KUALA LUMPUR – There is currently no uniformity in driver selection among e-hailing providers, which could affect passenger safety and quality of service.
According to Malaysian e-Hailing Alliance chief activist Jose Rizal, to date, only Grab is known for conducting background checks as part of its driver selection process.
However, Rizal says, there have been cases where newer entrants in the e-hailing market approve almost anyone as drivers regardless of whether or not they have a PSV licence.
“Grab does background checks because they have been in the industry for very long and as a market leader it’s probably easy for them to comply with high standards.
“Some of these other companies take drivers even if they don’t comply with the necessary regulations,” Rizal told Scoop.
Further, without a proper driver selection process, issues arise because passengers may not be entitled to recourse from e-hailing companies for any problems caused by the driver.
As Rizal explains, under current Malaysian law, drivers are technically not employees of e-hailing companies – which in turn means they may not hold vicarious or secondary liability for their drivers.
Meanwhile, Grab Drivers Malaysia Association president Mohd Azril Ahmat agreed, stating that e-hailing companies must ensure a proper driver selection process because service providers ultimately should be responsible to their consumers.
Additionally, in the absence of strict driver selection criteria, Azril said it would then be prudent for service providers to have good safety protocols in place for passengers.
This may include not notifying a driver of a passenger’s complaint while the ride is still in progress, he said, commenting on recent reports on a female passenger who was physically assaulted by an inDrive driver. The driver was notified of her complaint while the victim was in the vehicle.
“There’s no need to notify the driver because other platforms will only inform of a complaint once the ride is complete.
“Because, whatever is said and done, you have to be responsible towards those who use your platform,” Azril told Scoop.
Previously, Scoop reported that the lawyer representing the alleged assault victim called upon inDrive to improve its driver selection process, suggesting that any gaps in the system could drive away potential passengers.
He also said the e-hailing company’s passenger support to the victim following the incident was delayed and insufficient.
However, inDrive told Scoop that the company had established multiple connections with the passenger to provide assistance as a measure of goodwill.
InDrive said its requests made to the victim for supporting documents were refused but the company nevertheless offered to provide further support, which the passenger declined.
“Despite the refusal to cooperate, we have ensured that in the event of such an incident, we play our part and offer to provide any form of assistance, as long as it doesn’t contravene any of our policies, standard operating procedure, regulator’s requirements or the laws of Malaysia.
“Nevertheless, we as a company are always open to suggestions, especially if they enhance the experience and safety for our passengers. We are actively working on further improving our services,” inDrive said in a statement to Scoop. – July 1, 2024