Interior firm to pay Rs 4.25L over Hyderabad flat design mismatch

Hyderabad: A consumer commission has directed Interior Company by Square Yards and its associated entities to pay Rs 4.25 lakh to a woman who complained that the interiors of her flat did not match the designs shown to her before the project began.

The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission-1 found that the company failed to explain the difference between the approved 3D designs and the production drawings used for executing the work.

Hyderabad woman pays over Rs 12 lakh for flat interiors

The woman, Manaswini Gorthi, hired Interior Company by Square Yards and its associated entities for interiors of her residential flat in Secunderabad.

Initially, the company provided 3D designs. After approval, she was asked to pay around Rs 12.75 lakh.

On December 30, 2023, she paid Rs 6.10 lakh. Again, on March 8, 2024, she paid Rs 6,35,533. The deadline for the project was March 3, 2024.

After installation of the interiors, the woman found that the designs were not in line with the approved ones.

The company declared production complete on October 30, 2024; however, according to the woman, there were variations in colours, cabinet fittings, kitchen units, rolling shutters, and other components.

Even after issuing a legal notice over the variations on January 20, 2025, the company allegedly failed to resolve the issue.

Vexed by the company, the woman filed a case before the consumer commission under Section 35 of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019.

Company blames changes in customer requirements

Rejecting the allegations, the company maintained that the work had been completed based on the approved production drawings.

On the delay, the company said it was due to changes requested by the customer during the project.

After listening to both sides, the commission found that the woman had accepted the 3D designs before making substantial payments. However, the company could not produce sufficient documents to show that it had clearly explained the limitations of those designs.

In particular, there was no convincing evidence that the customer had been told beforehand that the 3D images were only for illustration and that the actual interior work would be carried out according to separate production drawings.

The commission also pointed out that the company brought up this distinction only after the customer complained about the differences.

Based on these findings, the commission, headed by President B Uma Venkata Subba Lakshmi, with Members C Lakshmi Prasanna and B Raji Reddy, ordered the company and its associates to pay a total of Rs 4.25 lakh within 45 days.

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