There is a growing trend or should we say already adopted one in the restaurant industry when it comes to bottled water.
Hyderabad Restaurant Ordered to Compensate Customer
Restaurants tend to sell bottle water over their regular water to their customers since it means earning potential. Hence, they sometimes do not bat an eye when customer demands for their regular water. Many customers put it in their pipe and smoke it, but some take the matters forward.
In a recent event, a customer during his visit to a Hyderabad restaurant requested for “complimentary” regular water due to an allergy to plastic materials.
However, he was denied the same and also was levied the service charges. When he took it to the consumer commission, he won a ₹5,000 compensation.
The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission-III of Hyderabad, directed the Jubilee Hills based restaurant to compensate ₹5,000 within 45 days.
Recounting the Experience
Reciting the experience at ITLU restaurant in CBI colony, the customer said that he was denied “complimentary” regular water which he requested due to an allergy to plastic materials. Following which, he had to purchase restaurant’s own labelled 500-ml water bottle for ₹50.
Additionally, as per the customer, the restaurant levied service charges amounting to ₹31.50 and a 5% CGST and SGST on the bill which was ₹630, inflating it to ₹695.
Following this, the customer moved to the commission which then directed the restaurant to refund the service charge along with the GST and compensate the customer with ₹5,000.
The litigation costs amounting to ₹1,000 were also asked to be covered by the restaurant in 45 days.
Notably, Telangana government’s MA&UD department mandated last year that all hotels, restaurants, and eateries under the GHMC’s jurisdiction have to provide purified water for free and bottled water at the MRP.
