Hyderabad: A consumer court here on Wednesday asked Ola Cabs to Rs 88,000 to a customer for charging exorbitant amount and not providing any air conditioning.
Apart from the aforementioned amount the company has also been directed to pay Rs 7,000 as costs of the hearing. The defendant has been asked to comply with the order within 45 days. The case dates back to October 2021, when the complainant, Jabez Samuel booked a cab and was left straded four hours.
Samuel and his wife later on boarded the cab, and found it to be untidy. Upon being requested to turn on the AC, the driver refused. In his complaint, Samuel said that the driver did not cooperate with them, asking them to get down after covering 5 kilometers.
The couple were handed a bill worth Rs 861. However, the complainant did not have to pay the driver, since he availed the Ola money cash credit service.
The complainant further told the court that the cab driver charged excess money, stating that it usually costs Rs 150-200 for a distance of 5 killometres. Following the incident, Samuel contacted Ola customer care to raise the issue with the authorities.
However, no action was taken by the authorities, and the complainant began receiving multiple calls asking him to pay the bill. Ola authorities harassed the man to make the payment, following which Samuel filed a case in the consumer forum.
Even after being served a notice, Ola cabs did not appear before the commission to contest the case. The commission has directed the company to refund the amount of Rs. 861 along with interest at 12% per annum from the date of the journey till realization.
