Zomato Pay is a payment service provided by Zomato through an electronic payment mechanism.
New Delhi:
The National Restaurant Association of India wrote a text advising its members against Zomato Pay and Swiggy Diner rebate schemes saying these schemes go against the interests of restaurateurs.
The advice alleges that Zomato and Swiggy ‘middlemen’ are cashing in on restaurant expenses, who sign up for the Zomato Pay and Swiggy Diner programs by forcing them to offer discounts and also pay commissions to per transaction on these platforms.
“Zomato Pay and Swiggy Diner both operate broadly on the same basis – free/subscription fee for customers to join; restaurants are required to offer discounts between 15-40% to join the program,” NRAI wrote to its members.
Furthermore, it said, “Restaurants are also required to pay commissions in the range of 4-12% for each transaction made through the payment gateways with Zomato or Swiggy respectively,” while the edge payment gateway fees competition is only 1-1.5%.
The NRAI alleges that restaurants must offer discounts to “anyone who wants to pay via Zomato Pay or Swiggy Diner video, regardless of the fact that the customer discovered the restaurant on Zomato/Swiggy or just walked in on their own” and The payments are on a weekly basis.
“The fundamental question here is why should a restaurant pay a middleman to give a discount to its own customers?” NRAI asked.
Zomato Pay is a payment service provided by Zomato through an electronic payment mechanism through which its customers can pay merchants orders through the Zomato platform.
On the other hand, Swiggy Diner is a service in the dining segment from Swiggy that allows its customers to book a table at a discount.
When contacted, a Zomato spokesperson did not comment on specific issues raised by the NRAI but said, “With our new catering product, currently living in Hyderabad for a few weeks with results great, we’re confident we’ll create tremendous value and growth for the industry.” The spokesperson added, “We’re looking forward to partnering with progressive restaurants who see the bigger picture.” Swiggy did not comment when contacted for its response. PTI RKL DRR
(Except for the title, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a collaborative feed.)
