New Delhi, July 20 -- Hotels and restaurants cannot levy a service charge on your bill without informing you, nor can they treat it as a mandatory payment.

"The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has initiated suo motu action against 41 restaurants across the country for violation of consumer rights and adoption of unfair trade practices by levying a service charge by default on consumers' bills," according to a press release by the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution on 19 July.

The action was initiated after the National Consumer Helpline (NCH) received complaints from consumers who submitted invoices showing that a service charge had been added to their bills automatically without their explicit consent...