Bolt—Poland's UOKiK charged Bolt with greenwashing over 'zero-emission' and '100% renewable energy' marketing claims
Poland's consumer protection authority UOKiK filed formal greenwashing charges against Bolt (alongside Tchibo and Zara) on January 21, 2026, alleging its 'Project Zero' and 'zero-emission vehicles' marketing misleads consumers into believing rides are broadly zero-emission when the vast majority of its fleet still uses internal combustion engines and only the driving stage, not the vehicle lifecycle, is emission-free. UOKiK also challenged Bolt's '100% renewable energy' claims for offices, warehouses and charging stations, which rely largely on Energy Attribute Certificates offsetting consumption rather than direct renewable purchases, without clearly disclosing scope. Bolt faces potential fines of up to 10% of turnover per contested practice.
Scoring Impact
| Topic | Direction | Relevance | Contribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Climate Action | -against | primary | -1.00 |
| Consumer Protection | -against | secondary | -0.50 |
| Overall incident score = | -0.443 | ||
Score = avg(topic contributions) × significance (medium ×1) × confidence (0.59)
Evidence (1 signal)
UOKiK official notice: Bolt, Tchibo and Zara face greenwashing allegations from the President of UOKiK
Poland's Office of Competition and Consumer Protection published formal charges against Bolt alleging its 'zero-emission' and '100% renewable energy' marketing claims mislead consumers about the true scope of its environmental impact, with potential fines up to 10% of turnover per practice.