Consumer watchdog CCPA slaps Rs 10 lakh fine on Rapido for misleading ads
orders refunds to affected users
New Delhi: The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA), the country’s top consumer watchdog, has imposed a fine of Rs 10 lakh on bike-taxi platform Rapido for running misleading advertisements and engaging in unfair trade practices.
The penalty is a result of Rapido’s “Guaranteed Auto” and “AUTO IN 5 MIN OR GET Rs 50” campaigns, which were found to make unfulfilled promises to consumers, as reported by The New Indian Express on Thursday.
The CCPA’s investigation revealed that these promotional offers, which claimed users would receive a ride within five minutes or a Rs 50 compensation, were misleading. The regulator instructed Rapido to immediately discontinue the advertisements and ensure that users who were not compensated as promised are refunded in full.
“The opposite party shall ensure that any consumer who availed the “AUTO IN 5 MIN OR GET Rs 50″ offer and did not receive the promised Rs 50 compensation shall be reimbursed the said amount in full without any further delay or condition,” CCPA said.
The CCPA also noted that critical disclaimers, such as “up to Rs 50” and other terms and conditions, were buried in fine print or hidden under brief “T&C apply” notes, making them less visible to consumers.
The misleading advertisements ran for approximately 548 days across more than 120 cities in various regional languages. Between April 2023 and May 2024, the CCPA reportedly received 575 complaints against Rapido via the National Consumer Helpline (NCH). These complaints primarily concerned failed services, non-refund of paid amounts, overcharging, unfulfilled promises, and driver misconduct.
“It is necessary that the opposite party [Rapido] is directed to pay a penalty of Rs 10,00,000 for publishing misleading advertisement and unfair trade practice,” CCPA said.
The CCPA also criticised Rapido for failing to address consumer grievances on the NCH platform, despite the complaints being regularly shared with the company.
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Meghalaya: Interstate ATM theft racket busted, 6 arrested
Shillong (PTI): An interstate racket involved in ATM thefts across several states has been busted, with the arrest of six persons in connection with a break-in at an electronic banking outlet in Meghalaya's Ri-Bhoi district, police said on Wednesday.
The accused were allegedly involved in breaking into an ATM of the Meghalaya Cooperative Apex Bank on April 5, 2024, they said.
Three of the accused were arrested from Barpeta in Assam, while the remaining were apprehended from Haryana, police said.
Ri-Bhoi SP Giri Prasad M said a special police team was constituted to investigate the case.
"With coordinated efforts and assistance from Assam and Haryana Police, we were able to apprehend the accused involved in the ATM break-in," he told PTI.
The case was registered at Umiam police station under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
According to police, the gang used gas cutters to break open the ATM safe and fled with the cash within minutes.
"The group is part of a larger network involved in similar ATM thefts across different states. Further investigation is underway to dismantle the entire network," the SP added.
