TAIT sets trading guidelines for Mumbai's channel partners

In order to regulate the increasing discrepancies related to
credit and payment policies in the dealer community, Mumbai-based Trade
Association of Information Technology (TAIT) issued a memorandum. This step has
been taken to cope with the reduction of credit limit to 14 days by national
distributors.

As per the new rule formed by TAIT, dealers can get a credit
period of maximum 21 days and the latter have to issue a post-dated cheque for
the purchase within seven days of delivery of goods. They can collect these
cheques on any working day after that.

Umang Mehta, Spokesperson, TAIT said, "Distributors in
Mumbai spend a good amount in commuting to the dealer's office for collecting
cheques. Our new policy will help them save on this expense."

TAIT has also decided upon some monetary fines for partner's
whose cheques are dishonored. The penalty will be decided upon the number of
times the cheque bounces back. If the cheque of any dealer bounces for more than
three times, then the association will boycott the dealer and will inform the
other partners about the same.

About payment dishonorment, Umang said, "Recently a
channel partner, who was dealing with some dealer with the Lamington road got a
cheque, which bounced back and he faced a loss of around Rs 50,000 to Rs 60,000.
Besides this, since last 15 to 20 days, we had been receiving some complaints
from other partners facing similar problems from the Lamington Road dealers.
This is why we have employed this policy."

Apart from the regulation on credit period and payment
policies, TAIT had decided also upon a code of conduct for warranty and Dead On
Arrival (DOA) products. Umang said, "Apart from TAIT members, there were 40
non-members, who have given mutual consent to our formulated policies."

He added, "We think that the regulations, which we have
formed may be beneficial to the other associations as well and hence are
forwarding our proposal to other IT bodies across the country."

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