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Online Seller Not Refunding Your Money? Complaint Ladder from Platform to Consumer Court

અપડેટ કર્યું: લેખક WakilBhai Editorial Teamસમીક્ષક Adv. Sneha Iyer, Bar Council of Tamil Nadu & Puducherry, TN/1187/2013
60 સેકન્ડનો જવાબ

When an online seller or marketplace refuses a due refund: exhaust the platform's grievance officer (the E-Commerce Rules give them 48 hours to acknowledge, one month to resolve), call the National Consumer Helpline 1915, then file on e-Daakhil — free for claims up to ₹5 lakh, from your own city. Card/UPI chargebacks through your bank run in parallel.

48-hr acknowledgement rule1915 helpline free₹0 court fee to ₹5 lakh

કાનૂની સમયમર્યાદા

  1. 48 hrs / 1 month — Platform grievance officer (acknowledge / resolve (E-Commerce Rules))
  2. ASAP — Bank chargeback window (dispute the card/UPI payment early)
  3. Weeks — 1915 / NCH mediation (free convergence process)
  4. 2 years — e-Daakhil complaint (from the cause of action)

પગલું-દર-પગલું: શું કરવું

  1. 1

    Build the refund record

    Order, payment, defect/non-delivery proof, and the policy.

    વિગતો જુઓ

    Save the order confirmation, payment proof, delivery status, photos/video of the defective or wrong item (an unboxing video is gold), chat/call records, and — critically — a screenshot of the refund/return policy as it stood at purchase. Under the Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020, sellers cannot refuse to take back defective/deficient goods or refuse refunds where amounts were charged for undelivered services.

  2. 2

    Force the platform's grievance machinery

    Named grievance officers with statutory clocks exist — use them.

    વિગતો જુઓ

    Every marketplace must publish a grievance officer who acknowledges within 48 hours and resolves within one month. Write formally (not just app tickets), cite the order and rule, and demand the refund with a deadline. Escalate simultaneously to the National Consumer Helpline — 1915 / consumerhelpline.gov.in — its convergence process gets responses from partnered companies within weeks, free.

  3. 3

    Chargeback: the parallel money lever

    Your bank can reverse card/UPI payments for non-delivery.

    વિગતો જુઓ

    Dispute the transaction with your card issuer/bank citing goods not delivered / not as described — card-network chargeback rules give real reversal rights within tight windows (typically 60–120 days from transaction), and RBI's UPI dispute framework covers failed/fraudulent debits. Attach your grievance trail. A successful chargeback often ends the matter before any court step.

    અમે આ તમારા માટે કરીએ છીએ — ₹999
  4. 4

    e-Daakhil from your own city

    No fee up to ₹5 lakh; platform + seller both as parties.

    વિગતો જુઓ

    If the refund still hasn't come: a ₹999 advocate's notice to the platform and seller (registered offices), then file on e-Daakhil naming both the marketplace and the seller — filing where you reside or work. Claim the refund with interest, compensation for harassment, and costs. See the full process in our consumer forum guide; small-value cases are genuinely viable at zero court fee.

ખર્ચ અને શું અપેક્ષા રાખવી

  • Platform grievance + 1915

    Statutory machinery; keep everything written

    Free

  • Bank chargeback

    Dispute early — windows are 60–120 days

    Free

  • Advocate's legal notice

    WakilBhai; to platform + seller

    ₹999

  • e-Daakhil filing

    Slab fees above; no lawyer mandatory

    ₹0 up to ₹5L

COD orders lack the chargeback lever — prefer prepaid via credit card for expensive online purchases precisely because the dispute rights are stronger.

Consumer Complaint Legal Notice — ₹999

3 કામકાજના દિવસોમાં મળશે

મારા માટે કરી આપો
પહેલાં વકીલ સાથે વાત કરો — વોટ્સએપ પર મફત 10 મિનિટજટિલ બાબત? સંપૂર્ણ વકીલ સલાહ બુક કરો →

આ સમસ્યા માટે મફત ફોર્મેટ

Consumer Complaint Letter to Seller

મફત

વારંવાર પૂછાતા પ્રશ્નો

The platform says "seller's responsibility, not ours". Is that right?

No. The E-Commerce Rules make marketplaces responsible for grievance redressal and for not allowing unfair practices on their platform, and consumer commissions routinely hold platform and seller jointly liable. Name both — the platform has the deeper pocket and the compliance pressure.

How long do I have to file the consumer complaint?

Two years from the cause of action (the refusal/deficiency). But act in days, not months: platform clocks (48 hours/1 month), chargeback windows (60–120 days) and evidence freshness all favour early movers.

My order was "delivered" but never arrived. Who bears that?

The seller/platform must prove delivery to you — a courier scan is not gospel. Dispute in writing immediately, demand the POD (proof of delivery with signature/OTP), file the chargeback for non-delivery, and escalate. Commissions treat fake-delivery cases as deficiency plus unfair trade practice.

The seller offers only a coupon/wallet credit instead of a refund. Must I accept?

No — where a refund is due (defective goods, non-delivery, cancellation per policy), you can insist on money to the original payment source. Wallet-credit-only terms for such cases sit poorly with the rules and are regularly overridden in commission orders.

Is a ₹2,000 dispute worth pursuing?

Yes — the ladder up to e-Daakhil costs nothing but time: grievance officer, 1915, chargeback are all free, and filing itself has no fee at this value. Sellers know small claimants rarely persist; the ones who do usually get paid at the notice or helpline stage.

સંબંધિત માર્ગદર્શિકાઓ

ગ્રાહક ફોરમ ફરિયાદ કેવી રીતે દાખલ કરવી — e-Daakhil, ફી અને પ્રક્રિયા

ગ્રાહક ફરિયાદ દાખલ કરવા, પહેલાં વિક્રેતાને ઉપાય માંગતી લેખિત ફરિયાદ કે કાનૂની નોટિસ મોકલો.

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આ માર્ગદર્શિકા વોટ્સએપ પર શેર કરો

આ પેજ ફક્ત સામાન્ય માહિતી માટે સામાન્ય કાનૂની પ્રક્રિયા સમજાવે છે. આ કાનૂની સલાહ નથી. તમારી પરિસ્થિતિ માટે લાયક વકીલનો સંપર્ક કરો.