With Grab acquiring Uber’s Southeast Asian operations last month, many users were left uncertain about using Grab. In the past, many users have complained about their bookings getting cancelled by drivers and taking up their time.
One of the reasons why some users prefer Uber is because passengers’ destinations are not visible to the driver until the ride is accepted, thus making their ride cancellation rates lower. However, it looks like Grab Philippines is following suit with this latest feature!
If y’all use Grab, then you know how helpful this feature would be!
According to The Inquirer, Grab Philippines recently made the move to roll out a new feature that will prevent drivers from seeing their passengers’ destinations, reducing the trip cancellation rates. Starting 27th April, this new feature will initially be rolled out to only 25 per cent of Grab drivers in the Philippines with historically low acceptance rates.
The ride-sharing app will also be introducing an auto-accept feature for bookings. However, passengers’ destinations will still be visible to drivers during early morning hours for safety purposes.
“We will implement non-showing of passenger information before ride acceptance, as it is a major source of complaints,” head of Grab Philippines, Brian Cu, said in a statement.
“We want to vastly improve our services; hence, our consecutive decisions to sanction 500 errant drivers over the week, and now the non-showing of the passenger destination and the auto-accept feature.”
“We will never compromise safety and we will always put the welfare of our drivers and passengers first. We thank our drivers for understanding the masking of destination feature. We hope that our passengers will do their part and verify their accounts for safety and proper identity.”
So, what does this mean for Grab operations in other Southeast Asian countries? Will these new features be rolled out in Malaysia too? We certainly hope so!
Shortly after Grab acquired Uber’s operations, the Malaysian government has assured that fare rates would not be hiked up. Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri from the Prime Minister Department met with the ride-hailing company, and emphasised that the government would take action if fares are increased as a result of the merger.
What do you think of this latest feature? Is this more beneficial for passengers? Let us know in the comments below!
Also read: Here’s How Grab’s Acquisition of Uber’s SEA Operations Will Affect Malaysians