The provision of services of inadequate quality. Types of services. Service Quality Assessment

When we act as a consumer, then, unfortunately, there is a great risk not only of acquiring low-quality goods, but also of receiving services whose quality leaves much to be desired. Every day we get a huge variety of services that affect all areas of our lives. Fortunately, the legislation related to the protection of consumer rights allows us not only to assess the quality of services received, but also to receive protection in the event that we encounter unscrupulous performers, as well as issue a refund.

What types of services are related to the consumer sector?

In essence, this is any service that an organization provides (whether it is commercial in nature or not) or an individual entrepreneur, and which is aimed at meeting the needs of a person of a personal, family or other nature.

However, depending on the prevalence and demand there is a generally accepted classification of services. The most common include services:

• Medical nature.
• For the provision of telephone communications.
• On the implementation of transportation, including passenger and freight.
• In the field of education.
• Legal nature.
• Represented by housing and communal services.
• To provide banking services.
• In the field of catering.
• For the implementation of car repair, as well as the provision of parking spaces.
• In the field of tourism.
• Postal character.
• On the implementation of insurance.
• Electronic services.

Each of the species, of course, has its own specific characteristics. In general cases, it is defined by relevant regulations. However, the mechanism by which consumer rights are realized, as well as the very procedure for the provision of services, are general in nature.

It should be noted that the service takes place only if it is provided on a reimbursable basis.

What is the difference between the provision of services from the performance of work

In essence, the law does not provide a clear distinction between the concepts of “work” and “service”.

But this border still exists, and it is determined on the basis of commercial practice and the customs of business relations.

In our opinion, the main difference between services and work is the materiality of the final result. If in the course of the activity some object or object was generated, then we are most likely talking about the process of performing the work. An example is the manufacture of furniture, the construction of a property, the sewing of clothing.

In the same case, if we are talking about less material things, about actions that are performed in our favor, the results of which are not so tangible, then in this case it is most likely a service. An example is the training of a certain specialty, electronic services or the representation of our interests in the court.

But nevertheless, the law mentions both service and work in a common, uniform context. That is, if there is an unintentional substitution of the concepts of services and work, then this will not have a significant impact on the essence of the matter during the trial.

It turns out that the difference between the concepts of service and work is rather formal in nature.

Who provides the services?

As we noted earlier, household services can be provided by organizations that specialize in the implementation of services of just such a plan, or by individual entrepreneurs.In special cases, such organizations must have special licenses to provide a specific type of service. An example would be the provision of medical services.

The service that a simple citizen provides to another person, even if there is a civil law contract, cannot fall within the scope of consumer protection. A similar situation occurs when the recipient of the service is a commercial organization.

What can be the terms of service?

The law fixes three types of term during which services can be performed:

• The term, which is provided for and established by regulatory acts. Such terms are legislative in nature, and the person who provides the services does not have the right to exceed them even if there is a separate agreement with his customer.
• Contractual term. Such a period takes place if a fixed term is not established by law.
• A term having a shorter duration than that established by law. Such a period may be established in the event of a mutual agreement between the consumer of the service and its executor.

If these terms are not observed, the customer has the right to demand a recalculation for the service of inadequate quality.

The first type of variety of terms is rather rare, since the legislative norms governing the process of rendering various types of services are often silent on the terms during which the services must be performed.

The contractual type of terms is the most common type. This period must be previously agreed with the customer services, and then recorded in the contract concluded for the provision of services. A huge number of reasons can influence the length of the execution period, ranging from the general employment of the contractor to the personal requests of the customer. Moreover, in this case, the customer of the service is not obliged by default to accept the period that the contractor puts forward, but can actively participate in the discussion of its duration. Such performers may be workers in the field of housing and communal services. Moreover, the inadequate quality of housing services is observed quite often.

Cases without specifying deadlines

There are times when an agreement was concluded without specifying a specific deadline. In such cases, you can take for it a period that is sufficient for the implementation of services of a similar plan. The consumer can obtain such information from both the direct contractor and his competitor.

But nevertheless, in order not to get into an unpleasant situation, it is worth making sure that the term for the service is fixed in the contract, and that it has a reasonable duration, which will be commensurate with the volume and complexity of the service provided.

What violations can arise in the process of providing a service?

As a rule, the consumer has two main complaints against the person who provides the service to him:

1. Untimely provision of services.
2. The provision of services of inadequate quality.

As we have already agreed, in the contract for the provision of services should be fixed the term for their provision. Violations in terms of execution can be expressed in the following:

• The service is not delivered on time. That is, for its rendering, the contractor requires a period longer than that specified in the concluded contract.
• Untimely start of the service delivery process.
• Violation of the terms of an intermediate nature. In this case, violation of the deadlines for the start of the provision of services, or violation of the deadlines for the end of the service. This type of violation is often found if the services provided are systematic or are carried out in stages.

The consumer has the right to make a claim and demand a refund regarding violation of the deadlines in the event that:

1. At the time of the presentation of the claim, the provision of the service is in progress, that is, either it has not yet begun at all or has not yet been completed.
2. The process of providing the service is completed, or the contractor has just started to provide this service. In other words, this clause can be explained as follows: what the consume has discovered a violation of the deadlines for the service ex post facto does not relieve the contractor of responsibility for the provision of low-quality services.

It should be noted that when making a claim, the consumer will not be able to exercise all his rights, their circle should still be limited by common sense.

It is important to understand this nuance: if there is a violation of the deadlines due to the fact that the contractor eliminates the quality defects of the service, then this violation is not recognized as full. The maximum that the customer can receive for his claim in this case is the payment of a penalty.

Another criterion for the provision of services of inadequate quality is their non-compliance with the goals that were agreed by the customer, as well as the non-compliance of the result of the service with standards that are generally accepted.

List of disadvantages of the service

The list of shortcomings of the service provided can be quite extensive, therefore, the consumer himself determines the indicators that the service was rendered poorly, and he does this, based on his personal life experience.

The main criteria for assessing the quality of services include the following:

• The contractor did not achieve the goals that the consumer was striving for when ordering a particular service.
• The contractor rendered the service unprofessionally, for example, in violation of established technologies.
• In the process of providing the service, the contractor used materials or tools that are unsuitable for this.
• Due to the carelessness or incompetence of the contractor in the process of providing services to the property or health of the customer, any harm was done.
• The service was provided in a high-quality and timely manner, but its result differs from that which was requested by the customer.

Who should I file a claim with?

The consumer, first of all, with all claims for the provision of services of inadequate quality and the timing of the services should contact the contractor directly. In the event that the contractor refuses the applicant to satisfy the claim, the next instance that can be appealed to is the court. You can apply to the court in person, through a lawyer who has the appropriate power of attorney, or by contacting the consumer protection committee first. Such committees can be organized both within the municipality and can be a separate public organization. Such instances have the right to file claims with the judiciary on the basis of a consumer appeal.

Dates for which the consumer can contact the contractor with the requirements

The consumer of services has the right to contact the contractor with the requirement to assess the quality of services:

• Prior to the initiation of the service execution process, if there is a significant violation of the deadline for the start of the service.
• Directly in the process of performing the service, if it becomes obvious to the consumer that the contractor does not have time to provide the service on time, or its result will be deliberately poor-quality.
• At the time of acceptance of the results.
• During the warranty period, if any.
• Within two years from the date of acceptance of the result of the service in the event that the warranty period is less than two years, or not established at all. However, in this case, the consumer is obliged to prove the fact that a shortage of the service arose before it was accepted by him.

Correctly draw up and file a claim

A claim that the services are rendered in inadequate quality or not on time should only be made in writing. Otherwise, if a dispute arises with the performer, the resolution of which will have to go to court, the consumer will not have evidence that confirms that he had any claim at all.

Often there are situations when the customer discovers the dishonesty of the contractor immediately at the time of acceptance of the result of the service. That is, the customer is simply confronted with the fact that the result of the service has just such a low-quality look. In such cases, not every consumer can immediately file a claim on the spot, and in the proper form. Consumer protection experts advise in case of a similar situation to refuse to accept the results of services, citing a desire to hold a specialist accountable, or a desire to make a claim for services of inadequate quality (a sample is presented below).

The following information must be indicated in the claim:

1. Full details of the person who acts as a performer.
2. Complete information about the consumer, indicating without fail his F. I. O., as well as contact details.
3. The date the consumer applied for the service.
4. Information about the concluded contract, if any (indicating its number and date of conclusion).
5. A full description of what exactly, according to the consumer, is the poor quality of the service.
6. Requirements, the satisfaction of which is pursued by the consumer. Moreover, the requirements must have an exact wording, which cannot be interpreted ambiguously.
7. Signature of claimant, date of claim.

After this, the claim can be presented to the contractor for signing on acceptance of it for consideration, and in the event that the contractor refuses to accept the claim, it should be sent by registered mail with acknowledgment of receipt.

In the event that the contractor refuses to satisfy the claim for the provision of services of inadequate quality, the customer has the full right to apply to the court to resolve the situation.

And finally, consider another type of service - medical. For high-quality performance of services in this area, they have been fighting for many years. Paid medical services are provided to patients at the expense of personal funds of citizens, funds of employers and other funds on the basis of contracts, including voluntary medical insurance contracts. When providing paid medical services, the procedures for providing medical care must also be followed. And, as in the consideration of non-performance of services in other areas, liability is provided for by the Russian Criminal Code for the provision of inadequate quality medical services.