Man seeks Sh20k compensation for buying ‘bad’ soda
A resident of Embu has moved to court to seek compensation for being sold a soda that had particles inside.
Mr Josphat Maina Karuoro sued the Nairobi Coca Cola bottlers Limited because the local shop owner refused to refund him.
In his court documents, he claims that the shop owner declined to give him a replacement of Fanta Orange or a refund of the Sh 30 purchase price and told ‘him to deal with the bottlers’.
He claims that Nairobi Coca Cola bottlers were negligent in the manufacturing, bottling and offering for sale a product which was unfit for human consumption.
IGNORED
He claims he notified the company of his intent to sue over the matter but they ignored him.
“Besides the compensation for loss and damage, I will also sue them for breach of my consumer rights as stipulated in the Kenyan Constitution,” Mr Karuoro said.
The incident occurred on November 10, 2012 at a kiosk in Ngara, Nairobi.
He moved to court in 2013. The company has not yet filed its responses to the suit.
He claimed that he had bought the soda to quench his thirst, but before the shop owner could open the bottle, he discovered that it contained a visible object.
He was therefore unable to have his drink and lost the money that he had used to buy the soda.
WHITE PARTICLES
Kiosk owner Charles Mwangi admits that Mr Karuroro had told him that the soda was contaminated by pointing out white particles inside the soda before he could open the bottle top.
Mr Mwangi had told the complainant that the soda was fit for consumption, but the latter insisted that it was not even though he paid for it while complaining.
The complainant is faulting the company for manufacturing and bottling the soda without due care and diligence as well as selling products unfit for human consumption.
He is also blaming them of failing to see the object in the bottle yet the same was visible from outside.
He is further accusing the company of failing to warn consumers about the alleged foreign object in the soda.
TRAUMATIZED
“Because of the incident Mr Karuoro was traumatized and he suffered psychologically at the instance of seeing the object, he therefore suffered loss as well as damages,” his lawyer said.
He wants to be compensated a total of Sh 20,030 which is inclusive of the price of the Soda and legal fees for the law firm which helped him prepare his case documents.
