Provident fund scheme is a consumer service, and delay in payment amounts to deficiency under consumer law.

A member of the Employees Provident Fund Scheme falls within the inclusive definition of consumer under the Consumer Protection Act, 1986, because the Act covers beneficiaries of services as well as those who directly hire them. The Provident Fund Scheme is a statutory welfare arrangement for which contributions and administrative charges are payable, and the services of administering the fund are rendered for the benefit of employees. On that basis, the scheme constitutes a service under the Act, and delay in payment of provident fund benefits amounts to deficiency in service. The complaint was therefore maintainable before the consumer fora.

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Issues: Whether a member of the Employees Provident Fund Scheme is a consumer and whether the services rendered under the Scheme amount to service under the Consumer Protection Act, 1986.

Analysis: The definition of consumer under the Act is wide and includes not only a person who hires or avails of services for consideration but also the beneficiary of such services. The definition of service is equally broad and is not confined to commercial services alone. The Provident Fund Scheme is a statutory scheme under which contributions and administrative charges are payable, the fund is administered for the benefit of employees, and the Commissioner performs statutory functions in running the scheme. The charges and benefits under the scheme are not free in the relevant sense, and the employee is the intended beneficiary of the services rendered under the scheme. Delay in payment of provident fund, therefore, falls within the concept of deficiency in service.

Conclusion: A member of the Employees Provident Fund Scheme is a consumer and the scheme constitutes a service under the Consumer Protection Act, 1986. The complaint was maintainable.

Final Conclusion: The Consumer Protection Act applies to the provident fund service rendered under the Scheme, and the challenge to the jurisdiction of the consumer fora fails.

Ratio Decidendi: A statutory welfare scheme administered for the benefit of a member, for which contributions and administrative charges are payable, constitutes a service, and the member or beneficiary falls within the inclusive definition of consumer under the Consumer Protection Act, 1986.

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