SBI penalised for sending bills to man despite credit card's expiry

A Delhi consumer forum has directed the SBI Cards & Payments Services Pvt. Ltd. to pay Rs 2 lakh to a person here for sending him bill even after his card’s expiry and blacklisting him for non-payment of the charges.

The New Delhi District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum comprising its president Monika A Srivastava and members Kiran Kausal and Umesh Kumar Tyagi directed the company to pay the amount to M J Anthony, a former journalist, for ”deficiency in providing services”.

The forum noted that the company had blacklisted him in the CIBIL system of the wilful defaulters maintained by the RBI, which resulted in the rejection of his applications for credit cards from another bank where he had maintained regular account for nearly two decades.

”This Commission is of the view that the SBI Cards & Payments Services Pvt. Ltd. has been deficient in providing services to the complainant and though the damage/loss occasioned to the complainant in terms of credit rating cannot be measured in terms of money yet punitive damage ought to be awarded against OP (opposite party) therefore, OP is directed to compensate the complainant by paying a sum of Rs 2 lakh as compensation within two months from the date of this order failing which the sum payable would be Rs 3 lakh,” the forum said.

The forum passed the order on May 20 on Anthony’s complaint seeking compensation, claiming that he had requested the company to cancel his card in April 2016 much before its expiry and not to renew it.

He did not use the card for any transaction after April 9, 2016 and had destroyed the card according to rules, he said, adding that no payment was due at that time on the card.

In September, the complainant received a letter from the company about the cancellation of his card, however, the company continued to send bills relating to the card ignoring his protest e-mails, he said.

The bills were to the tune of Rs 2,946 by May 18, 2017 inclusive of late payment charges and penalty, he said.

He stated that in the same letter, the company had warned him to pay the bill otherwise it would ”have adverse impact on the credit history as maintained by the credit Bureau and may hamper future credit requirement”.

The company further blacklisted him in the CIBIL system of the wilful defaulters maintained by RBI and he had trouble in getting loans or credit card.

During the argument, the company had denied the allegations.