Business StudiesCBSE Class 12 · Consumer Protection

Consumer Rights and Responsibilities under the CPA 2019 (Class 12)

Updated 15 October 2026 · Fact-checked

Under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, consumers have six rights: the right to safety, to be informed, to be assured (choose), to be heard, to seek redressal and to consumer education. Rights work only when consumers also act responsibly: buying standardised goods, reading labels, asking for a cash memo, filing complaints and respecting the environment.

Learn the six rights as spokes around the consumer, and remember they work best when the consumer also acts responsibly.

Illustration drawn for QuestionBuddy.

Understand Consumer Rights and Responsibilities

Who is a consumer (CPA 2019). A person who buys any goods or avails any services for a consideration (paid, promised, partly paid and partly promised, or under deferred payment). It includes any user of the goods or beneficiary of the services when the use is with the buyer's approval. The Act covers offline and online transactions, teleshopping, direct selling and multi-level marketing. A person who obtains goods or services for resale or a commercial purpose is not a consumer.

Six consumer rights.

1. Right to safety: protection against goods and services hazardous to life, health and property. Example: electrical appliances made with substandard material can cause injury, so consumers are educated to buy ISI-marked appliances.
2. Right to be informed: complete information about the product, its ingredients, date of manufacture, price, quantity, directions for use, etc. The law requires manufacturers to give this on the package and label.
3. Right to be assured (commonly called the right to choose): freedom to access a variety of products at competitive prices; marketers should offer variety in quality, brand, price and size.
4. Right to be heard: right to file a complaint and be heard when dissatisfied. This is why enlightened firms set up consumer service and grievance cells.
5. Right to seek redressal: right to relief against unfair or restrictive trade practices or exploitation: replacement, removal of defect, compensation, etc.
6. Right to consumer education: right to acquire knowledge and be a well-informed consumer throughout life, aware of rights and reliefs.

Ten responsibilities of consumers.

1. Be aware of goods and services available, to make a wise choice.
2. Buy only standardised goods: ISI on electrical goods, FPO on food products, Hallmark on jewellery.
3. Learn about risks, follow the manufacturer's instructions, use products safely.
4. Read labels carefully: price, net weight, manufacturing and expiry dates.
5. Assert yourself to get a fair deal.
6. Be honest: choose only legal goods and services; discourage black-marketing and hoarding.
7. Ask for a cash memo: proof of purchase.
8. File a complaint in the appropriate consumer forum when there is a shortcoming, even if the amount is small.
9. Form consumer societies to educate consumers and safeguard their interests.
10. Respect the environment: avoid waste, littering and pollution.

Quality marks to recognise. ISI (Bureau of Indian Standards mark, industrial and electrical goods), Agmark (agricultural products), FPO (processed food), Hallmark (gold jewellery), Eco-mark (environment-friendly products).

Case cues. 'the pressure cooker burst because it had no safety valve' (right to safety); 'the pack did not show the expiry date' (right to be informed); 'the shop stocked only one brand and refused to show others' (right to be assured/choose); 'the company set up a toll-free complaint line' (right to be heard); 'the court ordered a refund' (right to seek redressal); 'a school club ran a workshop on reading labels' (right to consumer education).

Consumer Rights and Responsibilities: key facts

Consumer (CPA 2019): Buys goods or avails services for consideration; includes approved user/beneficiary; online and offline; Not a consumer if bought for resale or commercial purpose.
Six rights: Safety; Informed; Assured (choose); Heard; Redressal; Consumer education; Mnemonic: 'SICHRE' ('See I Choose; Hear, Redress, Educate').
Quality marks: ISI (electricals), Agmark (agriculture), FPO (processed food), Hallmark (gold), Eco-mark; Responsibility: buy standardised goods.
Key responsibilities: Be aware; standardised goods; read labels; cash memo; complain; be honest; respect environment; Ten in all.

How to answer Consumer Rights and Responsibilities questions

Consumer rights are a 1-mark staple in every paper; rights and responsibilities also appear as 3- to 6-mark questions and cases.

1Ask what the consumer was denied or given: safety (harm), information (label/details), choice (variety), a hearing (complaint channel), relief (refund, replacement, compensation) or knowledge (education).
2Name the right and quote the case line.
3For responsibilities, look for what the consumer should have done (checked ISI mark, read the expiry date, asked for a bill, complained).
4Check whether the person is a consumer at all: buying for resale or commercial purpose excludes them.
5In 6-mark answers, explain all six rights or six responsibilities with a line each.

Consumer Rights and Responsibilities in real life

The idea, met in an everyday situation. Answer the question in your own words, then compare with the model answer. The one-line hook is what to remember.

Right to be informed

Suppose you buy a packet of chips and notice there is no 'best before' date and no list of ingredients. Your friend has a nut allergy and wants to know whether the chips are safe for her.

Which consumer right is being denied?

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

The consumer needs details such as ingredients and dates.
The law requires these on the package and label.

Answer: The right to be informed: consumers are entitled to complete information about ingredients, date of manufacture, price, quantity and directions for use.

Memory hook: If it is not on the label, you were not informed.

Responsibility: ask for a cash memo

Imagine your uncle buys a mixer-grinder from a local shop without a bill to 'save GST'. It stops working in a week, and the shop denies selling it to him.

Which responsibility did he ignore, and why does it matter?

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

A cash memo is proof of purchase.
Without it, filing a complaint is difficult.
Avoiding the bill also encourages dishonest practices.

Answer: He ignored the responsibility to ask for a cash memo (and to be honest in dealings). Without proof of purchase he will find it hard to seek redressal.

Memory hook: No bill, no case.

Tricks to remember Consumer Rights and Responsibilities

Short memory aids. Say each one aloud once, then use it on a question the same day.

SICHRE
Safety, Informed, Choose (assured), Heard, Redressal, Education.
Use it when: Six rights in order.
Heard vs redressal
Heard = someone listens (grievance cell, complaint). Redressal = someone fixes it (refund, replacement, compensation).
Use it when: The commonest confusion.
Marks by product
ISI plugs in, Agmark grows, FPO is cooked, Hallmark glitters.
Use it when: Quality marks.

Consumer Rights and Responsibilities: solved examples

Ordered from board level to HOTS. Try each one before you open the solution.

Example 1: Grievance cell · 1 mark · MCQBoard level

A firm sets up a consumer grievance cell to deal with complaints. Which consumer right does this respect?
(a) Right to safety
(b) Right to be heard
(c) Right to choose
(d) Right to consumer education

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

A channel for complaints lets the consumer be heard (1 mark).

Answer: (b) Right to be heard

Example 2: Three rights · 3 marks · Short answerBoard level

Explain any three rights of consumers under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019. (3 marks)

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

One mark per right with a line.

Answer: Any three: (1) Right to safety: protection against goods and services hazardous to life, health and property. (2) Right to be informed: complete information on ingredients, date of manufacture, price, quantity and directions for use. (3) Right to be assured (choose): access to a variety of products at competitive prices. (4) Right to be heard: to file a complaint and be heard. (5) Right to seek redressal: relief such as replacement, removal of defect or compensation. (6) Right to consumer education.

Example 3: Rights from a case · 3 marks · Short answerHarder board level

Neha bought a hair dryer that gave her an electric shock because of faulty wiring. When she called the company, its helpline recorded her complaint and promised a callback. Later the consumer commission ordered the company to replace the dryer and pay ₹5,000 as compensation. Identify three consumer rights involved. (3 marks)

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

'electric shock because of faulty wiring': right to safety (1 mark).
'helpline recorded her complaint': right to be heard (1 mark).
'ordered to replace and pay compensation': right to seek redressal (1 mark).

Answer: (1) Right to safety (a hazardous product caused harm). (2) Right to be heard (the helpline took her complaint). (3) Right to seek redressal (replacement and compensation ordered).

Example 4: Is he a consumer? · 3 marks · Short answerHarder board level

Ravi, a shopkeeper, bought 50 ceiling fans from a wholesaler to sell in his shop. Ten were defective. Can Ravi file a complaint as a consumer under the CPA 2019? Would your answer change if Ravi had bought one fan for his own home? (3 marks)

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

Fans bought for resale: not a consumer under the Act (1½ marks).
One fan for own use: consumer (1½ marks).

Answer: For the 50 fans bought for resale, Ravi is not a consumer under the CPA 2019, because a person who obtains goods for resale or a commercial purpose is excluded. If he bought one fan for his own home for a price, he would be a consumer and could file a complaint about a defect.

Example 5: Rights need responsibilities · 4 marks · Short answerHOTS / competency

Suppose a consumer bought an unbranded electric iron without an ISI mark from a roadside seller, took no bill, and ignored the instruction not to use it on a wet surface. It caught fire. Evaluate how far she can rely on her consumer rights, and which responsibilities she failed in. (4 marks)

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

Right to safety exists, but rights work only alongside responsibilities (1 mark).
Failed: buy standardised (ISI) goods (1 mark); ask for a cash memo (1 mark); follow instructions and use safely (1 mark).

Answer: She has a right to safety and to seek redressal, but consumer protection works only when consumers also act responsibly. She failed to (1) buy standardised goods (ISI-marked electricals), (2) ask for a cash memo, which is proof of purchase needed to file a complaint, and (3) follow the manufacturer's instructions and use the product safely. Without a bill and with misuse, her claim is weak.

Example 6: Case study: a school's consumer club · 4 marks · Case-basedHOTS / competency

The consumer club of 'Sunrise School' (i) holds sessions on checking FPO and Agmark labels; (ii) surveys shops and finds most stock only one brand of school bags at high prices; (iii) helps a parent file a complaint after a tuition centre refused to refund fees for classes it cancelled; (iv) asks members to carry cloth bags instead of plastic.
(a) Identify the consumer right in (i), (ii) and (iii). (3 marks)
(b) Identify the responsibility in (iv). (1 mark)

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

(a) (i) right to consumer education; (ii) right to be assured/choose; (iii) right to seek redressal (1 mark each).
(b) Respect the environment (1 mark).

Answer: (a) (i) Right to consumer education; (ii) right to be assured (choose): consumers should have access to a variety of products at competitive prices; (iii) right to seek redressal (refund for deficiency in service). (b) Respect the environment: avoid waste and pollution.

Where students lose marks in Consumer Rights and Responsibilities

The slips examiners see most often, and what to write instead.

Mistake: Confusing right to be heard with right to seek redressal
Both involve complaints.
Wrong working
Court ordered a refund: right to be heard.
Right working
Refund ordered: right to seek redressal; complaint cell: right to be heard.
Do this: Heard = listened to; redressal = relief.
Usually costs: 1 mark.
Mistake: Citing the 1986 Act
Older notes refer to it.
Wrong working
Under the Consumer Protection Act, 1986...
Right working
Under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019.
Do this: Always write 2019.
Usually costs: ½ mark.
Mistake: Treating a reseller as a consumer
Ignoring the commercial-purpose exclusion.
Wrong working
The shopkeeper who bought fans to sell is a consumer.
Right working
Goods bought for resale or commercial purpose: not a consumer.
Do this: Ask: for own use or for resale?
Usually costs: 1 mark.
Mistake: Wrong quality mark
Marks look alike.
Wrong working
Hallmark on food products.
Right working
FPO on processed food; Agmark on agricultural produce; Hallmark on gold.
Do this: Marks by product.
Usually costs: 1 mark.

Exam tips

Rights and responsibilities were a 6-mark question in the 2025-26 sample paper (Q34(B)) and a 4-mark question in the 2023-24 sample paper (Q27), with 1-mark items on rights or responsibilities in the 2024-25 and 2026-27 sample papers and the 2026 board paper 66/1/1.
Learn the six rights in NCERT's words; 'right to be assured' is the Act's term for the right to choose.
Always refer to the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, not the 1986 Act.
Marketing and Consumer Protection together carry 15 of the 80 theory marks in 2026-27.

Practice questions on Consumer Rights and Responsibilities

Write each answer on paper first. Open the hint only if you are stuck, and the answer only when you have finished.

Q1 · 1 mark · MCQBoard level
Under which right is a consumer entitled to know the date of manufacture and ingredients of a product?
(a) Right to choose
(b) Right to be informed
(c) Right to be heard
(d) Right to safety
Hint
Label details.
Answer
(b) Right to be informed
Q2 · 1 mark · Short answerBoard level
Which quality mark is used for agricultural products? (1 mark)
Hint
Agri.
Answer
Agmark.
Q3 · 6 marks · Long answerBoard level
Explain any six responsibilities of a consumer. (6 marks)
Hint
Ten to choose from.
Answer
Any six with a line each: be aware of goods and services available; buy standardised goods (ISI, FPO, Hallmark); learn about risks and use products safely; read labels carefully (price, net weight, dates); assert yourself for a fair deal; be honest and discourage black-marketing and hoarding; ask for a cash memo; file a complaint even for small amounts; form consumer societies; respect the environment.
Q4 · 3 marks · Short answerHarder board level
Explain the meaning of 'consumer' under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019. Who is excluded from it? (3 marks)
Hint
Consideration, user, exclusion.
Answer
A person who buys goods or avails services for a consideration (paid, promised, partly paid and partly promised, or under deferred payment). It includes any user of the goods or beneficiary of the services with the buyer's approval, and covers online and offline transactions, teleshopping, direct selling and multi-level marketing. A person who obtains goods or services for resale or a commercial purpose is not a consumer.
Q5 · 2 marks · Short answerHarder board level
Distinguish between the right to be heard and the right to seek redressal. (2 marks)
Hint
Listen vs fix.
Answer
Right to be heard: the right to file a complaint and have it heard (e.g. through grievance cells and consumer forums). Right to seek redressal: the right to get relief, such as replacement, removal of defect, refund or compensation, when the product or service falls short.
Q6 · 2 marks · Short answerHarder board level
A gas-stove company advertises that its stoves carry an ISI mark and come with a safety valve. Which consumer right does this support, and which responsibility does it encourage? (2 marks)
Hint
Hazard and standards.
Answer
Right to safety (protection against hazardous goods) (1 mark); it encourages the responsibility to buy only standardised goods carrying quality marks such as ISI (1 mark).
Q7 · 1 mark · Assertion-reasonHarder board level
Assertion (A): A person who buys goods for resale is not a consumer under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019.
Reason (R): The Act applies only to offline transactions.
(a) Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A.
(b) Both A and R are true but R is not the correct explanation of A.
(c) A is true but R is false.
(d) A is false but R is true.
Hint
The Act covers online too.
Answer
(c) A is true but R is false: the Act covers both offline and online transactions.
Q8 · 2 marks · Short answerHarder board level
A mobile shop shows customers only one brand and refuses to stock others, though many brands are available in the market at competitive prices. Which right is violated? Explain. (2 marks)
Hint
Variety.
Answer
The right to be assured, commonly called the right to choose: consumers should have access to a variety of products at competitive prices and be free to choose among brands, qualities, sizes and prices.
Q9 · 3 marks · Short answerHOTS / competency
Suppose an online seller hides a 'non-returnable' condition in tiny print at the bottom of a long page. A customer orders shoes that turn out to be the wrong size and cannot return them. Analyse which right is affected and what responsibility the customer could have exercised. (3 marks)
Hint
Information and reading terms.
Answer
The right to be informed is affected: material terms of sale should be made clear, not hidden. The Act covers online transactions too, so the customer can complain and seek redressal if the practice is unfair. Her responsibility was to read the terms and labels carefully and be aware before buying; consumer protection works best when consumers exercise both rights and responsibilities.
Q10 · 3 marks · Short answerHOTS / competency
'Consumer rights by themselves cannot achieve consumer protection.' Justify with three responsibilities. (3 marks)
Hint
Rights + responsibilities.
Answer
Rights give consumers protection on paper, but they work only when consumers act. (1) Asking for a cash memo gives proof needed to seek redressal. (2) Buying standardised goods and reading labels prevents harm and exploitation in the first place. (3) Filing complaints, even for small amounts, makes sellers accountable. Without such responsible behaviour, rights remain unused and unfair practices continue.

Test your recall

Answer in your head or on paper first, then open the card. Pulling an answer out of memory makes it stick far better than re-reading.

1.Name the six consumer rights.Show answer
Safety, to be informed, to be assured (choose), to be heard, to seek redressal, consumer education.
2.Which mark is used on electrical goods?Show answer
ISI.
3.Is a person buying for resale a consumer?Show answer
No.
4.Why ask for a cash memo?Show answer
It is proof of purchase.
5.Which right is violated if a product injures the user?Show answer
Right to safety.
6.Does the CPA 2019 cover online purchases?Show answer
Yes.

Consumer Rights and Responsibilities: frequently asked questions

What are the six consumer rights under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019?

The right to safety, to be informed, to be assured (choose), to be heard, to seek redressal and to consumer education.

Who is not a consumer under the Act?

A person who obtains goods or services for resale or for a commercial purpose.

What are the responsibilities of a consumer?

Being aware, buying standardised goods, using products safely, reading labels, asserting for a fair deal, being honest, asking for a cash memo, filing complaints, forming consumer societies and respecting the environment.

Is the right to choose the same as the right to be assured?

Yes. The Act speaks of being assured access to a variety of goods at competitive prices; textbooks often call it the right to choose.