Regular Travellers Voiced Discontent Over Extra-charging, Low-quality Cab-hailing Services

Islamabad: Due to excessive prices, driver behaviour problems, and subpar service delivery; the cab-hailing services that operate in the twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad have begun to lose their appeal.

Soon after their debut, these cab-hailing services offered a variety of amenities, such as low prices, high-quality pick-up and drop-off services, cleanliness, and quick responses to draw in the majority of customers. However, as time went on, the prices were raised and the quality of the services began to suffer.

Shahida Khatoon, a working lady, claimed that she had been a consistent user of online cab-hailing services since they were introduced, but in recent months, the captain had repeatedly misbehaved and harassed her.

“I made several attempts to phone helplines and complain about the captains, but neither they nor I received a response. Due to their dependability and security, I was using these services. But after these incidents, I no longer felt safe using online services,” she added.

“I was very happy when these services came to my city, and I began using them frequently because of the reasonable prices, respectable captains, and quick pick-up and drop-off times. However, today we have a lot of issues while booking these cabs, and the situation is completely the reverse,” Asima Naz, a working woman stated.

According to her, the primary problems faced by users like me on a daily basis included increasing prices, peak times brought on by a lack of vehicles or other circumstances, delays in the arrival of cabs due to erroneous GPS locations, numerous ride cancellations, and arbitrary cancellation fees.

University student Haider Khan claimed that these services would eventually lose their appeal and clients would switch back to regular taxis if the firms who control these cab services made drastic changes to their regulations and judgments.

“The majority of the vendors have given their cabs to unskilled drivers who are unable to use the most recent technologies, such as following internet maps, and who also act inappropriately towards consumers,” he observed.

The official at one of the cab-hailing service company offices in Rawalpindi said, “We are working to enhance our services and address all legitimate consumer complaints.” APP