The Maharashtra Real Estate Appellate Tribunal (MREAT) has issued a regulation stating that the home buyer's right to request reservation of a flat includes the right to withdraw such a request from the reservation.

On October 3, 2019, while hearing an appeal against a Maharashtra Real Estate Regulatory Authority ( MahaRERA), MREAT had directed Piramal Estate Pvt Ltd to pay a Thane couple Rs 5.6 lakh, which they had paid in 2019 towards the cost of a flat in Vaikunth cluster in Thane. The couple had cancelled the booking in May and sought a refund due to a medical emergency. MREAT, while stating that MahaRERA had passed the disputed order without proper application of mind and without a correct appreciation of facts noted that the clauses, relating to forfeiture of 10% of the price of flat or the amount paid till date whichever is lesser in case of withdrawal, in the request for reservation form was an unreasonable, unfair and one-sided condition, and was against the object and purpose of RERA.

MREAT members also observed that even though the claim of the refund was not governed by any specific provision of RERA, it could not be ignored that the objective of RERA was to protect customer interests.

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