SINGAPORE, Nov 3 — A first trip to Singapore for one woman quickly soured after an encounter with a Grab driver, whom she said had missed her destination, refused to turn around and then drove recklessly, leaving her distraught and stranded with heavy baggage.
A TikTok video posted by Kuala Lumpur-based British-Czech model and actress Nicole Crewe on Wednesday (November 1) titled “Singapore: first impression”, detailed her supposed unfortunate experience with a Grab driver during her first visit here.
“So I just got into Singapore, and I must say, first impression — very very bad,” Crewe begins, “People are so rude!”
Crewe explained that she had booked a Grab ride to her hotel, but that the driver had missed her destination, ending up at a different location, which was roughly a 5-minute walk away from the intended drop-off point.
Despite explaining to the driver that she had heavy luggage, he repeatedly told Crewe that she could “walk it.”
Upon Crewe’s insistence that the Grab driver take her to her intended location, the driver allegedly told her: “I have another customer waiting. If you don’t get out right now, I’m going to drive with you to the next customer.”
After refusing her request to be dropped off at her hotel once more, the driver begins driving off to his next destination.
“And he starts driving recklessly, and I just start crying. I’m like, fine, I will walk, whatever,” Crewe said at the end of the video, visibly upset.
The video of her experience quickly went viral, attracting more than 642,300 views, 18,300 likes, and 3,807 comments as of this afternoon.
@nicolecrewe So so so so bad... I miss my beloved Malaysia so much. #singaporetiktok #singaporetrending #singaporelife #rudedriver #fyp #foryoupage #foryou original sound - Nicole
In response to TODAY’s queries today, a spokesperson for Grab Singapore confirmed that investigations are ongoing after “feedback” was received from a passenger.
“Our driver-partners are expected to drop passengers off at the drop-off point indicated in the app.
“In the event that they do miss the drop-off point, they should drive the passenger back to the agreed drop-off point,” the spokesperson said.
Many comments on the video echoed her bad experience with Grab drivers in Singapore, with some urging her to file a report.
One user wrote: “I can feel you madam. I also had a bad experience with their Grab driver. That was my first impression when I reached there for the first time.”
Another user shared an almost identical experience: “I experienced the same thing. Instead of dropping me off at the exact location, he asked me to just walk and it was like 10 minutes away. I PAID for it.”
A top comment with over 1,290 likes wrote: “Don’t forget to report that Grab driver later ya. Stay strong,” to which Crewe replied that she had already lodged a report against the driver.
Other commenters were quick to reassure Crewe that her experience with the Grab driver was an unlikely occurrence.
“Take care. There are some stressed-out people. Singapore is a lovely place and they are definitely not all like that,” wrote one user.
“I’ve been (to Singapore) heaps and never (had) that experience. I find them (Singaporeans) usually happy and helpful sorry for what happened!!” agreed another.
One commenter called for fairness, writing: “There is more to this story, I have had nothing but truly amazing experiences in Singapore.”
The video was also posted to a Singaporean subreddit, where some users shared deeper insights.
One Redditor explained that, unlike private hire drivers in other countries, Grab drivers in Singapore would likely not assist customers with handling luggage, as it is not a requirement of their job.
“Singapore customer service is not nice for real. Especially compared to neighbouring countries. If they don’t have to do something, they won’t do,” wrote the Redditor.
“Fair, but I prefer nicer customer service.”
TODAY has reached out to Crewe for comment. — TODAY
