Defective water

Defective water

From Kompas

I have been a consumer of Oasis drinking water for the past four years. Every week the company delivers a new bottle to our house in Pejompongan, Central Jakarta, and takes the empty one.

On Thursday, Aug. 24, 1995 we wanted to place a newly delivered bottle into the dispenser. But, I was alarmed to notice that the water in the new bottle looked greenish. I immediately rang 324 743 to report the matter, and hoped that they would change the bottle.

The person who answered my call asked me a number of questions that were not quite understandable. I insisted on the need to change the bottle, and finally the person agreed to deliver a new one two days later on Aug. 26, 1995. Later on in the day I called the company again to insure that they would change the bottle on Saturday. Again I was asked various irritating questions. They then agreed to deliver the new bottle a day earlier, on Friday, Aug. 25.

However, they did not keep their word, neither on Friday nor on Saturday. They brought me a new bottle the following week, on Tuesday, Aug. 29, not as a substitute for the defective water, but as a new purchase. I obviously refused to sign the bill.

One of the questions the staff asked me on the phone was whether I had kept the sealed bottle too long. Well, such a question was irrelevant. Since there is no expiry date appearing on the bottle, how does the consumer know if the water is no longer drinkable?

C. JUDHABRAHMA

Jakarta