CCPA issues notice to Uber over unethical 'advance tip' feature

Consumer Affairs Minister Prahlad Joshi says tipping must be voluntary and post-service; Uber's advance tip feature nudges users to pay before ride begins

The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has issued a notice to ride-hailing platform Uber seeking an explanation over its “advance tip” feature, Prahlad Joshi, Union Minister for Consumer Affairs, said in a post on X on Wednesday.

 

The minister called the feature “unethical and exploitative”, saying that such actions fall under unfair trade practices.

 

Stating that tipping was a voluntary gesture offered post the service, rather than being a pre-service expectation, the minister wrote, “The practice of ‘advance tip’ is deeply concerning. Forcing or nudging users to pay a tip in advance, for faster service, is unethical and exploitative. Such actions fall under unfair trade practices. Tip is given as a token of appreciation, not as a matter of right, after the service.”

 

The “advance tip” feature nudges users to pay an additional amount prior to the journey for faster ride confirmations and pickups.

 

The minister said that he had earlier asked the authority concerned to look into the issue.

 

“Taking cognisance of this, I had asked CCPA to look into it, and today, CCPA has issued a notice to Uber in this regard, seeking explanation from the platform,” he said.

 

Uber did not immediately respond to queries sent via email.

 

 

However, this is not the first time a notice has been sent to Uber by the consumer protection authority.

 

In January this year, the CCPA issued notices to cab aggregators Uber and Ola for allegedly charging different rates to consumers for identical routes based on their mobile phone operating systems. Both platforms, though, had denied the allegation, saying that they follow a uniform pricing policy and don’t differentiate between consumers using iPhone or Android phones.