Consumer watchdog warns coaching centres against misleading ads ahead of IIT-JEE results

The country’s top consumer watchdog has advised coaching centres to strictly adhere to the Consumer Protection Act 2019 and Guidelines for the Prevention of Misleading Advertisements in the Coaching Sector 2024.

“The authority clearly outlines that it is essential their representations are accurate, clear, and free from misleading claims or the concealment of important information from consumers. Additionally, coaching centres should avoid making assurances of guaranteed success.

Coaching centres must clearly disclose key details in their advertisements, including the student’s name, rank, course type, and whether the course was paid. Disclaimers must be prominently displayed in the same font size as other important information to ensure consumers are not misled,” the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution said in a statement.

“Following the recent declaration of results for examinations such as IIT-JEE and NEET, the CCPA observed that coaching centres are not adhering to the Guidelines for the Prevention of Misleading Advertisements in the Coaching Sector, 2024,” the ministry further said.

The CCPA, headed by Consumer Affairs Secretary Nidhi Khare, has over the past three years taken action against misleading advertisements, unfair trade practices, and violations of consumer rights by issuing 49 notices and imposing a total penalty of Rs 77.60 lakh on 24 coaching centres, according to the statement.

The statement said the CCPA recently issued notices to a few coaching institutes flagging issues such as guaranteed selection, assurance of JEE/NEET ranks, violation of consumer rights and misleading advertisement.

Unfair trade practices including promised services not being provided, fee denying fee refunds for cancelled admissions, and deficiency in services were also highlighted in the notices.

“The Guidelines for the Prevention of Misleading Advertisements in the Coaching Sector, 2024, were issued on 13th November 2024. These guidelines prohibit coaching centres from making false or misleading claims/advertisements to promote their services and from engaging in deceptive or unfair practices,” the statement read.

“CCPA had earlier taken action against coaching centres offering services for competitive exams including UPSC CSE, IIT-JEE, NEET, RBI, NABARD, among others, reaffirming its commitment to ensuring that no false or misleading advertisements are made in contravention of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019,” it added.