India's CCPA to Probe E-Scooter Maker Ola Electric Over Service, Product Standards

India's top product certification agency will investigate e-scooter maker Ola Electric's deficiency in service standards and product issues, India's consumer affairs secretary told Reuters on Thursday.

Last month, the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) sent Ola Electric a notice seeking an explanation from the SoftBank-backed company after the consumer rights agency received an unusually high 10,000 complaints.

Ola, India's top e-scooter maker, responded that it had resolved 99.1 percent of the complaints.

After reviewing that response, the CCPA has now asked the Bureau of Indian Standards to conduct a detailed investigation into the matter, consumer affairs secretary Nidhi Khare said on Thursday.

Ola Electric did not immediately respond to a Reuters email seeking comment.

The complaints were mostly for "minor" issues, Ola's founder Bhavish Aggarwal said on an earnings call last week.

"Two-thirds of it actually are just minor issues like loose parts or customers unfamiliar with the software used," Aggarwal said.

The rising complaints and ensuing regulatory scrutiny have cast a shadow on the e-scooter maker, following its stellar market debut in August.

Ola Electric's shares are down about 7.6 percent from their listing price of 76 rupees. On the day, its shares were down about one percent, while auto stocks had risen 0.5 percent.

© Thomson Reuters 2024

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