From caveat emptor to caveat venditor; product liability under Chapter VI
LUG-101 Law of Torts including Motor Vehicle Accident and Consumer Protection Act, Unit IV: Shift from caveat emptor to caveat venditor. · LLB · 60 min
The maxim caveat emptor, its statement in s. 16 of the Sale of Goods Act 1930 and its exceptions; why it declined in a market of mass-produced, packaged and advertised goods; the rise of caveat venditor through implied conditions, Donoghue v. Stevenson, standards legislation and consumer law; and the product liability regime of Chapter VI of the Consumer Protection Act 2019 (ss. 82-87: the action, liability of the product manufacturer, service provider and seller, and the exceptions). It answers the questions on caveat emptor (2019-20, 2024-25), the shift to caveat venditor (2022-23, 2025-26) and product liability (2023-24).
Objectives
- Define caveat emptor and state its exceptions under ss. 15-17 of the Sale of Goods Act 1930.
- Explain the reasons for the decline of caveat emptor and the meaning of caveat venditor.
- Show how tort (Donoghue v. Stevenson), sale-of-goods law, standards laws and the Consumer Protection Act shifted the risk to the seller.
- Analyse the definitions and the liability of the product manufacturer, service provider and seller under ss. 82-86.
- Apply the exceptions in s. 87 to problem facts.
Slides
- Caveat emptor: meaning and origin
- The rule in Indian law: s. 16 Sale of Goods Act 1930 and its exceptions
- Why caveat emptor declined
- Caveat venditor: let the seller beware
- Caveat emptor and caveat venditor compared
- The tort root: Donoghue v. Stevenson
- Product liability: the definitions
- The action and the liability of the product manufacturer: ss. 82-84
- Product service provider and product seller: ss. 85-86
- Exceptions: s. 87
- Product liability in India before and after 2019
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