New Delhi, September 15: The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has imposed a ₹10 lakh penalty on Roppen Transportation Services Private Limited, which operates Rapido, for misleading advertisements, unfair trade practices, an unfair contract and dark patterns that prompted riders to pay more before their rides were confirmed.
The action followed a sector-wide examination of cab and bike-taxi aggregator platforms in India over practices related to pre-ride tipping and dynamic pricing. During the review, the CCPA found Rapido displaying prompts such as “Higher the price, higher the chance of getting a ride” and “Captains aren’t accepting at ₹60. Try adding +10, +20, +30” while bookings were still being processed.
The authority said Rapido initially quoted a fare and, after the rider booked at that price, prompted them to pay more, claiming captains were not accepting the original fare. It held that the practice created a sense of urgency and fear of losing the ride and amounted to “Confirm Shaming”, a dark pattern under the 2023 guidelines.
The CCPA also flagged Rapido’s “Set your price” slider as “Interface Interference”. Increasing the fare displayed “higher chance of getting a ride” in green, while lowering it triggered a red or orange warning. The slider also offered more room to increase than decrease the price, which the authority said visually steered riders towards paying more.
The authority further said an advance payment should not be presented as a tip, noting that tipping is ordinarily voluntary and made after a service is provided. It cited the Motor Vehicle Aggregator Guidelines, 2025, which require tipping features to be available only after a ride is completed. The CCPA also said Rapido had not provided data to substantiate its claim that paying more increased the chances of getting a ride.
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