Eagle Fleet Services Private Limited - Pink by Red Taxi

Recommendation: Upheld | Medium: Consumer Organization

The ASCI had approached the advertiser for its response in addressing the grievances of the complainant and forwarded the details of the complaint, verbatim, to the advertiser with a request to respond to the same. The advertiser was offered an option to seek an Informal Resolution (IR) of the complaint by modifying or withdrawing the claims in the advertisement, or alternately to substantiate the claims with supporting data. The advertiser was also offered an opportunity for a telecon with the ASCI Secretariat, which they did not avail and submitted their response. The advertiser in their response stated that the advertisement is for its Company Owned Vehicle (COV) fleet, where the vehicles, uniforms, and stickers mentioned as free are indeed provided by the company at no cost to the driver/partner and that the costs for fuel, maintenance, and insurance are borne entirely by the advertiser. The advertiser further submitted that the stated income range of ₹70,000–₹80,000 is a realistic, data-backed figure based on the actual earnings of top-performing drivers in the COV fleet and that anonymized payout data can be provided to substantiate that these figures are achievable within standard operational parameters. The advertiser further conveyed that they are willing to add qualifying text `T&C Apply’ to future iterations of the advertisement. The advertiser had a telecon with the ASCI Secretariat to discuss their submissions. The advertiser was further asked to provide supporting data for the claims made, and were informed to seek IR procedure by withdrawing the advertisement/claims objected to across all media. In response, the advertiser stated that the information submitted sufficiently addresses the concerns and that further detailed information cannot be provided due to data privacy policies and internal technical limitations. The Consumer Complaints Council (CCC) viewed the Facebook advertisement, considered the complaint and the advertiser’s response. Claim – “70,000-₹80,000 வரை மாத வருமானம்” [Translation - Monthly income between ₹70,000₹80,000] The CCC noted that the claim was addressed to prospective drivers, particularly women, considering joining the Company-Owned Vehicle (COV) fleet. The advertiser asserted that this income range is achievable for top performing drivers and mentioned that anonymized payout data could substantiate the claim. The CCC observed that the advertiser did not provide supporting records such as monthly earnings statements or trip-wise driver-level payout data to demonstrate that the stated income was actually earned by women drivers under normal working conditions. The CCC further observed that the income figure in the advertisement is highlighted without clarifying factors such as working hours, number of trips, eligibility, incentives, location limitations. Claim - “FREE Deposit, Uniform, Stickers” The CCC noted the advertiser’s assertions that these items are provided free of cost to drivers. However, the advertiser did not provide supporting evidence to substantiate that these items were genuinely free without any conditions. The CCC further observed that the advertisement highlighted the free offer without any disclaimer or qualification regarding operational costs involved, or the variability of earnings among drivers. Based on these observations, the CCC concluded that the claims, “70,000-₹80,000 வரை மாத வருமானம்” [Translation - Monthly income between ₹70,000-₹80,000], and “FREE Deposit, Uniform, Stickers”, were not substantiated. The claims are misleading by omission. The said claims in the advertisement contravened Chapter I, Clauses 1.1, and 1.4 of the ASCI Code. This complaint was UPHELD. The CCC noted that the said advertisement has been withdrawn