New Delhi, Dec 27 (PTI) As the year 2025 draws to a close, a quiet success story emerges with Rs 45 crore recovered and 67,265 consumer grievances resolved through the government's National Consumer Helpline.
Ramesh Kumar (name changed) from Jodhpur ordered chairs online earlier this year. They arrived defective. Five times, the e-commerce company scheduled a pickup. Five times they cancelled. Kumar was left with broken furniture and dwindling hope. Then he dialled 1915.
"Thank you so much, Consumer Helpline, for helping cheated consumers like me," Kumar wrote later after the National Consumer Helpline (NCH) intervened and secured his full refund within days.
Between April and December 2025, 67,265 Indians like Kumar found redress through this government platform, which facilitated refunds totalling Rs 45 crore, according to official data released on Saturday.
The numbers from 2025 tell a story of India's digital economy and its discontents. E-commerce platforms account for nearly 40,000 complaints and Rs 32 crore in refunds, more than two-thirds of the total, followed by travel and tourism at Rs 3.5 crore, the data showed.
In Bengaluru, a consumer's experience captures the frustration many felt. He paid for an annual internet plan. The money left his account promptly. The internet connection never arrived. Customer care promised a refund in 10 working days. Four months passed. Multiple calls yielded nothing but scripted apologies.
NCH stepped in. The refund was processed almost immediately.
"It was a good experience. Otherwise, it was difficult to get the amount back," he said, adding that his relief was palpable in those understated words.
In Chennai, a consumer cancelled a flight ticket 96 hours before departure, well within the refund window. The airline refused to process the refund despite repeated requests. NCH's intervention changed that.
"Thanks to NCH for the quick action. Am delighted by your efforts," the consumer wrote.
What makes NCH significant is its positioning. Operating at the pre-litigation stage, it offers consumers a way to resolve disputes without approaching Consumer Commissions under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019.
The result: speedier resolutions, lower costs, and less burden on an overworked judicial system.
The helpline accepts grievances in 17 languages through multiple channels: a toll-free number (1915), WhatsApp (8800001915), SMS, email, a dedicated app, and a web portal. This omni-channel approach has made it accessible from metropolitan Mumbai to remote Rajasthan.
A key reason for NCH's growing effectiveness in 2025 has been the expansion of convergence partners -- companies and platforms that have agreed to work with the helpline to resolve consumer grievances. This collaborative approach reflects a maturing of India's consumer protection ecosystem.
The top five sectors contributing to this year's Rs 45 crore in refunds are e-commerce, travel and tourism, agency services, electronic products, and airlines, accounting for over 85 per cent of the total. These are also the sectors where individual consumers typically lack the resources to fight prolonged battles with corporate entities.
The geographic spread of complaints underscores NCH's reach.
Grievances related to e-commerce alone came from across India's diverse landscape, from Tier-1 cities to remote towns. It reflects how digital commerce has penetrated even less-connected regions, and how those regions, too, are learning to assert their consumer rights.
What began as a government initiative, the helpline has, over this year, quietly transformed into something more significant: a single point of access for millions of consumers seeking justice at the pre-litigation stage.