KUALA LUMPUR – E-hailing outfit inDrive has insisted that its drivers are not employees and are not associated with the company. This is because the company only provides the technology infrastructure for the vehicle aggregator service.
The company said this in response to an alleged assault on a passenger by one of their drivers.
Responding to a query from Scoop, inDrive also said that the company does not condone violence, misconduct or abuse by their drivers, adding that the safety of their users remains their top priority.
Reiterating their public statement yesterday, inDrive said that the driver involved in the assault has been permanently banned from using the platform.
The company also said that its application provides safety features and round-the-clock customer support.
“Despite our continuous efforts to ensure that our app will be safe for everyone, there are instances such as this current case that do not in any way define our commitment to providing a better app for our users,” inDrive told Scoop.
However, despite inDrive’s position that the safety of passengers is paramount, the company insists that it merely provides the technological infrastructure to connect drivers and passengers who make their own agreements.
Unlike other e-hailing companies, which set their own fares, inDrive allows passengers and drivers to negotiate prices.
“This also means that all these transport/logistics suppliers/drivers are not employees of inDrive and cannot be associated with us in any way as they provide their services as third-party independent contractors, subject to the terms of use available on our website,” inDrive added.
Despite inDrive’s public response to the assault incident, the victim issued a statement on Instagram refuting the company’s claim and labelling their actions as “doing the bare minimum”.
Although the company mentioned that they are providing passenger support via direct contact, the victim says that the company refused to answer her questions over email and evaded calls.
She says that inDrive pledged to provide the victim with the chat transcript between her and the company’s online chat assistant, but this has not been done.
“Why was I lied to multiple times?” the alleged victim said on social media.
Although inDrive pledged to institute policy changes, the company did specify the reforms after being queried by the victim. It purportedly told the victim that internal company matters were confidential as they may have an impact on their business.
The victim also claims she was told by inDrive that their support for her was done on a goodwill basis because the company is merely an intermediary connecting passengers to drivers.
“Thank you for the reminder, you don’t actually have to do anything but you’re doing me a favour.
“I feel much better now,” the alleged victim added.
According to an Instagram post by @mayahere3535, the victim was attacked after booking an inDrive ride from her home to Colony Star, KLCC, on June 13.
The police report filed on the same day says that the driver began scolding the victim after she requested that the driver avoid toll roads.
This prompted the victim to report the incident through the app’s chat support system.
Although the session ended prematurely and she was unable to provide all necessary details, the driver received a notification from inDrive regarding the complaint.
The driver allegedly stopped in the middle of the highway, assaulted the victim with a steel water bottle, and dragged her out of the vehicle.
The Instagram post claims that the perpetrator was brought to justice and fined RM2,000 over the incident.
This is not the first time inDrive has been embroiled in controversy, as the company was busted in Penang in 2020 for operating an e-hailing service without a licence.
Currently, inDrive operates with a licence from the Land Public Transport Agency, starting last year.
Meanwhile, Transport Minister Anthony Loke also said in May that his ministry has never allowed any e-hailing service provider to use the price bidding system for passengers in this country. – June 30, 2024