E-commerce firms may soon be required to issue refunds on returned items within 14 days

E-commerce companies will have to protect the identifiable information of their customers and conclude all refunds on returned items in 14 days, says the draft guidelines on e-commerce for consumer protection issued by the Ministry of Consumer Affairs on August 5.

The draft guidelines mandate companies like Amazon and Flipkart to ensure that the data collection, storage and usage comply with provisions of the Information Technology (Amendment) Act, 2008.

It also mandates that the promoter, as well as the key management of the company, must not have been convicted of any criminal offence punishable with imprisonment in the last five years.

The ministry has invited views from the stakeholders on the draft guidelines by September 16.

As per the guidelines, the companies have also been asked to ensure that they disclose the details about the sellers supplying the goods and services including the identity of their business, among other things.

These guidelines apply to business to consumer e-commerce companies including goods and services.