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India Orders Ride‑Hail Apps to Remove Pre‑Ride Tip Prompts

The road transport ministry said tipping must be voluntary, offered only after trips end, and passed in full to drivers to stop misleading in‑app nudges.

Overview

  • The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways told all motor vehicle aggregators to remove any pre‑ride or mid‑ride tipping prompts from their apps and review interfaces for compliance.
  • Clause 14.15 of the Motor Vehicle Aggregator Guidelines, 2025 allows a tipping feature only after journey completion and requires the full tip amount to be credited to the driver with no platform deductions.
  • MoRTH cited examples such as “Advance Tip”, “Choose an Add‑on” and messages claiming tips could speed up confirmation or improve driver acceptance as the kinds of prompts to be removed.
  • The directive, dated August 11, 2026, framed compliance as immediate and asked platforms to modify non‑compliant elements without delay rather than setting a fixed deadline or spelling out penalties.
  • The move follows citizen complaints and a LocalCircles survey and reinforces earlier Central Consumer Protection Authority concerns; regulators will likely monitor how quickly major apps implement the changes and whether enforcement steps follow.