Ahmedabad: Ola told to refund e-scooter cost over repeated breakdowns

Ahmedabad: A consumer commission here has ordered Ola Electric Mobility Ltd to refund the value of an electric scooter after the complaint that it was not repaired and the vehicle continued to conk out in the middle of the road.

This case involved a resident of Nava Vadaj, Shailesh Bharwad, who bought an Ola company’s electric scooter in Oct 2024 from the company’s authorised showroom by paying Rs 1.19 lakh. According to Bharwad’s complaint before the Consumer Dispute Redressal Commission, Ahmedabad (Main), the scooter stopped suddenly in the middle of the road when he was riding in the Akhbarnagar area. He contacted the company’s service centre and complained on umpteen occasions regarding the issue, but the problem was not resolved. He claimed that he often had to restart the vehicle and bear with it. Ultimately, the scooter had to be towed to the service centre, but it could not be repaired.

The commission issued notice to the company, but nobody appeared in its defence, and the proceedings took place ex parte. After perusing the material submitted by the complainant, the commission said that considering the fact that the electric scooter was often breaking down, putting the complainant’s life at risk because a sudden stoppage of the vehicle might cause an accident, and if the respondent company could not remove the defect on a permanent basis, it was established that there was a manufacturing defect.

When it came to the refund amount, the commission said that the complainant used the scooter after purchasing it, resulting in depreciation in the vehicle. This led the commission to value the scooter at Rs 90,000, which it ordered the company to pay Bharwad with 7% interest from the day he filed the complaint.

Additionally, the commission ordered the company to pay Rs 15,000 as compensation for mental harassment, Rs 2,050 towards other expenses incurred, and Rs 2,500 as legal costs.