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Ride hailing company Ryde will be introducing a new cancellation and waiting fee from October 20.

In a media note, Ryde said that passengers will be charged a S$4.30 "cancellation and waiting time fee" if they cancel the trip after more than 4 minutes of matching and confirming the ride.

The same amount will be charged as a waiting time fee if passengers fail to show up or arrive after the driver has waited for more than 4 minutes.

The update on fees will be rolled out gradually over the next three weeks.

This is a move to "protect the interests of their drivers", Ryde said in their media note.

The new fees apply to all Ryde's services, except RydeTAXI, and will be rolled out gradually over the next three weeks from Oct. 20.

“We are rolling out the Cancellation and Waiting Time Policy so that we can factor in the time and effort taken by our Driver-Partners to get to and wait for our users for each trip.

We acknowledge that drivers take time to get to and wait for a user; and when a change in plan is unavoidable, we are ensuring that our drivers are properly compensated. We recognise that drivers are key partners of our business, and it is essential that we take care of their welfare,” said Terence Zou, Ryde’s Founder and CEO.

The fee will automatically be deducted from the rider’s Ryde Wallet balance or credit card.

Zou assured that the new initiative also keeps customers’ welfare into account and ensures that it is fair to them.

“Our Driver-Partners are monitored via our driver algorithms. We also have a comprehensive rating system. All of our drivers must adhere to our community standards,” Zou added.

Based on Ryde's data, most riders are able to reach their pick-up points in four minutes.

That is also how they derive this particular period of waiting time before riders are penalised, Ryde explained.

For advanced trip bookings, all cancellations made 15 minutes before the scheduled trip will not be charged.

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Top image by Ryde