The Indian government has launched a detailed investigation into major e-commerce platforms for charging extra fees on cash-on-delivery (CoD) orders. Officials are concerned that these additional charges (sometimes not clearly disclosed) could mislead customers and affect their buying decisions. Even Union Minister for Consumer Affairs, Pralhad Joshi, referred to these practices as dark patterns’, a term used globally to describe online tactics that influence or trick users into spending more than they intended.
The investigation was triggered by numerous complaints filed through the National Consumer Helpline, where users reported encountering charges like ‘Offer Handling Fee’, ‘Payment Handling Fee’, and ‘Protect Promise Fee’ during checkout. In one example shared by the Consumer Affairs Minister on X (formerly Twitter), a user buying a discounted smartphone on Flipkart reported being charged an additional ₹226 in fees on a product priced at ₹24,999. The post highlighted concerns over hidden charges, noting that similar complaints have been raised against other platforms, including Amazon.
Notably, while CoD payments may involve legitimate operational costs for merchants, the addition of extra fees without clear disclosure could be a potentially deceptive practice under India’s Consumer Protection Act. Therefore, now the Department of Consumer Affairs is investigating whether these platforms are clearly communicating all applicable charges upfront, especially those specific to CoD. Regulators are also evaluating whether the fees are optional or effectively compulsory due to how they are presented during the checkout process.
The Indian government has warned that any violation of consumer rights could invite strict action, including financial penalties and directives to modify pricing practices. The investigation comes at a time when the e-commerce sector is under close watch, as CoD has become increasingly popular, especially in smaller cities and towns where many people still prefer cash payments over digital transactions.
The move is also part of the wider efforts by the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA), which recently updated the rules on dark patterns to include practices like hidden fees, misleading ads, and tricky subscriptions. E-commerce companies were asked to check their systems and stop such practices, but recent complaints suggest that some platforms are still not fully following these guidelines.
The latest development is especially notable since e-commerce giants like Flipkart and Amazon are already facing legal scrutiny in India. In September 2024, the Competition Commission of India (CCI) found that both companies violated antitrust laws by giving preferential treatment to select sellers on their platforms, creating an unfair marketplace. Additionally, in March 2025, the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) conducted raids on Amazon and Flipkart warehouses in Delhi and Tamil Nadu, seizing products that lacked the required quality certification marks.
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