A consumer court directed OYO and a guest house to pay Rs.16 lakh in compensation after a law aspirant’s NLU dream shattered. The complainant travelled with his younger sister from Kovilpatti to Chennai for her All India Law Entrance Test (AILET).
Tamil Nadu: A District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission in Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu, directed OYO founder Ritesh Agarwal and a guest house in Chennai to pay over Rs.16 lakh in compensation to a man after failing to provide a room for him and his sister, despite an advance online booking.
The incident took place in 2022 when the complainant, a resident of Thoothukudi, reserved a room in Chennai for three days to accommodate his younger sister, who was scheduled to take the All India Law Entrance Test (AILET) in the city.
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However, upon arrival, the hotel refused to honour the booking, and even the alternative hotel arranged by OYO failed to provide them with a room.
As a result, the complainant had to book a guest house, where he encountered several issues and was forced to pay additional charges beyond the original online payment. The complainant claimed that the ordeal affected his sister’s performance in the examination, forcing her to prepare again as she aimed to secure admission to National Law University (NLU).
In a notable order issued on July 25, Consumer Commission President A Thiruneela Prasad, along with members N Namachivayam and A Sankar, ruled that such unfair trade practices had adversely impacted the academic future of a young girl.
The consumer court ordered Ritesh Agarwal and the guest house booked through OYO to jointly and severally pay the following amounts,
- Rs. 6,797 for the booking fee and travel expenses,
- Rs. 1.23 lakh to cover the cost of redoing the course for the complainant’s sister,
- Rs. 10 lakh as compensation for the unfair trade practices that turned the complainant’s sister’s dreams, hard work, and a year of her life into a “mirage,”
- Rs. 5 lakh as compensation for the unfair trade practices and the mental distress caused to the complainant and his sister,
- Rs. 10,000 to cover the cost of filing the complaint.
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The decision made ex-parte since neither OYO nor the guest house appeared before the consumer court.
The court stated,
“The act of the Opposite Parties in committing deficiency in service and unfair trade practices caused mental agony to the complainant and his sister lost her dream, hard work and precious time to be an mirage,”
The experience caused significant distress and ultimately impacted the sister’s performance in the critical examination. The court’s decision, delivered in the absence of any representation from OYO or the guest house, emphasized the severe consequences of their unfair trade practices, which not only affected the complainant financially but also derailed his sister’s academic aspirations and dreams.