Chennai: Transport company to pay Rs 2.14 lakh compensation

Chennai: The District Consumer Disputes Redressal For-um, Chennai (North), has directed Parveen Express to refund Rs 2.14 lakh, the cost of medical equipment lost during transit, and a compensation of Rs 30,000, to a dealer of healthcare products for losing the apparatus and causing mental agony.

The complainant, Pacsmart Solution Pvt Ltd, Thiru.Vi Ka Industrial Park, Guindy, submitted the company, a dealer in radiology, medical equipment and healthcare apparatus, had been involved in importing medical grade products like monitor of Wide brand and film digitiser of Vidar brand from Korea and USA and sells them to diagnostic centres and hospitals in the country.

Vijaya Diagnostic Centre Pvt. Ltd, Hyderabad sought three Wide Medical Grade Monitors with accessories from the company. On March 28, 2012, the company sold Monitor (IF2002MP) costing Rs 1,61,905, Monitor (CL 24) costing Rs 1,14,286 and Monitor (IF1911CP) costing Rs 52,381 to the diagnostic centre.

The company paid '770 to the transporter for freight charges and booked three carton boxes each containing a Monitor (Screens) at Parveen Express, Madhavaram, for delivering them at Hyderabad.

Instead of transporting them to the branch concerned in Hyderabad, the staff in the travel agency, negligently dispatched the consignments wrongly to other branches. Two carton boxes were not traced and not delivered to the diagnostic centre. This resulted in a loss of Rs 2,14,286.

Initially, Parveen Express staff said they would try to locate the monitors. However, later they said the monitors were not traceable. In turn, they came forward to pay Rs 5,000 for each monitor. In the complaint, Pacsmart Solution sought a directive to Parveen Express to pay compensation for losing the consignment and causing mental agony.

In its reply, the transporter submitted the consignments were booked under  “Commercial Purpose” category. Hence, it does not attract the Consumer Protection Act. The petitioner had not declared the value of the goods either at the time of booking. As per “terms and conditions, the petitioner was eligible to get only Rs 100 for the consignment which was short delivered.

The forum bench comprising its president, K. Jayabalan and Member T. Kalaiyarasi said failure to deliver two carton boxes with the products to the consignee at Hyderabad established that Parveen Express committed deficiency in service.