The Central goverment has issued order against top 5 e-commerce platforms for selling seat belt alarm stopper clips.
These seat belt alarm stopper clips compromise life and safety of consumer by stopping alarm beep when not wearing seat belts, an official statement said.
Around 13,118 listings of car seat belt alarm stopper clips have already been delisted from these e-commerce platforms.
Centre issues order against top 5 e-commerce platforms for selling seat belt alarm stopper clips
May 12, 2023
▪️The clips violate Consumer Protection Act, 2019 and compromise with the lives of car passengers
▪️13,118 listings of car seat belt alarm stopper clips delisted from e-commerce…According to a press release issued by the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution today, the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has issued orders against top five e-commerce platforms for selling car seat belt alarm stopper clips, as this is considered as violation of Consumer Protection Act, 2019.
Headed by Chief Commissioner, Mrs. Nidhi Khare, CCPA has passed the orders against Amazon, Flipkart, Snapdeal, Shopclues and Meesho for violation of consumer rights and unfair trade practice.
What Are Car Seat Belt Alarm Stopper Clips?
These clips are called as seat belt alarm stoppers as they are used to silence the beep sound that serves as a reminder to the driver and passengers to put on their car seat belts. The clips tend to mimic as if a person in the vehicle is wearing a seat belt thereby fooling the seat belt locking system.
How Did CCPA Notice These Products?
Department of Consumer Affairs had notified CCPA about the seat belt alarm stopper clips being sold on e-commerce platforms through a letter by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH).
The letter highlighted the issue of blatant sale of car seat belt alarm stopper clips and requested for action on errant vendors / online platforms and issuance of an advisory.
The letter further stated that under Rule 138 of Central Motor Vehicles Rules 1989, it is mandatory to wear seat belts. And online sales of such items that compromise passengers' safety by stopping the alarm beep when not wearing seat belts can be unsafe and dangerous to the life & safety of consumers.
The press release also stated that the car seat belt alarm stopper clips can cause more harm than benefits as these same clips can act as a hurdle for consumers seeking claim amounts in the cases of motor insurance policies, wherein an insurance company may deny the claim by citing the negligence of the claimant for using such clips.
It also stated that seat belt acts as a restraining device during collisions that allows the airbag to provide proper cushion and not hit the passengers at full force.
CCPA also stated that some sellers were selling these seat belt alarm stopper clips by camouflaging them under the garb of bottle openers or cigarette lighter etc.
What Actions Were Taken BY CCPA and E-commerce Platforms?
Based on the reports received, the CCPA took cognizance of the issue of the sale of car seat belt alarm stopper clips and referred the matter to DG Investigation. As per the recommendations in the investigation report and submissions made by the mentioned e-commerce entities, CCPA had issued directions to all these e-commerce platforms and were directed to permanently delist all car seat belt alarm stopper clips and associated motor vehicle components which compromise the safety of passengers and the public.
E-commerce platforms were also directed to apprise CCPA of the necessary steps taken against errant sellers of such products and submit details of the sellers along with a compliance report on the above directions.
The e-commerce platforms - Amazon, Flipkart, Snapdeal, Shopclues and Meesho submitted their Compliance Reports and approximately 13,118 listings of car seat belt alarm stopper clips were then delisted from these said platforms.
Amazon which had the highest number of these products on its platform, delisted around 8095 listings. Followed by Flipkart which delisted 4000-5000 listings. Meesho delisted 21 whereas Snapdeal and Shopclues delisted 1 single listing from their platforms.
Why Are Car Seat Belt Alarm Stopper Clips Hazardous?
The actions taken by CCPA in the present case assumes significance given that as per the latest report published by the MoRTH, more than 16,000 persons were killed in road accidents in 2021 due to not wearing seat belt, of which 8,438 were drivers and the remaining 7,959 were passengers.
Moreover, approximately 39,231 persons were injured out of which 16,416 were drivers and 22,818 were passengers. The report further provides that young adults in the age group of 18-45 accounted for more than one-third of victims in road accident cases.
Given the severity of the road accident numbers these seat belt alarm stopper clips would have led to further increase in these accident numbers.
What Actions Will Be Taken Against Amazon, Flipkart And Others?
CCPA has written letters to the Chief Secretaries and District Collectors requesting them to take appropriate action as per law, against the manufacture or sale of car seat belt alarm stopper clips.
CCPA has also requested to submit an action taken report to protect the valuable life of the consumers.
CCPA has issued an Advisory among the stakeholder which includes Secretary of MoRT&H and DPIIT, Chief Secretaries of all States and Union Territories. E-Commerce Entities, Industry Associations and Voluntary Consumer Organizations for wide dissemination to desist from manufacture or sale or listings of Car Seat Belt Alarm Stoppers.
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