Cost of a carry bag – learning from Bata India case

You are in big brand retail outlet, finished shopping and at the billing counter you are being asked if you would prefer a ‘carry bag’ at a cost of Rs.5 (to Rs. 25 in some cases) per bag – does this sound familiar to you…!!! Well, all of us would’ve encountered this situation and it is very likely that after spending thousands of rupees in buying things, we wouldn’t been shying away from paying that ‘extra’ bucks for the carry bag(s); even though it would’ve pricked us a bit. Before the plastic ban, retailers had no problem in keeping huge stock of plastic covers with their logos on them and in the pretext of ‘environment consciousness’, ‘responsible behavior’, etc. shoppers were told that carry bags were not ‘part of the deal’ and were supposed to be bought separately. Post plastic ban, retailers say they don’t carry plastic covers anymore and can provide (Sell, to be precise) paper bags that would cost more than the plastic covers. There was always a confusion on whether the retailers were supposed to provide carry bags at a cost or FOC. However, the two recent rulings by the consumer court has created much required awareness on this topic.

In Apr’ 19, Bata India Limited has been told to pay Rs 9,000 to a consumer who approached consumer court, claiming deficiency in services, when the outlet in Chandigarh asked the customer to pay Rs 3 for a paper bag after he purchased a pair of shoes for Rs. 402. In his complaint, Mr. Dinesh Prasad Raturi – a Chandigarh resident, informed the consumer forum that he had purchased a pair of shoes on February 5 from a Bata store located in Sector 22D, and he was asked to pay for the paper bag that even had Bata’s logo in it.

Bata India has been asked to pay Rs. 9000 as compensation for not providing a carry bag

In another similar case, The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum has imposed a penalty of Rs 13,000 on Lifestyle – a leading retail store, for charging Rs 5 from a consumer for a paper carry bag to carry items shopped at the store. The redressal forum termed that the store could not excuse itself from charging the customer for the paper bag just because plastic carry bags were banned. “The opposite party (Lifestyle) has also argued that after plastic bags were banned, it started providing paper bags to its customers on payment of its cost. However, we feel that banning of a product does not entitle the store to charge for its substitute. Stores are obliged to provide bags free of cost to their customers, as they cannot be expected to carry the items they purchased in their hands,” the forum stated. Interestingly, the paper bags thus sold by the retailers have their logos, names prominently displayed and therefore an advertisement for their stores. The consumer disputes redressal forum further terms that charging the customers for paper/cloth bags with retailer’s brand on them amounts to unfair trade practices.

As according to the consumerhelpline.gov.in website, consumers may raise a complaint under the following circumstances:

Loss or damage is caused to the consumer due to unfair or restrictive trade practice of a trader or service provider
the article purchased by a consumer is defective
the services availed of by a consumer suffer from any deficiency
a trader or service provider, as the case may be, has charged for the goods or for the service mentioned in the complaint a price in excess of the stipulated price
Goods or services, which will be hazardous to life and safety, when used, are being offered for sale to the public

Consumers may raise a complaint in writing against the retailers for not providing a carry bags under ‘the services availed suffering from deficiency’. The Bata case got has been given so much publicity that consumers are gaining much required awareness and will be able to exercise their rights against the defaulting retailers. After the incident, Bata India has ordered all its outlets to provide paper bags to all the consumers.