Business and Dealings

Q: A person wishes to purchase a stove on credit from Makro (for example). The cash price of the stove is R5000. However, Makro says that if you wish to purchase it on credit, there will be a certain percentage interest rate. Hence purchasing it on credit will cost R5800 over 20 months at R290 per month. Makro says that the installment will NOT fluctuate during the months. Every month it will certainly remain at R290 till it's fully paid. When he purchased it, he ignored completely what they had to say about the 'interest rate', and his intention was that they are merely changing the price of the stove and just making more profit on him since he's buying it on credit. Is he guilty of ribaa in the above mentioned case?

Q: We have been told that if a person somehow gets ribaa money in his possession, he may get rid of it by giving it out in charity without the intention of receiving any reward. My question is: When giving this haraam money out in charity, is it permitted for him to hope for reward due to the fact that he is cleansing his wealth from haraam ribaa money, and not due to the fact that he's giving charity?

Q: I want to pursue general insurance course and work in Muslim countries like Saudi Arab, Dubai, Oman, Kuwait. Is it Halal to pursue and work in insurance co, in Muslims countries? I don't pursue Life insurance because I know it is haraam. I want to know about general insurance because there is many insurance companies in Arab countries owned and operating by Arab Muslims. If it is haraam then how is it allowed in Arab countries?

Q: Is full comprehensive insurance for motor vehicles allowed?

Q: About 2 years ago a purchased a cellphone from a store that offers an extra warranty which I had taken out that says they will provide you with a new phone if something happens. The warranty covers accidental water damage and screen cracks etc. There is some terms and conditions that basically say that if it was intentional/deliberate then that would not be covered. One day whilst using the phone I thought some dirt/napaak might have gotten onto the phone, so i took some water in my hands and put it over the phone. Regrettably the phone had gotten water damaged and I had taken it in to the store to get it fixed/exchanged. When I took it in to the store, they did not ask how or when it happen but rather took my personal details and a week later gave me a replacement phone. Of course, my main intention was to just clean the phone, but unfortunately it had gotten damaged.

1. Is the replacement phone they gave me ok for me to use? I ask since the phone had broken through my own wrong doing even though not deliberate and they did not ask anything about it

2. Did any of the work i did for work purposes on the phone become wrong for me to do?

3. Coincidentally after a couple of months the replacement phone they had given me fell in the rain and yet again I went to them. This time they asked how it happened etc and I explained to them it fell in the rain and they gave me another replacement phone again. Is this phone also OK for me to use since the first one (not original, first replacement) had to be given in?

4. Can I sell this second replacement phone and use the money from it?

Q: I am an electrical engineer working in a private company but my project is going to end very soon my job is insecure. I am also govt. Regt. A class Contractor of electrical works. Means I am eligible to take contracts but the problem is I have to give bribe to government officers 1 sometime for getting tender 2 every time for getting my bills passed (getting money after contract completed). Please tell me is it allowed in this condition when giving bribe is necessary and there is no other way of getting our right for both conditions.

Q: Can a Muslim business sell un-halaal products (meat etc.)? The business is located in a non-muslim community.

Q: Will it be correct to pay taxes and duties imposed by govt. in India (such as income tax, sales tax, service tax, dutis on commodities etc.) from interest given automatically on ordinary saving accounts by the banks in India? Particularly where a bank account is compulsorily required.

Q: There is a certain car tracker company that charges an installation fee of R1400. Thereafter, they charge a monthly fee of R120. If one’s car gets stolen and the company cannot recover it, they will give him the amount that his car is valued at in cash. However, if the car is recovered later on, one will have to return all the money that one received from them within 14 days. If one does not return the money within 14 days, then for each day that passes thereafter, interest will be charged. Is it permissible to take out such a contract?

Q: I have some question related to contract related to property/plot/house purchasing and selling. Kindly guide me from the perspective of Hanafi Madhab on the matter.

Detail and questions are described below.

In our country we have a Real Estate Company, its business model is that they acquire huge area of land in an area where they build city infrastructure/facilities on them and then sell plots and sell houses built by them in that area to customers.

The buyer signs a contract with this real estate company to book a plot of land or to book a house which the real estate agent builds for the buyer.

Based on the contract the buyer pays an initial non refundable booking fee to the real estate company and starts paying in instalment an amount to the real estate company laid down in the contract on intervals for example instalment amount every 3 months for 3 years.

During the contract there is no indication of the allotted location of the place where the House or plot of land will be to the buyer. The real estate company announces the general area after the contract has been signed and allocates the plot numbers which is then distributed randomly to the buyers. (The buyer gets the area of plot of land or house based on the contract.)

The real estate company allows the buyer who signed a contract with them, for the area of plot or house, to transfer the contract to another person. This second buyer then pays the remaining installments to the real estate company in case there are remaining installments to be paid to the real estate company.

1. Can a person sign into a contract with the real estate company for a plot of land or a house to be built by the company based on the details above?

2. In case it is haram or Makrooh to sign into such a contract and a person has already signed it can the person sell this contract to another person
with or without a profit ? And what should the person do to atone for the mistake?

3. Can a person sell the unknown plot/house to another person by transferring the contract for the unknown plot/house without a profit or with profit based on the market value?

4. If a person had the intention of not selling the unknown plot/house to another person and then due to an unforeseen financial reasons wants to sell the unknown plot/house to another person can he do that without a profit or with profit based on market value?

5. After signing a contract with a real estate company for a house I have heard from people that the real estate company has forcefully grabbed some land from individuals. And I have also read about government claims on some of their land. Based on the above information kindly advise if i shall also be responsible for this land grab in front of Allah ? And how to atone for this mistake. I am willing to loose the amount paid till now to the real estate company if this is the ruling for this case.

6. The House is not in my possession yet and I am still paying the installments based on the contract. With this knowledge is it advisable to sell this contract for the house to someone else without a profit or with profit based on market value ?

In case there are no issues with the real estate company I some queries below.

7. Once the plot/house has been allocated to the buyer in the contract with the real estate company, can the buyer transfer the contract to another person without a profit or with profit based on market value in the case where the possession of the plot/house has not yet been given by the real estate company to the original buyer ?

8. In the case if the original buyer has paid all the installments in the contract to the real estate company for the plot/house and possession of the plot/house has not been given to this original buyer, during this period can the original buyer sell the contract to another person without profit or with profit based on the market value?

9. In case the original buyer is in financial difficulty and didn't intend to sell the plot/house contract to another person and has paid all the installments to the real estate company. The possession has not been given to this original buyer by the real estate company yet. Can the original buyer sell the contract to another person without profit or  for a plot of landwith profit based on market value?