CCPA takes action against 27 restaurants for collecting service charge from...

Key Highlights

• According to an official statement by the Department of Consumer Affairs, the CCPA has taken “suo motu cognizance against 27 restaurants located across the country for violation of consumer rights and adoption of unfair trade practices under Section 2(47) of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, relating to the mandatory levy of service charge”.
• Investigations revealed that several restaurants, including Café Blue Bottle, Patna, and China Gate Restaurant Pvt Ltd (Bora Bora), Mumbai, were automatically levying a 10 per cent service charge by default.
• This is a clear violation of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 and the CCPA Guidelines, which have now been upheld by the High Court of Delhi.
• The action was initiated based on complaints received on the National Consumer Helpline (NCH), supported by invoices clearly reflecting the default addition of the service charge.
• The CCPA said that a detailed investigation established that such practices amount to Unfair Trade Practice under Section 2(47) of the Act.