Theme: Money & Property

Customer Liability

The customer must not reveal/share payment credentials with any third party. If a customer does this then the customer’s liability will increase because of his or her negligent actions. It is the bank’s responsibility to prove that the customer is liable (to whatever degree) in case of unauthorised electronic banking transactions. At their discretion Banks may also decide to waive off any customer liability in case of unauthorised electronic banking transactions. They can do this even in cases of customer negligence.

The customer will incur zero liability when:

  • There is an unauthorized transaction due to contributory fraud or negligent behaviour or deficiency in the bank’s services. If you don’t report the unauthorized transaction to the bank, it does not matter because the zero liability occurs whether or not you report it.
  • There is a breach but it is not with the customer or bank, but somewhere else in the system. In this case, you should notify the bank within three working days of receiving communication about the unauthorized transaction.

The customer will incur limited liability if there is a delay of four to seven working days after receiving the communication from the bank about the unauthorized transaction, in such a situation the per transaction liability of the customer will be limited to the transaction value or the amount mentioned in this Table below, whichever is lower.

Maximum Liability of Customer

Type of Account Maximum Liability
Basic Savings Deposit Account Rs. 5,000/-
All other Savings Bank Accounts, Pre-paid Payment Instruments and Gift Cards, Current/Cash Credit/Overdraft Accounts of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, Current Accounts/Cash Credit/Overdraft Accounts of Individuals with annual average balance (during 365 days preceding the incidence of fraud)/limit up to Rs.25 lakh, Credit cards with limit up to Rs.5 lakh Rs. 10,000/-
All other Current/ Cash Credit/ Overdraft Accounts, Credit cards with limit above Rs.5 lakh Rs. 25,000/-

Ownership of Immovable Property and related disputes

Ownership rights on land can be acquired by succession, survivorship, inheritance, partition and purchase. Disputes can arise out of objections about validity of rights of owner/seller or eligibility of purchaser and breach of government rules and regulations to hold the land. The manner in which these disputes are dealt with, is very specific to the facts of each case and needs specialized domain knowledge. It is important to consult a lawyer before taking any steps towards litigation. There are ways to check buyer and seller eligibility in a transaction of sale of immovable property. More information on how to check the eligibility is available here

Who do you complain to if there has been an issue related to buying or selling property?

You can approach the court to raise disputes over land and property for various reasons including claim on ownership, contestation over land acquisition, disagreement / disputes over real estate transactions, conflict over property inheritance, and misuse of rented property among others. There are different laws and procedures which explain how an individual can seek redressal on these issues, depending on the particular circumstances under which the dispute arises.  Such issues are better dealt with through lawyers specializing in land disputes. However, it is best to conduct your due diligence beforehand to make sure that your property is not stuck in a court dispute. Please talk to a lawyer or ask us any questions through the Ask Nyaaya Helpline.

Filing Tax Returns

Filing tax returns is a detailed and long-drawn process. Some legal aspects to keep in mind are:

Step 1:

Initially, for filing an Income Tax Return (ITR), you need to find out what category of taxpayer you are. This involves calculating your taxable income based on standard tax rates. There may also be certain tax deductions that you can avail to reduce your tax liability.

Step 2:

When it comes to actually filing tax returns, you must most importantly ensure that you submit your returns within the specified dates/timeline by selecting the correct ITR Form that is applicable to you.

Step 3:

There are various ways in which your ITR can be filed i.e., physically or electronically, and each filing option comes with a different procedure. Even within electronic filing, you have the offline and online options. Irrespective of how you file your ITR, you will have to verify it upon submission. Sometimes, you might have to correct certain details in your ITR Form, or claim a refund if you have paid excess tax.

Step 4:

Accurate information and filing on time is essential while filing taxes. If you violate any laws related to income tax, you can be punished. Hence, if you are doubtful about any aspect of filing returns, it is advisable to seek help by contacting the income tax authorities.

Leave and License Agreement

In some cities, instead of a rent agreement, a leave and license agreement is used. By using this form of an agreement, the owner of the property gives you permission to use the house for a specific purpose.

In a Leave and License agreement, the person giving the house on rent is called the licensor and the person renting the house is called a licensee.

Keep in mind the following when you enter into a Leave and License Agreement:

Tenant Protections Not Available to a Licensee

You are technically not a tenant as per law and hence you do not have certain rights. Instead, you are a licensee who has acquired a limited right to use the premises for a specific time period.

Guided by Agreement

The rights and duties of both licensor and licensee are primarily decided by the agreement. If any of the terms of the agreement are violated, it is treated as a violation or breaking of a contract, the remedy for which is going to Court to file a civil suit.

To see a sample leave and license agreement, refer here.

Please refer to this checklist to ensure you have all the essential points covered in your agreement.

Probate Process of the Will

In certain cases, it is necessary to obtain a probate of the will in order to establish your right as a beneficiary of the will. You will have to apply to the court for a probate. It is a certification by the court with respect to the genuineness and validity of execution of the will. Getting a probate does not, however, mean that your title to the property has been established. This is essentially an official evidence of the executor’s right to administer the estate of the deceased. While there is no specific deadline by which you need to obtain the probate, you should avoid long delays.

A probate is compulsory for wills of Hindus, Buddhists, Jains and Sikhs in Chennai and Mumbai or if their property is in Chennai and Mumbai. It is also applicable to Christians outside Kerala and Parsis (who died after 1962) in Kolkata, Chennai and Mumbai. Please confirm with a lawyer if you should get a probate for the will.

Speed Clearing for Outstation Cheques

Cheques can be issued to a person holding a bank account in a bank branch in the same city or outside. When the cheque is issued to a person outside the same city then it becomes an outstation cheque.

Speed Clearing is a process that makes it possible to clear such cheques, locally. With the help of MICR and Core Banking System (CBS), the entire process of clearing such cheques has become easier and faster. It is also referred to as ‘Grid-Based Cheque Truncation System’.

Before the Speed Clearing Process existed, if you deposited an outstation cheque at your bank, it would first go to the local clearing house in your city and then the cheque would be physically sent to the outstation branch to process the payment. Now, with speed clearing, the cheque is sent to the local branch of the drawee bank for clearance.

Hence, clearance becomes faster with the Speed Clearing System.

Fee for making complaints

Every complaint(( Section 2(6), Consumer Protection Act, 2019.)) filed under the consumer protection law must be accompanied with a nominal fee that is payable in the form of a demand draft of a nationalized bank or through a postal order(( Rule 7(1), Consumer Protection (Consumer Complaint Redressal Commissions) Rules, 2020)), or in electronic form(( Section 35(2), Consumer Protection Act, 2019)). The fee structure based on the value of goods or services is given below(( Section 35(2), Consumer Protection Act, 2019)):

 

Fee payable to the District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission:

 

Value of Good or Service Fee
Below Rs. 5 lakhs No fee
Rs. 5 lakhs – 10 Rs lakhs Rs. 200
Rs. 10 lakhs – Rs. 20 lakhs Rs.400
Rs. 20 lakhs – Rs. 50 lakhs Rs. 1000
Rs. 50 lakhs – Rs. 1 crore Rs. 2000

 

Fee payable to the State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission:

Value of Good or Service Fee
Rs. 1 crores – Rs. 2 crores Rs. 2500
Rs. 2 crores – Rs. 4 crores Rs. 3000
Rs. 4 crores – Rs. 6 crores Rs.4000
Rs. 6 crores – Rs 8 crores Rs. 5000
Rs. 8 crores – Rs. 10 crores Rs. 6000

 

Fee payable to the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission:

 

Value of Good or Service Fee
Above Rs. 10 crores Rs. 7500

 

An important thing to note is that the fees so collected goes to the Consumer Welfare Fund, at the State level or the National level, as the case may be. Where such Fund does not exist, it is directed to the State Government(( Rule 7(2), Consumer Protection (Consumer Complaint Redressal Commissions) Rules, 2020)). The fee is utilized towards the continuation of consumer welfare projects.

 

Reversing an unauthorized transaction

After receiving the notification from the customer of the unauthorized transaction, the bank will reverse the transaction and will credit the amount involved in the authorized electronic transaction. This should be done within 10 working days from the date of the receipt of notification from the customer. The banks should not wait for settlement of insurance claims to do this. The Bank will credit the money as per the value as of the date of the unauthorised transaction.

If I have a dispute with someone about land or other immovable property, which court should I approach?

The location of your property is one of the main considerations in deciding which court you should approach to file a suit about immovable property(( Under Section 16 of the Civil Procedure Code, suits for various disputes relating to immovable property must be instituted in the Court within the local limits of whose jurisdiction the property is situated)). The court must have jurisdiction over the place where the disputed property is situated. If a property is located across jurisdictional boundaries of more than one court, the suit can be filed in any of those courts(( Section 17 of the Civil Procedure Code)). Please consult a lawyer before taking such steps.

Besides approaching courts, disputes can be settled with the help of Lok Adalats. This is an alternate dispute resolution mechanism recognized under the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987.

Lok Adalats are a forum where disputes/cases pending in the court of law or at pre-litigation stage, like land and property disputes, are settled/ compromised amicably. The decision of the Lok Adalat is final and binding; there is no provision for appeal. However, if the party is unsatisfied with the award, they can initiate the litigation process.