Restaurant body: Service charge in bill is not illegal – Times of India

NEW DELHI: The National Restaurant Association of India (NRAI) on Wednesday said levying service charge at restaurants is not illegal. The industry body’s comments came days after the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) barred restaurants and hotels from adding service charge by default.
“The latest guidelines issued by CCPA has once again created unnecessary confusion among consumers, leading to disruption in smooth business operations of restaurants,” said the NRAI. “Through these repeated guidelines, there is an attempt to start a campaign against this industry practice without any legal basis.”
The CCPA guidelines, made public on Monday, state service charge is optional and restaurants cannot force a consumer to pay it. In addition, consumers have the option of requesting the restaurant to remove it or even file a complaint against unfair trade practice with the Consumer Commission.
“Service charge is a part of the owner’s discretion/decision regarding the total price payable by a customer with regards to sale or service of a product,” said the NRAI. “It constitutes one of the components of the total price of the product. Neither the government nor any authority can interfere with the decision of the business owner in this regard. It is a universally accepted trade practice.”