Does the shopkeeper force you to give your number in the name of bill generation? If yes, then they cannot force you from now on. The Central Government issued the advisory that the shopkeepers can no longer force the consumer for mobile numbers for generating bills. The ministry stated that it’s violating the Right to Privacy.
The advisory is based on the number of grievances filed by the consumers registered on the National Consumer Helpline(NCH) that the retail stores are compelling them to give their mobile number before purchasing the product.
A complainant from Bangalore said that in August 2021, he made purchases from a bakery totaling Rs. 525. The shopkeeper requested the customer’s mobile number, but he declined to give it. The person eventually provided his number under duress for bill generating. Giving up a mobile number is at his option, and receiving a bill is a consumer right, he claims.
According to the department of consumer affairs, it is against the law and unfair trade practices under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 to need a customer’s mobile number as a requirement to the sale of a product, even if they choose not to furnish one.
Additionally, it is illegal to give someone else access to their personal information, including their cellphone number, without their consent or in violation of a valid contract, according to Section 72-A of the Information Technology Act of 2000.
The advisory also stated that by making it mandatory for customers to provide their mobile number, they are frequently forced into disclosing their personal information against their will. Consequently, the customers are frequently inundated with marketing and promotional messages from retailers—messages they did not even consent to when they made the purchase.
No retailers may in any way coerce customers into providing their mobile number, according to tight instructions from the department of consumer affairs. Without the consumers’ explicit consent, they cannot take that.
Without consent, consumers are receiving calls and messages from retailers with adverts and other promotions. The stores advertise through the late-night transmission of text messages via WhatsApp and other applications which disturbs consumers personally and professionally.
The new advisory will provide much needed protection to the privacy of the consumers.
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