Uber Fined Rs 28000 Driver overcharged Rs 27 from customer in India

It often happens with people that the driver charges more money for the cab or other ride. Recently, a similar case has come to light, in which the company had to pay a hefty fine for doing so. The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission of Chandigarh has imposed a fine of Rs 28,000 on Uber India, because their driver charged Rs 27 more from a customer for a ride in Chandigarh.

The commission Uber India was directed to refund the complainant Ritwik Garg Rs 27, which was overcharged, Rs 5,000 as compensation and Rs 3,000 as litigation costs. The commission said that “strict action is required to keep a check on such service providers who break their promises, assurances and commitments in a timely manner.” Apart from the compensation and litigation costs, the complainant will also have to deposit at least Rs 20,000 as compensation in the consumer legal aid account of the commission.

Ritwik Garg, a resident of Mandi Gobindgarh in Punjab, said that on September 19, 2022, he had booked a Moto Connect ride with Uber Cab Service through the Uber app from Sector 21A, Chandigarh to Modern Housing Complex Sector 13, Chandigarh.

The name of the cab driver for the ride was Kailash and the fare was shown as around Rs 53 at the time of booking, but the driver charged Rs 80 at the end of the ride. Garg said that he raised the matter with Uber India by sending a legal notice on September 22, 2022 and then by mail but his complaint was not resolved. Later the complaint was escalated and the commission, while hearing the case, after looking at the record, said that it is quite clear that Uber India has come to notice that the complaining user was overcharged by Rs 27, but no investigation report was placed on record by Uber India to take action against the driver in this matter.

The Commission advises that before taking the service of the driver of such a vehicle, it is the responsibility of Uber India to know whether his behavior is normal and not aggressive. Uber India should provide some training to such drivers or make some rules. It was further said that the complainant or any other person does not know the complexity of the contract between Uber and its drivers. The Commission said that whenever a person avails an online service through a well-known or branded company, he connects with that branded company and not with the partner behind the branded service provider.