Sports car booking cancelled, dealer ‘refuses’ refund, Goa man wins Rs 6.30 lakh payout

A 45-year-old Goan man who booked a sports car in 2021 later cancelled because banks would not sanction the full loan amount he needed. He sought to cancel his car booking, but the car dealer allegedly denied a refund, stating company policy. The commission directed the car dealer to pay around Rs 6.30 lakh, saying that the car dealer had “traumatised” the man by forfeiting the said booking amount. 

The commission found that the dealer had not disclosed its non-refundable booking policy before accepting the payment and failed to produce the policy to justify withholding the money.

President Bela N Naik and member Auroliano De Oliveira held that even if such a policy existed, it could not be used as a “legal trap” to catch and hold consumers, as a company had no power “to legislate or frame such policies for customers”.

“If the general manager of sales can refund a booking amount of Rs 3 lakh, then why the opposite party (car dealer) cannot refund the entire booking amount of Rs 6.14 lakh? Why does the opposite party want to put the complainant in financial loss? This act of the opposite party is unethical and unprofessional,” the commission observed on September 30. 

Booking cancelled, but no refund

The man claimed that he visited the showroom of the car dealer on October 30, 2021, to book a sports car. He paid Rs 50,000 and issued a post-dated cheque of Rs 6.14 lakh. He was asked to arrange the remaining Rs 41 lakh through a bank loan.

However, on November 2, 2021, he was allegedly informed that the bank would sanction only Rs 28 lakh, citing insufficient income tax returns. Another bank also reportedly gave him the same response. He then decided to cancel the booking and sought a refund.

The man claimed that he was shocked to learn that Rs 5 lakh would be forfeited if he cancelled the booking, as per the company’s policy. He later approached the general manager of sales to resolve the issue. According to the man, the general manager offered him a refund of Rs 3 lakh.

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Aggrieved, he approached the commission seeking a refund of the entire booking amount. The man was represented by advocate N D Mayenkar.

‘Car dealer failed to justify forfeiture of booking amount’

The commission noted that the car dealer had filed its written response and affidavit but later failed to participate in the proceedings. It found that the car dealer had not even placed an order for the car with the manufacturer. “It was a matter of a few days, during which the complainant could not arrange the balance finance to buy the said car from the opposite party,” it further noted. 

The commission found that the car dealer had failed to justify the forfeiture of the booking amount under its company policy. “The opposite party (car dealer) also failed to produce the said company’s policy on record to prove that, as per the said policy, the opposite party is liable to forfeit the said booking amount of Rs 6.14 lakh of the complainant’s car booking. 

Accordingly, the commission ordered the dealer to refund the booking amount of the said car Rs 6.15 lakh. It further directed the dealer to pay the cost of Rs 15,000 to the complainant. 

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Takeaway

The ruling highlights that a car dealer cannot rely on a non-refundable booking policy to forfeit a consumer’s money when the policy was not communicated before accepting the booking amount.

For consumer-related grievances, individuals may contact the consumer helpline in their respective states (Goa Consumer Commission Helpline: 0832-2411148) or call the National Consumer Helpline at 1915 for assistance.

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