June 22, 2018, 11:15 AM 
Grab drivers in Singapore are regularly frustrated with passengers when they run into a situation like this:
Via Facebook.
Via Facebook.
Both rider and driver get stuck in a gridlock because neither is willing to cancel all because private-hire vehicles cannot fetch children without booster seats.
And if things go really bad, someone might get a bloody mouth.
The onus, though, is on the rider to book the correct ride (e.g. GrabFamily), if the child passenger is below the height of 1.35m, which means it is the rider who should be the one cancelling the GrabCar ride.
Suggestion
However, a Grab driver has come up with a simple idea that can solve this current problem of passengers not being able to learn when to book a GrabFamily ride.
This was posted in a PHV drivers Facebook group by one Edmund Sim:
Screenshot via Facebook.
The post said:
My thoughts on <1.35m booking?.....
Instead of sending reminders and notices to riders to educate them....which we all obviously know that it doesn’t work (except for Grab themselves).
Why don’t we just do this:
Include a field in the rider’s app (before every booking) that reads:
“Do you have any kids below 1.35m traveling with you on this ride?”
If the rider tick the “Yes” box then the app automatically blanked out GrabHitch & JustGrab....the rider proceed to book with GrabFamily or GrabTaxi only.
If the rider tick the “No” box then the rider can continue to book whatever service he/she deem fit. But bear in mind that the responsibility now lies on the rider since he/she already acknowledges this?.
Thus if the GrabCar driver (JustGrab/GrabHitch) arrive and notice there is a kid below 1.35m / or any inappropriate booking....then the driver can just cancel the ride with a designated return button which indicate to Grab office that there is a kid below 1.35m in this booking....and therefore unable to proceed.....w/out affecting the driver’s CR.
Then of cos on rider part...a penalty will be imposed to the rider and reimburse to the driver, since the rider already acknowledges the disclaimer during the booking period.
I think this will minimise dispute on site as the preliminaries are clearly spelt out during the booking. This acknowledgment/disclaimer should also supersede whatever “Note” that the rider will usually misuse.
The objective of this is not aimed at helping driver earned the penalty from the rider....cos I believe most (if not all) driver would want to complete every job they take. Instead I think the bigger picture is that rider should take ownership/responsibility of the booking according to the stipulated LTA ruling.
What do you think??
Don’t flame?me pls...it’s early in the morning. If you don’t like what you read....just move on. I really don’t care anyway?....
Have a blessed morning anyway??!
Here's the TL;DR version:
To summarise, Sim suggests:
- Adding a field in the booking page asking if the rider has any kids under 1.35m.
- If the rider indicates 'yes', the GrabCar and GrabHitch options will be greyed out.
- Rider will only have the GrabFamily or GrabTaxi options to choose from.
- If they indicate 'no', the responsibility transfers to the user. If the driver chooses not transport them, then the rider cannot insist that the driver cancel.
Many other drivers in the group expressed support for the idea. Some even mentioned that they suggested it before, but it wasn't implemented:
Grab's booster seat solution
On the other hand, Grab is already in the process of implementing another solution.
It is currently in the process of making mifold booster seats available to every GrabCar.
The mifold booster seat. Image via Grab.
As Mothership understands, drivers will have to pay to get the mifold booster seat and undergo training to learn how to properly belt up young kids.
When complete, riders who book a GrabCar will need to pay an extra S$2 for the use of the booster seat, similar to the extra cost of a GrabFamily now.
Currently, not every Grab driver has taken up the booster seat offer from Grab.
Solutions that can work well in tandem
Both solutions appear to work, and can even be implemented hand-in-hand.
Solution 1 ensures riders take responsibility for their bookings. Also, it can also be tweaked to allow riders to indicate how many children they're bringing on board.
Solution 2 ensures that riders can transport their children regardless of what vehicles they book.
- Drivers get the opportunity to earn an extra remuneration and avoid fines
- Riders with kids below 1.35m will have more options when making bookings
- Nobody breaks the law, end up in conflict, or have a bloody mouth.
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