Uber was fined Rs. 28K for charging a customer an additional Rs. 27
Uber India Systems Pvt Ltd has incurred significant costs as a result of charging Rs 27 more than the rate, as the District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission has ordered it to reimburse a complaint for Rs 8,000 in compensation and legal fees.
Additionally, the Commission ordered the business to return Rs. 27 and pay Rs. 20,000 into the consumer legal assistance account that it manages.
In his complaint to the Commission, Ritvik Garg said that on September 19, 2022, he used the Uber app to arrange a trip. The journey was scheduled to depart from Chandigarh’s Sector 21A and arrive at the Modern Housing Complex. When the journey was scheduled, the fare of Rs 53 was shown. But the driver had charged him Rs 80 in accordance with his own policies.
On September 22, 2022, he sent Uber a legal notice bringing up the matter. He continued to send letters after that, but his complaint went unanswered.
In response, the opposing party (OP) claimed that Uber India Systems Pvt Ltd was a provider of technology services and that it only offered a smartphone app that served as a common platform for direct communication between driver partners and passengers, including the complainant, in order to facilitate the provision and use of taxi or transportation services. The other party does not act as a transportation carrier, provide transportation services, or handle passenger transportation in any capacity.
Following the arguments, the commission said that while it was evident from the record that the complainant had been overcharged by Rs 27, no inquiry report had been submitted by the opposing side to sanction the driver in question.
Therefore, we believe that a portion of the money paid by a consumer to the driver goes directly to the original poster. It is just not possible for the OP to escape responsibility by placing it on the driver. According to the commission, the owner of the car had a responsibility to ensure that the driver exhibited normal and non-aggressive conduct before hiring him.
OP must be forced to deposit at least Rs 20,000 as compensation in the consumer legal aid account of the Commission, in addition to the amounts payable to the complainant, in order to maintain control over such unruly service providers who break assurances, promises, and commitments at the most inconvenient times.
