Central Consumer Protection Authority Directs Barbeque Nation to Stop Charging Service Fee
The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has directed Barbeque Nation Hospitality Limited to stop levying service charges at its restaurants.
The action was taken after the CCPA took suo motu cognisance of a consumer complaint filed on the National Consumer Helpline. The complaint alleged that the restaurant had charged a service fee along with CGST and SGST on a food bill in January 2025.
The consumer had sought a refund of ₹335 collected as service charge. While Barbeque Nation initially proposed adjusting the amount against a future visit, it later issued a full refund on April 16, 2025 through the helpline mechanism. The complaint was officially closed on April 22, 2025.
The CCPA noted that the service charge was levied during the period when an interim order of the Delhi High Court was in force. However, after the High Court’s final judgment on March 28, 2025 in National Restaurant Association of India v. Union of India, the restaurant chain stopped charging service fees across all its outlets.
In that judgment, the High Court upheld the CCPA guidelines and clarified that a service charge or tip is purely voluntary and cannot be added automatically or made mandatory.
After reviewing the investigation report, the CCPA recorded that the amount had been refunded, the levy was protected by an interim court order at the relevant time, and the restaurant had complied with the post-judgment directions. The Authority held that the conduct did not amount to an unfair trade practice under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019.
Accordingly, the CCPA directed Barbeque Nation to discontinue the practice of levying service charge, if any, and closed the proceedings under Sections 20 and 21 of the Act.
