Bhavish Aggarwal's Ola Electric slapped with show cause notice from CCPA; Here's why

The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has issued a Show Cause Notice to Bengaluru-based Ola Electric Mobility Ltd for alleged violations of consumer rights, misleading advertisements, and unfair trade practices. 

The authority has given the company 15 days to respond to the notice.

In response, Ola Electric has said that it intends to reply within the specified timeframe, providing the necessary supporting documents to address the allegations.

Ola Electric also said that the notice has no impact on financial, operational or other activities of the company. Additionally, the show cause notice does not impose any penalties or financial fines, it said.

CEO Bhavish Aggarwal Vs comedian Kunal Kamra

The notice comes shortly after CEO Bhavish Aggarwal had a heated exchange with comedian Kunal Kamra on X (formerly Twitter).

The verbal battle began when Kamra criticized the service quality of Ola Electric's S1 series scooters. He shared a photo of several Ola scooters gathering dust at a dealership, seemingly awaiting repairs.

Do indian consumers have a voice?
Do they deserve this?
Two wheelers are many daily wage workers lifeline…@nitin_gadkari is this how Indians will get to using EV’s? @jagograhakjago any word?
Anyone who has an issue with OLA electric leave your story below tagging all… https://t.co/G2zdIs15wh pic.twitter.com/EhJmAzhCmt

— Kunal Kamra (@kunalkamra88) October 6, 2024

"Since you care so much...come and help us out! I’ll even pay more than you earned for this paid tweet or from your failed comedy career," Aggarwal responded.

Kamra later referred to Aggarwal as "arrogant, substandard, and a prick." He also challenged Aggarwal to offer refunds to any customers who purchased an Ola scooter in the last four months and were dissatisfied.

However, CEO Aggarwal dismissed Kamra’s challenge, stating that Ola already has support programs in place for customers facing delays.

"Comedian ban na sake, chaudhary banne chale. Do your research better next time," Aggarwal wrote in a separate post on X.

Surge in customer complaints

According to Busienss Toda, CCPA has taken cognisance of thousands of complaints against Ola Electric which are growing by the day.

The National Consumer Helpline, managed by the Department of Consumer Affairs, registered 10,644 complaints against Ola e-scooters between September 1, 2023, and August 30, 2024.

Of these, 3,389 complaints concern service delays, 1,899 relate to delays in the delivery of new vehicles, and 1,459 involve unfulfilled promises of services.

The show-cause notice issued to Ola Electric highlights a range of user complaints, including manufacturing defects, instances of second-hand vehicles being sold, partial or no refunds on booking cancellations, recurring defects despite servicing, overcharging, inaccurate invoices, and multiple issues with batteries and vehicle components. 

Nidhi Khare, Secretary of the Department of Consumer Affairs, confirmed the volume of complaints, stating, "The CCPA is investigating a large number of complaints about Ola Electric, primarily related to service inefficiencies. We expect the company to address these concerns promptly and resolve the issues affecting consumers."