Flipkart Announces Support for Sellers Amid COVID-19 Crisis!

Flipkart will bear its sellers’ insurance premium expenses of COVID insurance

E-Com giant Flipkart has announced impactful measures for sellers amid the Covid-19 crisis. The company has unveiled its initiative to extend its support to lakhs of MSMEs, artisans, small-scale sellers, weavers, and handicraft partners to sail through in the ongoing time of the COVID-19 pandemic by waving off various fees.

The company has announced to waive off its storage feeds to curb the impact that any seller may have on their inventory fulfilled through Flipkart’s fulfillment centers. The company has waved off the cancellation fee till May 31, 2021, for orders canceled due to the extended lockdowns in various parts of the country.

Also, Flipkart has agreed to bear a 100% premium of COVID insurance extended to all sellers covering benefits like hospitalization and consultation between Rs 50,000 to Rs. 3 Lakhs.

Jagjeet Harode, Senior Director and Head - Marketplace, Flipkart, in his official statement, said,” It is our constant effort to support our seller partners who face immense operational challenges as a result of the pandemic. As a democratic marketplace, we want to ensure that our lakhs of seller partners can continue operations and keep the economic engine running.”

The initiatives have been offered to assist sellers in this challenging pandemic time and help them to keep their businesses active, he added.

The company has launched its window for the Seller Protection Fund (SPF) initiative to claim SPF on returned products - from the regular 14 days to now 30 days. Also, Flipkart will make necessary changes in its policy and performance metrics for its sellers to ensure that their business growth doesn’t get impacted by the lockdowns imposed in different parts of the country.

The rising number of COVID-19 cases in the second wave in India has put high pressure on the healthcare infrastructure and created a situation of a medical emergency in the country. Due to this, many states have imposed lockdowns and curfews in their territories to break the chain of this deadly virus, impacting businesses and economic activities. However, most states have allowed e-commerce companies to carry on with their operations and deliver essential items, including food items and medicines across India.