Revision: Consumerism Commerce HSC Commerce Class 12 Tamil Nadu Board of Secondary Education

Under the Consumer Protection Act 2019, a consumer is a person who buys any goods or avails services for a consideration, which has been paid or promised, or partly paid and partly promised, or under any scheme of deferred payment.

“Consumerism is an attempt to enhance the rights and powers by buyers in relation to sellers”.

• Consumer uses or enjoys goods or services.
• Must buy or take services against some form of payment.
• Users or beneficiaries with buyer’s permission are also consumers.
• Law covers offline and online transactions, including electronic, teleshopping, direct selling, and multilevel marketing.
• Those taking goods or services for resale or commercial purpose are not consumers under this Act.

• Every person is a consumer, so awareness is necessary.
• Consumers face issues like unsafe goods, adulteration, misleading ads, hoarding and black‑marketing.
• Consumer Protection Act 2019 replaced the 1986 Act and gives wider protection.
• Market focus has moved from buyer beware to seller beware.
• Consumer protection helps both consumers and business and is supported by law.

• Consumer protection exists to shield consumers from unethical business practices like adulteration, duplicate goods, overcharging, and misleading advertisements.
• Need for protection spans physical safety, information access, CSR, consumer satisfaction, social justice, and business survival.
• Key measures: consumer education, grievance redressal, and consumer associations.
• From consumers' side: ignorance, lack of organisation, and exploitation are central concerns.
• From business's side: long-term interest, responsible use of resources, social responsibility, and avoiding government intervention justify consumer protection.