Indecopi sanctions department store for canceling TV order, orders product delivery

A consumer in Puno, Peru, bought a 55-inch Samsung QLED television for S/329 through a department store's online platform, opting for in-store pickup. The next day, the store, Ripley S.A.C., canceled the order, citing a lack of stock, and issued a refund.

However, Peru's National Institute for the Defense of Competition and the Protection of Intellectual Property (Indecopi) has now sanctioned the store. The agency ruled that the cancellation violated the Consumer Protection and Defense Code, specifically the duty of suitability. Indecopi determined that the store's action unfairly dashed the customer's legitimate expectations of receiving the product under the agreed terms.

In its decision, the Indecopi commission in Puno upheld an initial reprimand against the company. More significantly, it ordered the store to fulfill the original sale. Ripley S.A.C. must now deliver the television to the consumer at the price initially agreed upon during the online purchase. The ruling reinforces the principle that businesses must honor completed sales transactions, barring specific legal exceptions.