National Consumer Helpline: In Two & a Half Months, Over 18000 Complaints and More Than ₹ 8 Crore in Refunds
TL; DR: Between 25 April and 13 July 2025, the National Consumer Helpline (NCH) resolved 18,583 complaints and enabled ₹8.22 crore in refunds, mostly in E-Commerce, Food, and Travel and Tourism. Managed by the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, NCH offers multi-channel grievance redressal, giving a voice to the voiceless.
Context: You know that sinking feeling when a company ignores your legitimate complaint? A refund that never came, a service that fell short – we’ve all felt powerless, a feeling of being small against big companies that seem to have forgotten we exist. But here’s the good news: the latest data reveals that more consumers are finally speaking up and being heard. The NCH is stepping in and helping people get their money back.
Who compiles this data?
The National Consumer Helpline (NCH), managed by the Ministry of Consumer Affairs is one of the important platforms for addressing consumer complaints.
Initially a call-only service, it expanded in 2016 with the launch of the INGRAM portal, (www.consumerhelpline.gov.in), allowing consumers to raise grievances through phone, website, mobile apps, post, and CPGRAMS. This multi-channel approach has made it easier for people to report issues, seek guidance, and get timely redressal.
Where can I download Clean & Structured Data?
Download Day, Sector and Company-wise Total Grievances/Complaints Registered with National Consumer Helpline and Amount Refunded from Dataful.
Key Insights: (Data from 25 April to 13 July 2025)
- E-commerce continues to lead in both consumer complaints and refunds, accounting for nearly 10,378 grievances, about 56% of the total and ₹4.22 crore in refunds, nearly half of the total amount. Amazon topped the list with refunds worth ₹2.26 crore, followed by Flipkart (₹88.4 lakh) and Myntra (₹29.8 lakh).
- The travel and tourism sector followed closely in refunds, with 1,293 complaints leading to ₹97 lakh refunded. Cleartrip.com issued ₹23 lakh in refunds from just 76 complaints, while Goibibo.com refunded ₹21.3 lakh across 226 complaints. Uber saw the highest complaints in the sector (256) but refunded only ₹1.07 lakh. This also underscores the nature of the platform as Cleartrip.com and Goibibo.com are primarily used for flight bookings, while Uber deals with cab bookings.
- In terms of complaint volume, the food sector came next after e-commerce, with 4,452 grievances, but refunds remained low at just ₹16.7 lakhs.
Why does it matter?
With more of our daily lives shifting online, the way we shop, book travel, and use services has changed dramatically. This means a huge increase in volume of transactions and scope for things to go wrong, and people facing frustration when companies don’t respond. That’s where the NCH comes in, offering an easy, trusted way to resolve problems and make sure consumers aren’t left powerless.
Key Numbers
Between 25 April to 13 July 2025, the complaints and refunds are as below.
- Total Complaints- 18583 (E-commerce- 56%, Food- 24%, Travel and Tourism- 7%).
- Total Refunds- Rs. 8.22 Crore (E-commerce- 4.22 Crore, Travel and Tourism- 96.9 Lakh, General Insurance- 42.9 Lakh).
- Full Refunds account for Rs. 7.42 Crore, and the rest are Partial Refunds.