CCPA Guidelines Target Misleading Coaching Advertisements

Summary: The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has issued the “Guidelines for Prevention of Misleading Advertisement in Coaching Sector, 2024,” effective November 13, 2024, to safeguard consumers from deceptive practices. These guidelines, applicable to all advertisements by coaching centers (defined as facilities providing academic support to over fifty students), aim to prevent false or misleading claims that exploit aspiring students. Misleading advertisements include false claims regarding course offerings, duration, faculty credentials, fees, refund policies, and, critically, exaggerated or false claims about selection numbers, ranks, success rates, or guaranteed selection/job security. Coaching centers are prohibited from implying that enrollment ensures high marks or admission. To ensure transparency, the guidelines mandate that coaching centers prominently disclose important information such as the rank secured by a candidate, the name and duration of the course, and whether the course was paid for, alongside the candidate’s photograph. Disclaimers and other crucial information must be displayed with the same font size as the main claim. Furthermore, centers must accurately represent their services, facilities, and infrastructure, truthfully state if courses are recognized by competent authorities, and obtain written consent from successful candidates before using their names, photographs, or testimonials in advertisements. This initiative by the CCPA aims to prevent the commercialization of education and protect consumers from unfair trade practices in the coaching sector.

GUIDELINES FOR PREVENTION OF MISLEADING ADVERTISEMENT IN COACHING SECTOR, 2024.

Dear Friends,

As you are aware that The objectives of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 include:

• Providing safety to consumers regarding defective products, dissatisfactory services, and unfair trade practices.
• Establishing authorities for timely and effective administration and settlement of consumers’ disputes.
• Protecting against the marketing of hazardous goods.
• Informing consumers about product quality, potency, quantity, standard, purity, and price.
• Establishing Consumer Protection Councils to safeguard consumer rights and interests.

Initially the Consumer Protection Act, 1988 promulgated to secure safety of consumers from misleading and unfair trade practices. The CPA,1988 provides a platform to the consumers to address their complaints or grievances related to goods and services. The CPA,1988 has established three tier machinery for addressing of complaints of consumers. The jurisdiction of these forums will be decided based on monetary value of complaint.

The Consumer Protection Act, 2019 (Act) came into effect from 20.07.2020. This paved the way to protect, promote and enforce the rights of class of consumers. The Act incorporated phenomenal provisions to further strengthen consumer rights, such as establishment of a regulatory authority, namely, the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) to regulate matters relating to violation of consumer rights, misleading advertisement and unfair trade practice which are prejudicial to the interest of consumers as a class and public at large.

The CCPA is continuously working for consumer protection and empowerment of consumers by enforcement of progressive legislations by ensuring that no person shall engage in any practice for the sale of goods and services which contravenes the provisions of the ibid Act.

SECTION 18 OF CPA,2019 defines – powers and functions of Central Consumer Protection Authority and states that the Central Authority shall ensure that no false or misleading advertisement is made in respect of any goods or services which contravenes the provisions of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019.

The Central Consumer Protection Authority has observed that the coaching institutes makes false or misleading advertisements to promote the sale of goods or service and engage in deceptive or unfair trade practices and also observed that some coaching institutes deliberately conceal important information and give false guarantee which is likely to mislead the consumers.

To curb misleading and unfair trading practices by these coaching centres, the  Central Consumer Protection Authority has issued the Guidelines for Prevention of Misleading Advertisement in Coaching Sector, 2024 on 13^th November 2024. These guidelines shall apply to all forms of advertisements by any person including an endorser engaged in coaching sector.

DEFINITIONS

2(b) “Advertisement” shall have the same meaning as defined under section 2(1) of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 (35 of 2019);

2(c) “Coaching” includes academic support, imparting education, guidance, instructions, study programme or tuition or any other activity of similar nature but does not include counselling, sports, dance, theatre and other creative activities;

2(d) “Coaching Center” includes a center, established, run, or administered by any person(s) for providing coaching to more than fifty students;

2(e) “Central Consumer Protection Authority” means the Central Authority established under section 10 of the Consumer Protection Act 2019 (35 of 2019);

2 (f) “Competent Authority” means an officer notified by the appropriate government.

2 (g) “Endorser” shall have the same meaning as provided under clause 2(f) of the Guidelines for Prevention of Misleading Advertisements and Endorsements for Misleading Advertisements, 2022;

2(h) “Misleading Advertisement” shall have the same meaning as defined under section 2(28) of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 (35 of 2019);

3. CONDITIONS FOR MISLEADING ADVERTISEMENT.

Any person who establishes, runs, administers coaching center or provides coaching shall be said to be engaged in misleading advertisement, namely –

(a) makes false claims regarding course(s) offered, duration of completion, credential of faculty, fee, course exit policy including fee-refund;

(b) makes false claims regarding number of selection, rank in exam or success rate;

(c) make false claims such as guaranteed selection, job security, job promotions, salary increase, success at different stages of an examination, admission to any institution or lead the consumer to believe that enrolment in coaching will ensure a good rank, high marks;

(d) falsely represents that the services are of a particular standard or quality;

(e) creates a false sense of urgency including falsely stating or implying the sense of urgency or scarcity showing false popularity of goods or services so as to mislead a person into making an immediate purchase or require taking an immediate action;

(f) engages in any other unfair trade practice or misleading advertisement.

4. OBLIGATIONS OF EVERY PERSON ENGAGED IN COACHING. –

(1) Any person who is engaged in coaching while making an advertisement shall –

(a) disclose important information such as rank secured, name and duration of course, whether such course is paid with the candidate’s photograph;

(b) display disclaimer and any other important information prominently. The font of disclaimer and important information in the advertisement shall be the same as that used in the claim;

(c) accurately represent the service, facilities, resources and infrastructure of the coaching center;

(d) truthfully represent, if applicable, that the course(s) offered are duly recognised and have the approval of a competent authority such as All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), University Grants Commission (UGC), etc.

(e) maintain transparency in making an advertisement;

(f) every coaching center shall endeavour on a best effort basis to become a partner in the convergence process of the National Consumer Helpline of the Central Government.

(2) Any person who is engaged in coaching shall not use name, photographs, testimonial or videos of successful candidate in an advertisement without candidate’s written consent. The consent in this regard shall be taken subsequent to the selection.

CONCLUSION.  This guidelines by CCPA is one step in right direction to protect aspiring students and to prevent commercialisation of higher education. These coaching centres generally behave like a big business house and exploits innocent students on the basis  false and misleading advertisements and promotions. Various centres are using details of same successful student to lure students without consent of candidates, this is an act of violation of personal data of these candidates without their permission and it should be stopped.

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DISCLAIMER: article presented here is only for information of readers. In case of necessity do consult with professionals.