<p>More than 80 per cent of household consumers demanded an upfront ‘End of Life Service Date’ disclosure to be made mandatory for all high-value serviceable products like automobiles, white goods and gadgets, revealed a survey by LocalCircle, a community social media company.</p>.<p>Timely availability of spare parts and accessories for high-value products like automobiles, gadgets and white goods has been a consistent complaint, the company said in a statement.</p>.<p>“Imagine an expensive car being in a not usable state, waiting for a spare part for 45 days or a three-year-old smartphone model, outside of warranty where a consumer cannot find a replacement for their cracked screen. Thousands of such instances have been cited on LocalCircles from consumers across the country,” it said.</p>.<p>About 47 per cent of household consumers surveyed have one or more high-value products but no spare parts/accessories support from brands, as per the survey.</p>.<p>The findings of the report also revealed that at least 75 per cent of the respondents wanted the government to mandate end-of-life service support for a minimum of five years.</p>.<p>Unlike Europe, which has a policy that mandates a minimum service period for each of their products, India lacks one, said Sagar Gupta, Director, Ekkaa Electronics, an LED TV designing and manufacturing company.</p>.<p>“There is a need for an exit policy in India. The government should put safeguards to protect the customers,” Gupta said.</p>.<p>In other high-value goods like automobiles, too, India has seen numerous customers raise complaints when top companies including Ford and General Motors shut their businesses in the country.</p>.<p>Besides customer dissatisfaction, the current aftersales model also led to increased waste generation in cases of gadgets. In 2018-19, an estimated 7.71 lakh tonnes of e-waste was produced by India, which rose to 10.14 lakh tonnes in 2019-20, an increase of about 31 per cent, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), the report said.</p>
<p>More than 80 per cent of household consumers demanded an upfront ‘End of Life Service Date’ disclosure to be made mandatory for all high-value serviceable products like automobiles, white goods and gadgets, revealed a survey by LocalCircle, a community social media company.</p>.<p>Timely availability of spare parts and accessories for high-value products like automobiles, gadgets and white goods has been a consistent complaint, the company said in a statement.</p>.<p>“Imagine an expensive car being in a not usable state, waiting for a spare part for 45 days or a three-year-old smartphone model, outside of warranty where a consumer cannot find a replacement for their cracked screen. Thousands of such instances have been cited on LocalCircles from consumers across the country,” it said.</p>.<p>About 47 per cent of household consumers surveyed have one or more high-value products but no spare parts/accessories support from brands, as per the survey.</p>.<p>The findings of the report also revealed that at least 75 per cent of the respondents wanted the government to mandate end-of-life service support for a minimum of five years.</p>.<p>Unlike Europe, which has a policy that mandates a minimum service period for each of their products, India lacks one, said Sagar Gupta, Director, Ekkaa Electronics, an LED TV designing and manufacturing company.</p>.<p>“There is a need for an exit policy in India. The government should put safeguards to protect the customers,” Gupta said.</p>.<p>In other high-value goods like automobiles, too, India has seen numerous customers raise complaints when top companies including Ford and General Motors shut their businesses in the country.</p>.<p>Besides customer dissatisfaction, the current aftersales model also led to increased waste generation in cases of gadgets. In 2018-19, an estimated 7.71 lakh tonnes of e-waste was produced by India, which rose to 10.14 lakh tonnes in 2019-20, an increase of about 31 per cent, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), the report said.</p>
