NCDRC Penalizes ICICI Bank for Losing Customer's Property Documents

NCDRC Penalizes ICICI Bank for Losing Customer's Property Documents

Orders it to pay Rs.25 lakh fine for deficiency in services and Rs.50,000 as litigation cost to the complainant

The National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) has directed ICICI Bank to compensate a customer for losing his original property title documents, deposited with the bank for availing a housing loan.

The bench comprising Subhash Chandra (Presiding Member) was hearing the complaint of Manoj Madhusudhanan filed by advocate Swetank Shantanu. The complainant sought compensation from the bank for a deficiency in services.

In April 2016, the Bengaluru branch of the bank sanctioned a housing loan of Rs.1.86 crore to Madhusudhanan. Upon execution of the sale deed, the bank retained several original property documents, including the registered sale deed and possession certificate.

Since ICICI Bank did not provide the complainant with any scanned or true copies, in June 2016, he filed a complaint against the bank. He was then informed by the bank that the documents sent through a courier company had been lost in transit from Bengaluru to its central storage facility in Hyderabad.

Since the bank did not resolve the issue, Madhusudhanan approached the Banking Ombudsman. In September 2016, the latter directed the bank to issue a duplicate copy of the lost documents, publish a public notice regarding the loss, and pay the complainant Rs.25,000 for deficiency in service.

However, Madhusudhanan approached the NCDRC alleging that the bank was ‘extremely negligent’ and that ‘copies could not replace the sanctity of the original documents.’ He sought a compensation of Rs.5 crores for suffering mental agony and loss.

The Commission found that the ground of deficiency in service was a ‘legitimate claim’ and ICICI could not shift the liability to the courier company.

Thus, NCRDC directed the bank to obtain (at its own cost) all the reconstructed and duly certified copies of the documents handed over by the complainant as security at the time of registration of the sale deed for the housing loan sanctioned by the bank.

The bench also ordered ICICI Bank to pay the complainant Rs.25 lakh as compensation for deficiency in services and Rs.50,000 as litigation cost.