A Mumbai lawyer won a litigation case against Uber after almost four years since she missed a flight owing to a delay caused by the cab service. A consumer court ruling in Mumbai ordered Uber India to pay Rs 20,000 fine to Kavita Sharma who has been fighting the case since 2018 after missing her flight due to the delay caused by the cab service, according to the Times of India report.
Of the total Rs 20,000 compensation amount, half is meant for causing the passenger mental stress, while another Rs 10,000 is the litigation cost incurred by the complainant.
She had to fly to Chennai but missed the flight because of the delay in reaching the airport on time in June 2018. In her complaint, she mentioned that the flight was scheduled to depart at 5.50 pm on June 12 that year for which she booked a cab to the airport, 36 km away from her home, at 3.29 pm. However, the driver arrived at the location 14 minutes late after repeated calls.
She also mentioned the driver started the trip late as he was on a phone call. The cab got delayed further as the driver took a wrong turn while heading to the airport and also stopped the cab at a CNG station. It caused a delay of another 15-20 minutes, the report stated.
By the time she had reached the airport, it was already 5.23 pm and she missed her flight. Also, Uber billed her Rs 703 for the trip while the estimated fare at the time of booking was Rs 563, the advocate said in her complaint.
She then purchased the next available ticket to fly. Uber initiated only a refund of Rs139, the difference in the estimate and actual fare, according to the publication.
The Mumbai advocate first sent a legal notice to the firm but there was no response. So, she approached the Thane District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission.
On the other hand, Uber claimed it is just an aggregator and a facilitator for connecting consumers with drivers. However, the consumer commission found that the company was in charge of the app's management and all the transactions and services being used there. It is when the court ordered Uber India to pay an amount of Rs 20,000 to the advocate.