New Delhi: Passengers booking cabs through Uber, Ola and other ride-hailing apps will no longer be encouraged to pay extra money to improve their chances of getting a ride.
The government has directed ride-hailing companies to remove pre-ride tipping options and similar prompts from their apps with immediate effect.
The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has taken action following reports of ride-hailing platforms displaying messages like ‘Advance Tip’, ‘Choose an Add-on’ and ‘Improve your chances of quicker ride confirmation’ during the booking process.
The government has made it clear that such practices are not permitted under the Motor Vehicle Aggregator Guidelines, 2025.
It means an app cannot display a tip prompt, message, add-on or payment option before the completion of a ride if it suggests that paying extra could influence the availability or quality of the service.
This includes whether a driver accepts the ride, how quickly the booking is confirmed, which driver is allocated or how long a passenger has to wait.
In simple terms, passengers booking a cab should not be made to feel that paying an additional amount could improve their chances of getting a ride.
However, the government has not stopped passengers from tipping cab drivers. Under Clause 14.15 of the Motor Vehicle Aggregator Guidelines, 2025, passengers can choose to tip a driver after the completion of a trip.
The tip has to reach the driver in full, the cab aggregator can’t retain or deduct a portion of the amount.