New Delhi, September 16: Riders using Rapido were allegedly being encouraged to increase the amount they offered for a ride even before their bookings were confirmed, prompting the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) to take regulatory action against the company.
The consumer watchdog has imposed a penalty of ₹10 lakh on Roppen Transportation Services Private Limited, the company operating the Rapido ride-hailing platform, citing misleading advertisements, unfair trade practices, an unfair contract and the use of dark patterns in its booking interface.
The action followed a wider examination by the CCPA into the practices adopted by cab and bike-taxi aggregator platforms in India. The review particularly looked at mechanisms involving pre-ride tipping and dynamic pricing.
During its assessment, the authority found that Rapido’s app displayed messages encouraging riders to offer a higher amount while their ride requests were still being processed. The prompts included suggestions that paying more could increase the likelihood of securing a ride, as well as messages asking users to add amounts such as ₹10, ₹20 or ₹30 when captains were reportedly not accepting the initially displayed fare.
The CCPA said the platform would first show a fare to the rider, after which the rider could proceed with the booking. However, according to the authority, users were subsequently encouraged to increase the amount on the premise that drivers were not accepting the original price.
The regulator said this could create the impression that paying an additional amount would improve the chances of getting a ride, particularly after the consumer had already proceeded with the booking at the initially quoted fare.
The authority classified the practice as “Confirm Shaming”, a type of dark pattern covered under the Guidelines for Prevention and Regulation of Dark Patterns, 2023. According to the CCPA, the manner in which the prompts were presented could create a sense of urgency or concern that refusing to pay more might result in the rider losing the opportunity to secure the ride.
The CCPA also examined Rapido’s “Set your price” feature, which allows users to adjust the amount they are willing to offer for a ride. The authority raised concerns over the colour-based presentation of the fare adjustment interface.
According to the regulator, increasing the proposed fare was accompanied by a green indication suggesting a greater likelihood of getting a ride, while reducing the amount resulted in red or orange warnings. The CCPA also observed that the design of the slider provided comparatively more space for increasing the fare than reducing it.
The authority said such interface design could influence consumers towards offering a higher amount and categorised the practice as “Interface Interference”, another form of dark pattern.
The CCPA’s action is part of its broader scrutiny of consumer-facing practices in the app-based transportation sector. The authority said the objective of the examination was to ensure that consumers are not influenced through misleading representations or interface designs when making decisions during the ride-booking process.
The regulator, headed by Chief Commissioner Nidhi Khare and Commissioner Anupam Mishra, has directed the company to discontinue practices that encourage consumers to pay more through such prompts and to comply with the applicable consumer-protection and dark-pattern regulations.
