The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) held its first meeting of the committee constituted to prepare guidelines on misleading advertisements in the coaching sector. The committee, the Centre said in a release, also discussed a draft of the guidelines.
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The Chairman of the committee and Secretary of the Department of Consumer Affairs, Rohit Kumar Singh, said protection of consumers’ interest was a paramount concern to the CCPA. He said there should be clarity, specifically in addressing certain aspects related to advertisements in the coaching sector. “The CCPA firmly believes in safeguarding the rights of consumers and ensuring that no false or misleading advertisement is made of any goods or services which contravenes the provisions of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019. The guidelines shall be applicable to all the coaching institutes whether online or physical and cover all forms of advertisement, regardless of form, format or medium,” Mr. Singh said.
The guidelines, according to the government release, prescribe conditions when an advertisement by a coaching institute shall be construed to be misleading. “The guidelines also provide that coaching institutes should not make false claims regarding success rates or number of selections and any other practices that may lead to consumer misunderstanding or subvert consumer autonomy and choice,” the release said.
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The coaching institutes should mention with successful candidate photo information such as the rank secured by successful candidate, course opted, duration of course, fee paid or free etc. ”The coaching institutes should not make claims of 100% selection or 100% job guaranteed or guaranteed preliminary or mains. The font of disclaimer/disclosure/important information in the advertisement shall be the same as that used in the claim/advertisement. The placement of such information shall be at a prominent and visible place in the advertisement,” the draft guidelines said, warning penalties for misleading advertisements.
The statement said the CCPA had observed that some of the coaching institutes mislead consumers by deliberately concealing important information on the course opted by successful candidates, duration of the course and the fees paid. The CCPA also observed that some of the coaching institutes also indulge in making claims like 100% selection, 100% job guaranteed and guaranteed preliminary and main examination without providing verifiable evidence.