MANILA, Philippines – Netizens were angry at the bogus customer who did not claim the 14 cups of milk tea ordered through GrabFood, leading the driver to sell the items to passersby.
READ: GrabFood driver loses Php1,900 in 14 milk tea order from bogus customer
After the incident went viral, Grab Philippines assured customers that there’s no need for drivers to sell the unclaimed food because they are reimbursed the entire amount lost. The company also warned customers not to make prank orders, adding that penalties will be imposed to these accounts.
Grab Philippines reached out to The Summit Express to share the results of their investigation.
Here’s the full statement from Grab Philippines regarding the incident:
GrabFood Statement
Alleged Unclaimed GrabFood Order
September 28, 2019
We are investigating the incident concerning a GrabFood delivery-partner who had allegedly fallen victim to a case of a customer no-show. Reports state that he was trying to sell 14 unclaimed orders of milk tea to recover his losses.
Our initial investigation showed that the order was a cashless transaction. Therefore, the delivery-partner did not incur personal losses nor needed to use his cash to deliver the drinks. The cashless payment capability is currently available in select merchants and is being tested as a solution to limit the need for our delivery-partners to carry cash or working capital.
Since the incident happened, we have immediately reached out to the concerned parties. We wish to clarify that the transaction was unfulfilled due to language differences and miscommunication between the delivery-partner and the customer. After waiting for more than 20 minutes at the drop-off point, the delivery-partner proceeded to treat the transaction as a no-show but did not immediately surrender the drinks to Grab, as prescribed by Grab’s no-show and reimbursement policy.
Although late, attempts thereafter by the customer to claim the drinks fell through. Regardless, we have already reimbursed the customer and have compensated the driver for his time and effort.
We are investigating the incident beyond the facts collected so far, and necessary action will be taken if needed.
We would like to remind our delivery-partners that unclaimed orders are fully-reimbursed by Grab. We also encourage our customers to review their orders and ensure accuracy of delivery details before placing an order.
Cashless transactions
Responding to clamor from netizens for the company to find ways to ensure that their drivers don’t have to carry a lot of cash or make sure they have money to pay for the customers’ orders, Grab Philippines is testing cashless transactions.
“Through our Grab Pay system, people can order GrabFood through credit/debit card or GrabPay Credit. Like in transport - the amount is put on hold and charged upon successful booking,” a company representative told The Summit Express.
Based on their investigation regarding the viral incident, the driver did not have to shell out his own money because the customer had opted for a cashless transaction. However, to give the driver the benefit of the doubt, it was possible that he feared he won’t be paid his fee for the transaction if the order was dropped.
Processing the reimbursement
The company representative also clarified that reimbursements are immediately processed once the GrabFood driver reports the ‘no-show’ customer’s order. The driver will receive the full amount the following day.
As for the driver in the viral milk tea story, Grab Philippines compensated him for the time and effort he spent on the order.
— Joy Adalia, The Summit Express
READ: GrabFood driver loses Php1,900 in 14 milk tea order from bogus customer
After the incident went viral, Grab Philippines assured customers that there’s no need for drivers to sell the unclaimed food because they are reimbursed the entire amount lost. The company also warned customers not to make prank orders, adding that penalties will be imposed to these accounts.
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| Photo credit: Krizia de Lara / Facebook |
Grab Philippines reached out to The Summit Express to share the results of their investigation.
Here’s the full statement from Grab Philippines regarding the incident:
GrabFood Statement
Alleged Unclaimed GrabFood Order
September 28, 2019
We are investigating the incident concerning a GrabFood delivery-partner who had allegedly fallen victim to a case of a customer no-show. Reports state that he was trying to sell 14 unclaimed orders of milk tea to recover his losses.
Our initial investigation showed that the order was a cashless transaction. Therefore, the delivery-partner did not incur personal losses nor needed to use his cash to deliver the drinks. The cashless payment capability is currently available in select merchants and is being tested as a solution to limit the need for our delivery-partners to carry cash or working capital.
Since the incident happened, we have immediately reached out to the concerned parties. We wish to clarify that the transaction was unfulfilled due to language differences and miscommunication between the delivery-partner and the customer. After waiting for more than 20 minutes at the drop-off point, the delivery-partner proceeded to treat the transaction as a no-show but did not immediately surrender the drinks to Grab, as prescribed by Grab’s no-show and reimbursement policy.
Although late, attempts thereafter by the customer to claim the drinks fell through. Regardless, we have already reimbursed the customer and have compensated the driver for his time and effort.
We are investigating the incident beyond the facts collected so far, and necessary action will be taken if needed.
We would like to remind our delivery-partners that unclaimed orders are fully-reimbursed by Grab. We also encourage our customers to review their orders and ensure accuracy of delivery details before placing an order.
Cashless transactions
Responding to clamor from netizens for the company to find ways to ensure that their drivers don’t have to carry a lot of cash or make sure they have money to pay for the customers’ orders, Grab Philippines is testing cashless transactions.
“Through our Grab Pay system, people can order GrabFood through credit/debit card or GrabPay Credit. Like in transport - the amount is put on hold and charged upon successful booking,” a company representative told The Summit Express.
 |
| Photo credit: Krizia de Lara / Facebook |
Based on their investigation regarding the viral incident, the driver did not have to shell out his own money because the customer had opted for a cashless transaction. However, to give the driver the benefit of the doubt, it was possible that he feared he won’t be paid his fee for the transaction if the order was dropped.
Processing the reimbursement
The company representative also clarified that reimbursements are immediately processed once the GrabFood driver reports the ‘no-show’ customer’s order. The driver will receive the full amount the following day.
As for the driver in the viral milk tea story, Grab Philippines compensated him for the time and effort he spent on the order.
— Joy Adalia, The Summit Express
