Grab announced that it has updated its policy with regards to cancellation of ride bookings. The new rule is set to take effect on March 11.
According to the report, the five minutes allowance for cancellation was given because Grab understands that clients may have their reasons why they suddenly had to cancel the service. For instance, some people might have input the incorrect pickup point or sometimes drivers get stuck in traffic so, with these reasons, clients may have to cancel, The Straits Times reported.
The new Grab policy stated that anyone can cancel their ride as long as it is within the five minutes allotted time, starting from the seconds the driver was booked. Once the five-minute rule lapsed, a fee of S$4 would be charged. Needless to say, a no-show will result in full payment of the agreed amount.
Moreover, the customer can cancel rides up to two times a week. If he or she canceled for the third time in a seven-day period, $5 would be charged for every cancellation.
"The improved cancellation policy will allow passengers more flexibility while ensuring that we are fair to our driver-partners," the Grab spokesperson told The Straits Times. "We are constantly looking for ways to improve our platform, and this is one of the ways."
The spokesperson added, "All cancellation charges will be deducted via GrabPay or added to the user's next ride if he or she pay by cash."
Furthermore, in case a driver arrived beyond five minutes from the estimated arrival time, the cancellation fees will also be waived. This means that when a driver told the client that he is just two minutes away but actually arrived for more than five minutes, then the cancellation fee is waived.
Channel News Asia also notes that Grab rewrote its cancellation policy in order to give passengers the flexibility of easy cancellation request for the booking that they just made, as long as it is valid. This will also benefit the drivers so they can be fairly rewarded for their time and effort.
Finally, the update is applicable to all transport services under Grab except for GrabShuttle Plus, GrabHitch and GrabShuttle. The leading ride-hailing company is expecting that this new policy will only affect less than 1 percent of the bookings since it is very rare for Grab users to cancel their rides after it was booked.
