Holes in shirts, Bengaluru man sues washing machine maker

BENGALURU: A Bengalurean has sued a home appliances giant after his expensive clothes washed in the newly purchased machine started developing holes. A city consumer court ruled in his favour by ordering the firm to fix the faulty device or pay refund.
Shashi Kumar KR of Mahalakshmi Layout purchased a brand new front load washing machine from a home appliances retail store in Indiranagar on April 7, 2014.One year later, Kumar noticed tiny holes in his designer shirts and trousers. Initially, he thought it was due to infestation and got his wardrobe disinfected. But much to his shock, the holes in his clothes started to get bigger. Finally, after thorough examination Kumar discovered that his washing machine which was still under warranty period was the culprit.
Kumar contacted the company’s customer care wing on June 9, 2015 and lodged a complaint. Later, a technician came to his place and suggested some changes in the washing mode and left after assuring that the problem would be fixed if he followed the guidelines. However, the condition of his clothes turned from bad to worse afterwards, forcing him to lodge another complaint on August 13, 2015.
This time, a team of technicians from the company found there was indeed a problem with the machine. They allegedly assured Kumar to give him a new upgraded machine or refund the money for the faulty one. But the company later sent him an email stating that they need to take the machine to the factory to carry out tests. However, Kumar stuck to his demand for refund or fresh machine, citing that he has already been put to severe hardship by the company.
As the company failed to consider his demand, on September 8, 2015, Kumar approached the Bangalore Urban 4th Additional District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum with a complaint against the former and the retailer.
While the retailer remained ex-parte, the manufacturing company’s counsel argued that Kumar’s story on clothes being damaged was false and the company technicians never assured a refund or an upgraded machine in exchange. He stated that the customer didn’t allow the machine to be taken to their facility for examination. However, the company acknowledged that the machine had developed a fault while it was under warranty period.
After a 32-month litigation, the forum on May 5 directed the company and its retailer to replace the drum of the machine free of cost or refund the money to Kumar after deducting 10 per cent from the total cost, as he had used it for a year. They were also ordered to pay Rs 1,000 towards Kumar’s court expenses.