On the shelf, but out of stock: How etailers fox consumers

New Delhi: Why do online shops display goods that are not available, promise to have them delivered and then renege on their promise?

I am referring here particularly to those selling grocery items, where this kind of practice seems rampant. A consumer recently complained that she had bought 36 food and toiletry items from an online marketplace. However, she was shocked to find that only 18 items were delivered.

The delivery boy, when questioned, said he was only delivering what was handed over to him. She then called up the helpline of the market entity, thinking that probably a couple of bags may have got left behind. She was asked to give details of the missing items for a refund.

Since she had spent considerable time choosing the goods, she said she wanted the goods delivered and not a refund. But obviously those goods that were sold to her online were not in stock. So she was told that she can only have a refund.

She says she spent the next few hours making a list of the missing items and what she had paid for each of them. She got the refund, but after four days! What really irritated her was the fact that these goods were on display and she was billed for them after she chose them. “If the online store did not have those goods, why were they exhibiting them? And why did they charge for them”, asked the consumer.

She’s absolutely right. First of all, the website should not have offered for sale items that were not in stock. Second, when she put them in the shopping basket, they should have indicated that those goods were unavailable . They did not do either and even collected money for the goods that they never had in the first place and released the money only after four days!

Third, by promising to deliver goods that were unavailable, they prevented her from ordering them from another store. Fourth, they also claimed that they were selling those items at a discount, when they did not have them at all in the first place. Thus, the online marketplace indulged in dishonest and deceptive practices inimical to consumer interest!

Worse, when she complained, they did not even have the courtesy to apologize and compensate her for the inconvenience and harassment caused. Because of their poor inventory management, her precious time was wasted, in addition to the disappointment she suffered on account of not getting the goods that she had chosen. Obviously, those who run online marketplaces are too insensitive to understand these consumer sentiments.

Even where consumers opt for ‘payment on delivery’, online stores ought to make sure that they only display goods in stock and deliver what is ordered. A consumer may not have paid for it and the online store may not charge for the items not delivered, but they must be conscious of the inconvenience caused to a consumer on account of their false promises.

A consumer recounted how she had ordered 12 vegetables out of which eight were meant for a party organized the next day. When the vegetables were delivered that morning, the ones that she needed the most for that day were missing. She had to rush to a brick and mortar store to buy those vegetables. ‘Thus the whole idea of saving time by buying from an online store was defeated’, she said. I have come across many consumer complaints about such frustrating experiences.

The online stores seem to be under the impression that so long as they refund the amount for items not delivered or do not bill for items promised but not delivered, consumers ought to be happy- but the reality is that such practices are driving consumers away from online stores. In fact as Covid-19 cases come down, many consumers are going back to brick and mortar stores because of problems such as these.

I have not come across any consumer taking this particular issue to the consumer court, but they should haul up online stores for such unfair practices and deficient services.

The Central Consumer Protection Authority too should investigate into such practices that are prejudicial to consumer interest and impose a hefty penalty on those found guilty.