KUALA LUMPUR – Consumer advocates have called on the government to step in on the issue of recent price hikes involving ride-hailing service Grab.
The calls by the groups come amid passenger complaints on prices that have almost doubled, even during regular hours.
Federation of Malaysian Consumers’ Associations (Fomca) chief executive Saravanan Thambirajah said the e-hailing company should be more forthcoming with its fare structures as customers are baffled by the unexplained surge in charges.
“I’m very sure Grab should be more transparent on the pricing as it’s very true (that fares have shot up). Currently, the price is too high, and many Grab users have voiced out on social media, and even to Fomca as well,” he told The Vibes.
“Our advice is that the government must intervene and make sure there are some mechanisms to serve as a check and balance to the fares set by Grab.”
The "surge" in prices is the most ridiculous aspect of Grab, from a typical fare of RM 19 it can surge to RM 40, how does a zero traffic hour have such a high surge? scam siak https://t.co/qrbyNcXw4t
— ?️ JACK BING ⚔️ (@_theotherjack_) May 12, 2022
Saravanan said he has heard of fare increases during peak hours that amount to more than 300% to 400%, which he said, “doesn’t make sense”.
He hopes that the government will intervene and set mechanisms to ensure that the company will not take advantage of consumers, adding that there must be a basic service level or guidelines on the matter.
Let's be honest, Grab is becoming more like a luxury instead of an affordable e-hailing ride service, as it used to be. A short distance that's less than a kilometer would now cost RM16 instead of RM5. Eggsplain!
— Carmen/Sam (@sameffrn) May 11, 2022
Saravanan’s remarks were made in response to complaints by netizens on social media who lamented that surge prices were being charged during non-peak hours.
Checks done by The Vibes show that Grab e-hailing charges were significantly higher than other less popular ride-sharing services.
For example, a ride from Menara BRDB in Bangsar to KL Sentral at 1.30pm on Thursday was priced at RM20.30, while another app MyCar charged slightly less at RM16.
Another trip from Menara BRDB to the Kuala Lumpur court complex was RM25.30 on Grab, while MyCar only charged RM15.
On the other hand, airasia ride set the trips to both locations at RM11 and RM12 respectively, offering the lowest fares compared with Grab or MyCar.
Grab fare has been getting extremely high. Its ridiculous bro.
— M.Darshayani (@DarshayaniM) May 12, 2022
Meanwhile, former International Association of Consumer Law president emeritus Prof Datuk Sothi Rachagan suggested scrutinising the fares and understanding the mechanism involved.
“If they (ride-hailing services) are using algorithms, what are the determinants that are factored?”
The Vibes has reached out to Grab for comment.
Grab will not be cheap again. This is the original plan. Corner market. Raise price. Thos cheap fares were subsidised by investors money. Now it is time to give value to investors. That is just how businesses are run.
— Effi Saharudin?☠️ (@1Obefiend) May 19, 2022
While Grab does not openly reveal specific details on fares, it is understood that a host of factors drive it, including supply and demand factors, its implementation of dynamic pricing, high traffic and peak periods, among others.
An industry insider suggested that newer services such as MyCar and airasia ride could be subsidising the fares to drive up their number of users.
“Grab had done this when it first started out in the past, offering discounts to customers to encourage uptake on the app, which is why it was cheaper than regular taxis at times.
“But now the industry is more regulated and operating costs have increased. Apart from that, the economy has also reopened and many drivers have moved on from the gig economy to regular jobs.” – The Vibes, May 21, 2022
