One of my clients recently had a case which I am explaining below and if you are stuck in such similar situation, here is what to do.
Note: Due to attorney-client privilege, I cannot disclose complete case details or identify the actual parties involved. However, I am sharing the essential facts and legal approach so that if you find yourself in a similar situation, you can understand the available solutions and legal remedies.
TL;DR: If you were cheated by an online seller, you have two remedies running in parallel: a criminal complaint for cheating, and a consumer complaint for a refund. The consumer route is what actually returns your money; and the criminal complaint is what makes the seller answer the phone. Which one you file first depends on what you want: money back, or the conduct on record. Most people want both, and there is no bar on pursuing both.
Key facts
- Two separate tracks exist — a criminal complaint for cheating, and a consumer complaint for the refund. One does not cancel the other.
- Cheating is now Section 318 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023. Where property is dishonestly delivered as a result, Section 318(4) applies, with punishment up to seven years.
- If the seller used a fake identity or a fake storefront online, Section 319 BNS and Section 66D of the Information Technology Act, 2000 may also be attracted.
- A consumer complaint lies before the District Commission under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019. There is no court fee.
- Under Section 34(2) of the Act, you can file where you reside or personally work for gain — not necessarily where the seller sits.
- Limitation is two years from the cause of action under Section 69 of the Act. After that, you need the Commission's leave to file late, and it is not granted as a matter of course.
- Electronic evidence — the order page, chat, payment record — is governed by Section 63 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023, and usually needs the certificate described there.
What can you do if an online seller cheats you?
You have three routes, and they are not alternatives to each other. You can use all three. What differs is who they act on, how long they take, and what you get out of them.
1. The criminal complaint for cheating
Cheating, as the law describes it, needs deception, a dishonest intention, and — for the aggravated form — the victim being induced to hand over property because of that deception. Section 318 BNS carries forward the old cheating provision; Section 318(4) carries forward what used to be charged as cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property.
Most online-seller cases fit the aggravated form. You paid against a description; the description was false or the seller never intended to ship. That is delivery of property induced by deception.
Watch the distinction between cheating and criminal breach of trust (Section 316 BNS). If the seller genuinely intended to trade and the goods were entrusted to a courier who vanished with them, the facts point one way; if the seller was never going to ship anything at all, they point another. This is why the police ask for the chat history rather than just the invoice.
Where the complaint goes:
- The police station with jurisdiction over the seller's place of business, or
- Any police station, at least for the purpose of registering the information, since Section 173(1) BNSS permits information in a cognizable case to be given electronically and at a station other than the one with territorial jurisdiction. The FIR is then transferred.
- For purely online fraud, the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal is the practical entry point for the electronic trail.
One thing to expect: Section 173(3) BNSS permits a preliminary enquiry for offences punishable between three and seven years. Cheating under 318(4) sits in that band. So the officer in charge may spend a few weeks verifying before an FIR is registered. That is lawful, and it is the single most common reason a complainant thinks nothing has happened.
If the police refuse to register, put the complaint in writing and send it to the Superintendent of Police. If that produces nothing, an application lies before the Magistrate under Section 175(3) BNSS asking for a direction to investigate. Bring the refusal in writing — a verbal refusal is much harder to build on.
2. The consumer complaint for the money
This is the route that ends in a refund order. A person who buys goods or services online for consideration is a consumer under Section 2(7) of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019. Non-delivery, delivery of something materially different from the listing, or a refusal to refund are all capable of being treated as a deficiency.
Who you name as opposite party matters. The seller is the obvious one. Whether the marketplace is also liable depends on its role in the transaction and on its obligations under the Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020 — which require e-commerce entities to appoint a grievance officer, acknowledge a complaint within forty-eight hours, and redress it within a month. If you skipped that step, do it now and keep the ticket number. It is evidence for the case you are about to file.
Where: the District Commission. Under the 2021 jurisdiction rules, the District Commission handles claims up to ₹5 crore, which covers almost every retail online purchase. You file where you reside or work for gain.
How: the E-Daakhil portal handles e-filing. You can also appear yourself — the Act does not require an advocate. Most people who are chasing a few thousand rupees should.
What you can ask for: replacement or refund of the price, interest, compensation for the trouble caused, and the cost of the proceedings.
How long: the Act asks the District Commission to try and finish within a few months. Read that as an aspiration. A contested matter that goes to evidence and then to appeal realistically runs into years. If the opposite party does not appear, it moves faster.
3. Recovery through the civil courts, and Section 138 if a cheque bounced
An ordinary civil suit for recovery is slow and usually not worth it for small sums. A summary suit under Order XXXVII of the Code of Civil Procedure is quicker, but only for claims that rest on a written contract, a negotiable instrument or a similar defined category — check that your facts fit before choosing it.
If you paid by cheque and it came back unpaid, Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 is its own separate remedy. The sequence is strict: a demand notice within thirty days of the return memo, then a complaint within a month of the fifteen-day period the notice gives the drawer. Miss either window and the remedy is gone.
What to do in the first week
Evidence decides these cases, and electronic evidence degrades fast — accounts get deleted, listings get pulled, apps update and old chats become unreadable.
- Save the product page as it looked when you bought it, with the URL and the date visible.
- Save the order confirmation, payment confirmation and any invoice.
- Save the entire chat thread, not selected screenshots. Screenshots without context get picked apart.
- Note the seller's registered name and address from the invoice. A complaint against a trade name alone is difficult to execute later.
- Write to the seller and the marketplace grievance officer once, plainly, asking for a refund by a stated date. Keep the ticket number.
Under Section 63 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023, electronic records must ordinarily be accompanied by a certificate from the person in occupation of the device or the person managing the relevant activity. In practice this means the person who owns the phone or the account should sign it, not the advocate. If you have already changed phones, say so early — it changes how the evidence has to be proved.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I file a police complaint and a consumer complaint at the same time?
Yes. They run on different questions — whether an offence was committed, and whether you are entitled to relief. Courts have repeatedly allowed parallel proceedings where the consumer case is not an attempt to settle scores. What you cannot do is recover the same sum twice.
The police are refusing to register my FIR. What now?
Get the refusal in writing, send a written complaint to the Superintendent of Police, and if nothing moves, apply to the Magistrate under Section 175(3) BNSS. Expect weeks rather than days at each stage, and bring every document you sent earlier.
Do I need a lawyer for a consumer complaint?
Not legally. Whether it is wise depends on the amount and on whether the opposite party is contesting. For a ₹3,000 dispute where the seller has gone silent, a complaint you file yourself is often the sensible thing. For a disputed contract or a matter headed to appeal, it is not.
The seller says their refund policy says no refunds. Does that settle it?
No, if the goods never arrived or were materially different from what was described. A policy cannot waive a statutory right. If the goods arrived exactly as described and you simply changed your mind, then the policy governs, and there may be nothing to argue.
What is the time limit?
Two years from the date the problem arose, for the consumer complaint. A criminal complaint for an offence carrying more than three years' imprisonment is not governed by the short limitation periods in the BNSS, but delay still weakens the case — and the electronic trail fades with it. The Section 138 cheque notice windows are thirty days and then one month, and they are unforgiving.
If you want this looked at
Send the order confirmation and the invoice, the date of purchase, the payment record, and a two-line note on what went wrong and what you have already written to the seller. If a police complaint has been made, send that too, along with any acknowledgement or refusal. From that, you can be told plainly which route makes sense and which one is a waste of your time.
You can reach the chamber through the contact page or by using the booking form. The chamber is at Lawyers' Chamber, Chamber No. 86, Supreme Court of India, New Delhi 110001; phone +91 97295 06771; email me@sudhirrao.com.
This article is general information about Indian law and is not legal advice on your own situation. Facts change outcomes, and a lawyer who has read your papers may tell you something different from what is written here.
Advocate Sudhir Rao, Supreme Court of India