connection with financing has been expressly included in the said definition. The word "finance" has been defined in Oxford Advanced Learner "™s Dictionary New 8th Edition inter-alia to mean "money used to run a business and activity or a project "™. The aforesaid word has been defined in Blacks Law Dictionary inter-alia to mean "™to raise or provide funds "™. Therefore, an activity or providing or making available funds to a person is a financial activity. A person who seeks to acquire goods such as a vehicle, but does not possess sufficient funds for such an acquisition approaches a financier for the purposes of making the requisite funds available to him, so that he can acquire the said goods. Though, the goods may be purchased in the name of the financier such as M/s. Mahindra and Mahindra Services Ltd., it is meant to be used by the person who approaches the company for making the finance available to him. The consideration to the company are paid or promised in the form of finance charges i.e. the difference between the money contributed by the company and the money which it has to receive from the person seeking to acquire the asset, in one or more instalments. The whole activity of such company is a financial activity and it is engaged in the business providing facilities in connection with financing purchase of the goods for the persons who approach it, for making available, the money which they cannot arrange of their own. Therefore, such a company in or opinion renders services within the meaning of Section (2) (o) of the Act and since the Act and since the services are provided for consideration in the form of financial charges paid or promised, and comprising the surplus which the company is to receive over and above the money contributed by it, the person hiring or availing its services would be a consumer within the meaning of section 2 (1) (d) of the Act.