"Confirm Shaming": Rapido Fined Rs 10 Lakh For Unfair Pricing Tactics

The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has imposed a fine of Rs 10 lakh on ride-hailing platform Rapido's operating company for prompting consumers to pay extra before the ride is even confirmed. 

Roppen Transportation Services Private Limited, which operates Rapido, has been fined after investigations substantiated allegations regarding misleading advertisements, unfair business practices, unfair contracts, and the use of 'dark patterns', such as prompting customers to pay extra before the ride is even confirmed.

"This action follows a comprehensive investigation conducted by the CCPA into the cab and bike-taxi aggregator platform sector operating in India. The investigation aimed to examine practices related to pre-ride tipping and dynamic pricing," said Nidhi Khare, Secretary of Consumer Affairs and Chief Commissioner of the CCPA, along with Commissioner Anupam Mishra.

"During the scrutiny of various platforms, the CCPA found that the Rapido app displayed messages during the booking process-such as 'Higher fare increases the likelihood of getting a ride' and 'Captains are not accepting rides at Rs 60...try adding +10, +20, or +30'-to influence user behaviour," he added. 

The investigation revealed that Rapido's algorithm initially displays a fare to the customer, but after the customer books the ride at that rate, it asks them to pay a higher amount.

The CCPA observed that such business practices mislead customers into believing they must pay more to secure a ride quickly, even though they have already booked it and there is little scope for negotiation in such instances.

This tactic was classified as "confirm shaming," which constitutes a "dark pattern" under the 'Guidelines for Prevention and Regulation of Dark Patterns, 2023.' This is because it creates a sense of urgency and instils a fear of losing the ride if the higher amount is not paid.

The colour-coded pricing slider was identified as another "dark pattern." The CCPA also examined Rapido's "Set your price" slider and found that the slider was colour-coded to influence the customer's decision regarding the fare.

"Increasing the price displayed a 'higher chance of getting a ride' indicator in green. Lowering the price triggered a warning in red or orange. The slider offered more scope for increasing the price than for lowering it," a release issued by the Department of Consumer Affairs read. 

The CCPA identified this as a second type of 'dark pattern', specifically 'Interface Interference', because the interface design visually nudged customers to pay more, regardless of the accompanying text.

The CCPA observed that a tip is generally a voluntary payment made after the service is rendered and should not be presented as a condition for providing the service. Citing the 'Motor Vehicle Aggregator Guidelines, 2025' in its order, the CCPA stated that the tipping feature should only be available after the ride is completed, rather than at the time of booking or during the ride.

Rapido had argued that tipping is voluntary, its matching algorithm remains unaffected by whether a customer pays an additional amount, and these prompts essentially mirror real-time interactions similar to offline conversations between the customer and the driver.

The CCPA has previously issued notices to platforms such as Uber, Ola, Rapido, and Namma Yatri. Investigations regarding Uber and Ola in this matter are currently ongoing.