'Cabby breaches SMRT Taxis' Golden
Rule, passenger gets free fare' (ST Article
12/12/2005)
(Extracted from ST Article)
He wanted to travel from Tanjong Pagar train station to Aljunied
and had a route in mind, but his cabby drove off without consulting
him.
The passenger paid his fare of $8.20, then made a call to SMRT
Taxis' hotline 6555-8888 becoming the first disgruntled
passenger to get a free ride from the company under its new
money-back guarantee scheme.
Under this scheme, launched last Thursday, SMRT has five golden
rules for its cabbies, and passengers who feel their cabbies have
failed in any of the areas can get their fare back in taxi
vouchers. They can be used on their next journey with SMRT
taxis.
On the flip side, SMRT is encouraging satisfied passengers to tip
their drivers.
By Friday afternoon, SMRT said it had received two feedback calls
and tips had not increased significantly.
While the four other taxi companies ComfortDelGro, Transcab,
Premier Taxis and Smart Automobile do not offer such a scheme,
all but Trans-cab have their own ways of dealing with customer
compliants.
With all three companies, complaints are dealt with on a
case-by-case basis and drivers are interviewed to give their side
of the story.
The largest taxi operator ComfortDelgro, which operates under three
brands Comfort, CityCab and Yellow-Top said it has for some
time been giving out taxi vouchers to customers who encounter
service lapses.
On average, the operator, which has about 17,000 cabs, gives out
$300 worth of vouchers a month for about 60 cases.
ComfortDelgro's group corporate communications officer Tammy Tan
said that in many cases, commuters complain about a cabby but are
unable to provide key information like the licence plate number of
the driver's name.
"In such instances, we are unable to conduct a proper investigation
to verify the complaint. It is important for commuters to insist on
receipts, which are available in all our taxis," she said.
The company encourages tipping but added that, while drivers are
often told to keep the change, Singaporeans tend not to be generous
tippers.
At Premier Taxis, where cases are investigated within a week,
senior managers are called in to decide on the action to be
taken.
Said the company's managing director, Mr Lim Chong Boo: "We give
anything from taxi vouchers to flowers. And in the case of
vouchers, we give a token sum which may exceed the fare paid by the
passenger."
He hopes that customers tip cabbies, but does not want drivers to
feel they are entitled to tips.
The general manager for Smart Automobile's rental cars and taxi
services, Mr Niki Ong, agreed.
"We do not want to give the impression that if you don't tip you
won't get good service," he said.
As for complaints, marketing staff from Smart arrange a meeting
with customers to get their side of the story and go armed with
company souvenirs, hampers and even champagne.
Mr Ong recalled the most severe case, in which a passenger called
to complain after she and her grandchildren were left on the
expressway by a cab driver. The cabby was unsure of the
route.
"We found it was the cabby's fault and after giving her a few days
to calm down, we presented her with a hamper of gifts to show we
were sincere in providing her with good service," said Mr Ong.
