CONSUMER DISPUTES REDRESSAL FORUM-II
Udyog Sadan, C-22 & 23, Qutub Institutional Area
(Behind Qutub Hotel), New Delhi-110016.
Case No.315/2011
Sh. S. K. Sharma
B-14 (SFS) Triveni Apartments,
Sheikh Sarai Phase-I
New Delhi-110017 ……Complainant
Versus
1. Privileged Customer Cell
Credit Card Division
State Bank of India
Local Head Office
Parliament Street
New Delhi
2. Heritage Holidays Pvt. Ltd.
(C/o Plat 5 Consultancy Pvt. Ltd.)
F-138 First Floor, Rajouri Garden,
Main Market,
New Delhi ……Opposite Parties
Date of Institution : 05.09.11 Date of Order : 20.10.15
Coram:
Sh. N.K. Goel, President
Ms. Naina Bakshi, Member
O R D E R
Briefly stated, the case of the Complainant is that in the last week of December 2009 he received a call from OP No.1 offering him a free stay at their holiday destination listed by them plus free one way ticket (base fare only). He accepted the offer and an amount of Rs.6067/- was debited from his credit card account. Incidentally the credit card was also issued by the OP No.1. The caller gave him a special telephone no. 011-45519999 which was meant only for the privileged customers. In the month of first week of February, he received a box containing, among other things, the application form. He immediately filled up the application form and sent it through DTDC courier No. ZO75071/3 to OP No.2. When he did not receive any response till 30.04.10, he called OP No.1 on their special telephone No.011-45519999; the lady on the other side told him to contact OP No.2. He contacted OP No.2 on 05.05.10 at telephone No.011-41639411, the OP No.2 informed that they had received the application form but could not feed into the computer due to oversight, as a result of which his three options for holidays starting from different dates had already expired. OP No.2 told him to send a fresh request for holidays but since he had no blank application form, he requested the OP No.2 to send blank application form alongwith the reasons for not entertaining his original request. They assured him to do the needful but he did not receive anything from OP No.2. The Complainant has further stated that the OP No.1 assured him one way air ticket to any of the holiday destinations mentioned in the list. But on perusal of the list, he was shocked to learn that there was no flight from Delhi to any of the three destinations chosen by him for holidaying. When he did not receive any information, he requested OP No.2 vide letter dated 03.07.10 to refund the amount debited by the OP No.1 to his credit card account. He also sent a letter to OP No.2 requesting them to refund the amount (Rs.6067 + Rs.250/-). Pleading deficiency in service on the part of OPs, he has prayed as under:-
- Direct the OPs to refund a sum of Rs.6,067/- plus Rs.250/- debited from his credit card account with cumulative interest @ 9% per annum.
- Direct the OPs to pay 1,000/- as litigation charges + Rs.500/- per trip as conveyance charges.
- Direct the OPs to pay compensation of Rs. 50,000/- for physical and mental harassment undergone by him.
- Direct the OP No.1 not to cancel his credit card and renew its validity on due date without any problem and in due course.
Vide order dated 13.12.11 OP passed by our predecessors OP No.1 was proceeded exparte.
OP No.2 in its written statement has stated that they received a booking form No.6647212 on 22.02.2010 in the name of the complainant. As per filled up options given by the Complainant, OP-2 sought the booking at hotel Vishnupriya for the nights of 27th & 28th March, 2010. The choice of destination and time was confirmed by them as per the option given by the Complainant. The confirmation letter was couriered to him on 27.02.2010. The Complainant was entitled to one way air ticket and it was clearly written in the air ticket voucher; that any verbal assurance/commitment as claimed by him is strongly denied. As the entitlement/voucher of the hotel stay and air ticket was perishable commodity and had an expiry date clearly mentioned on the top of the voucher they could not be used by the Complainant beyond those dates. OP No.2 has further stated that since the Complainant is a sr. citizen they still offered him a free extension to use the expired forms without paying any additional extension charges but the customer denied the same. Therefore, there was no deficiency in service on their part as they had offered much more than the Complainant was entitled to as per the booking form. OP No.2 has requested to dismiss the complaint.
In replication, complainant has denied the averments made in the reply of OP-2.
Thereafter OP No.2 was proceeded exparte vide order dated 31.06.2012.
From the order-sheet dated 4.12.12 recorded by our predecessors, it appears that exparte evidence had been filed by the complainant on that day. However, no affidavit seems to be there on the file.
However, Complainant has brought on record a copy of monthly statement of account showing that on 07.12.2009 a sum of Rs.6,067/- was debited from his credit card account in favour of OP No.1 (copy annexure A for the purpose of identification). Complainant has also brought on record a copy of booking request form dated 31.08.10 submitted with OP No.2 showing list of destination. We mark it as Mark A for the purposes of identification. Three destinations, namely, Udaipur, Khajurao and Rameshwaram are shown therein. Complainant has not filed any convincible documentary evidence to prove that he had not received the tour programme from OP-2 or considering his age (Sr. Citizen) OP-2 had not extended the benefit period to him.
In view of the above, it transpires that the Complainant accepted the offer of OP No.1 for free stay at any holiday destination including one way free air ticket. He had sent a request form to OP No.2 for booking as the Complainant could not avail the facility from OP No.2, the OP No.2 offered him a free extension to use the expired form without paying additional extension charges but the Complainant declined the same. Therefore, we hold that the Complainant has failed to make out any case for deficiency of service on the part of OPs. We dismiss the complaint with no order as to costs.
Let a copy of this order be sent to the parties as per regulation 21 of the Consumer Protection Regulations. Thereafter file be consigned to record room.
Announced on 20.10.15.
(Naina Bakshi) (N.K. Goel) Member President
20.10.2015
Present – None
Vide our separate order of even date pronounced, the complaint is dismissed. Let the file be consigned to record room.
(NAINA BAKSHI) (N.K. GOEL) MEMBER PRESIDENT
