Most reviewers were let down by their experience overall. Customers frequently complained that customer support was completely unhelpful, making it extremely difficult to reach a real person when urgent problems arose. Reviewers also reported frustrating delivery delays, unreliable ride bookings, and unexpected extra fees and charges added by drivers during trips.
Though some reviewers were not happy with major issues, a few other people felt that the application worked well for ordering food and booking rides during their travels. Consumers and passengers noted that certain drivers offered reliable transport, transparent pricing, and pleasant assistance throughout their journeys.
Unsafe vehicle, breakdown, and dismissive customer service
I had an extremely poor and stressful experience with a pre-booked Grab airport transfer in Bangkok on 5 March, and the way Grab handled the complaint afterwards was just as disappointing.
The car that arrived was clearly not safe. The trunk would not close and we spent about five minutes trying to force it shut. My luggage would not fit in the boot. Despite this obvious problem, the driver still attempted to start the journey.
About five minutes into the trip the car broke down completely. I was on the way to catch a flight, so this was incredibly stressful. A vehicle in this condition should never have been sent for an airport transfer in the first place — this was a clear safety issue.
To make matters worse, Grab was extremely difficult to contact. I had to spend around 15 minutes on the phone with support just to get the payment cancelled. The call had to be made from my Philippines number meaning the call charges alone cost more than the compensation Grab offered.
Because of the delay and the risk of missing my flight, I had to quickly arrange another car using a friend’s Grab account just to continue the journey.
After raising the issue with Grab, I was offered 100 Baht for the inconvenience. When I explained that the international phone call alone cost more than that, the response from Grab Support (agent Chanapa C.) was simply to refuse any additional compensation and state that the trip had been cancelled so it did not qualify.
In other words:
• An unsafe vehicle was sent for an airport transfer
• The car broke down minutes into the journey
• I had to spend time and money calling support to fix the issue
• I nearly missed a flight and had to find another car myself
…and Grab’s response was effectively “sorry for the inconvenience” and nothing more.
The customer service response felt dismissive and poorly handled, and the compensation offered does not even cover the cost of the phone call required to resolve their mistake.
Based on this experience, I would not trust Grab for airport transfers again. This showed poor vehicle standards, poor incident handling, and very disappointing customer support.
EXTORTION APP
Since 2024, this app is no longer reliable for serious travellers or executives. 🚨
Apparently Grab has the most ridiculous in-app function on Earth:
1) Generic bots ratings, most of their drivers have fake 5 star ratings
2) Rude drivers can behave badly but they could rate their passengers with low ratings for not tipping.
3) Money grabbing criminals. Passengers are EXTORTED to pay high tips or risk getting low ratings.
Grab is wanabe super-app but in reality it is an extortion app. If I’m still using it, I’m gathering evidences of their crimes along the way.
*1/5 stars - AVOID Grab Like The Plague 😡*
"Grab's services are a nightmare! 🚨
- *Exorbitant international trip charges*: Ridiculous fees for international debit/credit cards.
- *Advance booking scam*: Took advance payment and ghosted on refunds (45+ days and counting).
- *Customer care? What customer care? 🤦♂️*: ZERO response from support despite multiple tickets/emails.
Pathetic service. Won't recommend to anyone. 😤"
Charged me a 30,000 airport fee payable in cash to the driver - which defeats the logic of using a cashless taxi app.
Just spent 2 weeks in Vietnam. Used GRAB perfectly well till my last day when I took a GRAB taxi car to Ho Chi Ming airport. I had gotten rid of all my Vietnamese Currency at the hotel prior to booking a taxi.
On arriving at the terminal the driver demanded a 30 Dng(just under £1). airport fee. I said I only had a $20 USD note which he wouldn’t accept. He would t accept a credit card so we were at stalemate sitting in the car. As he couldn’t speak a word of English and neither could I speak Vietnamese it was difficult to see where this would end.
Eventually I hit the driver to accept a 50,000 VnD tip wit the Grab app
Lost an inexpensive but unreplaceable part during transport. Driver would not reply when I asked him to check. The piece was definitely there. Customer service was infuriatingly unhelpful, making idiotic suggestions like I should file a police report. They said they were unable to contact the driver...?! This is why these monopolistic gig companies need to be shut down. They can't compel drivers to do a simple thing like answer a lost-item question because they are not officially their employees, (to avoid paying them properly,) and they leave customers with no recourse.
Several red flags.
Accessing customer service is like accessing the “Wizard of Oz”.
They blindly charge you International credit card fees when YOUR card does NOT charge ANY additional fees when used abroad. This is a total money grabbing SCAM.
Grab Saver or discounted rides are always unavailable or delayed intentionally i suspect. Its ALWAYS the same.
When Grab works, its ok but those times when it works well are a rarity!
The last couple of times, Grab pulled a con job. Booked a ride, waited till the arrival time, the driver did not reach and wasnt moving from his location, so cancelled the ride but guess what, Grab charged a cancellation fee.
Had to uninstall the app because of such experiences!
Very poor access to customer service if you have a problem in Singapore - no phone number to speak to someone! Get ready to go back and forth with generic replies from customer service officers who don't care - exasperating. Day 3 now and still no progress.
Grab is a crime. It is unethically designed to exploit unsuspecting customers and grab all the money they have.
Passengers are unaware that the so-called 5 star drivers could rate the passengers with low rating simply because they refuse to tip or please the drivers.
Suspicious dodgy “5 star drivers”, unethical & illegal MOD drivers manipulating pricing. The app should be banned.
Driver accepted my request then message me to say unable pick up but he refused to cancel it. When I cancel and rebook. I was charged a cancellation fee which Grab management didn't refund but gave a credit with restrictive condition. Resulting I unable to use the credit and I conider I had been conned!!
System Glitch & Corporate Gaslighting: Grab Vietnam Charges for 'Ghost' Drivers
I booked an "Advance Booking" in Vietnam for a time-sensitive trip to the airport/hotel. Despite the app staying on the "Searching for Driver" screen for over 20 minutes, Grab is now refusing to refund a cancellation fee, claiming a driver had been assigned.
To be clear: No driver details (name, plate, or location) ever appeared on my app. Because of this technical failure, I was forced to hire a private hotel taxi at a high expense to avoid missing my connections. When I contacted support (Case: CAS-100050540661), I was met with a patronizing scripted response telling me to "select services that better align with my travel needs."
It is insulting to be blamed for using a service Grab actively markets as reliable, only for it to fail and then have the company "hallucinate" a driver in their logs to justify keeping a cancellation fee. This is a known "system desync" issue where the backend says one thing and the user interface says another.
Grab is essentially charging customers for their own technical glitches. If you value your time and your money, do not trust their "Advance" features. Use a local taxi or a competitor instead.
The epitome of Singaporean software negligence and failures. Grab is a negligent, monopolized, enshittified, adspace, shell of a corporation with the no customer support who will out of retaliation for any negative feedback blockade any payment methods. They are non existent and inconsistent, they make you wait for up to an hour for drivers with no updates. Their pricing is not transparent. I have never had so many issues with one company with payments, consistency, timeliness, transparency, integrity, or customer support in my life. SEA is dominated by Grab, and unfortunately for me, I have to deal with them every day I exist in Vietnam. I despise it. They have zero reliable safety checks. My Grab allowed over 30 minutes to pass when I didn’t check in on a GPS error which first of all is absurd, but second of all if I was in danger I would be dead. They have no customer support. Period. This is a subscription Adware, data eating, location stalking, malevolent app that can’t even reliably get you a car. I never have sat waiting for any transport in the rain for more than thirty minutes with a promise of “still looking” for a driver. Not even American public transportation has treated me with such vile and disparaging behavior. Grab, your loss of almost 50% market share to Xanh SM is a godsend for me, they give you a car, they let you pay, and they work and have a phone line to customer service. Singaporean software exports are competing to be the worst of the worst with customer service and Grab hits number one for me.
After leaving negative feedback in app and dropping a one star review all my payments mysteriously stopped working. 3DS verification failed on new cards. How coincidental.
Grab website site is very poor and glitchy. Their customer service is terrible and non existent. I would rate 0 stars if it were possible. Won’t be using this site again
Subject: Safety and Billing Concerns – Grab Service in Chiang Mai and Krabi
To the Grab Support Team,
When I first learned about Grab while traveling in Chiang Mai and Krabi, I was genuinely excited. I appreciated the idea of using a local transportation platform and contributing to the system and economy there. At the beginning, the service functioned smoothly.
However, that changed.
There are several unknown charges currently appearing on my account. I will be reviewing each charge carefully once I am fully settled back in the United States, and I will be disputing any fees that were unauthorized or unclear.
While many of the drivers were professional and kind, there were moments that raised serious safety concerns. Some motorbikes did not appear fully secure or properly maintained. Additionally, the most troubling issue was the inconsistency in your address system. There were instances where Grab did not properly recognize or map locations that Google Maps clearly identifies. For travelers, this is not a minor inconvenience. It is a safety issue.
It is unacceptable for customers to be charged extra fees without clear explanation. It is unacceptable for rides to be upgraded without consent. Transparency is essential.
The most concerning experience occurred in Krabi, where I was dropped off in a dark parking area. The driver parked at a distance, and we had to walk through a poorly lit space. The ride was later canceled. Situations like that can easily escalate into unsafe circumstances. Thankfully, nothing happened, but that does not minimize the risk involved.
I want to be clear: not all of my experiences were negative. Many were smooth and professional. However, safety and billing transparency are non-negotiable. Those standards must be consistent.
Please review your systems, your mapping accuracy, and your billing practices. If Grab positions itself as a reliable transportation platform, then safety and clarity must be prioritized at every level.
I will be reviewing my account thoroughly and expect transparency regarding all charges.
I hope meaningful improvements are made. Travelers rely on your service. Safety must come first.
Sincerely,
Angelic
Concerns Regarding Service Quality and Customer Protection
The quality of their transport services has noticeably declined. It is increasingly common for drivers to cancel bookings after passengers have already waited 10 minutes or more. There appears to be no effective safeguard to protect users from late-stage cancellations by drivers.
Similarly, for the food delivery service, customer support responses often default to “there’s nothing we can do” when merchants accept orders but fail to fulfill them. This reflects a lack of accountability within the business model and leaves consumers without adequate recourse when orders are not delivered.
If you experience any problems with your food, it’s very difficult to get a refund. Whether the food is too salty, poorly prepared, or even a health concern, they will just say it’s the store’s responsibility. Even though they earn from every order, they don’t take accountability when issues happen.
What if the food actually makes someone sick or leads to hospitalization? It feels like they wouldn’t even bother to take it seriously. That’s very concerning.
They also accept multiple deliveries at the same time, so if your order is delayed for over an hour, there’s no compensation. It feels like they only care about making money and don’t really listen to their customers.
Bolt
Uber
Gojek
Trip.com
Agoda
Booking.com
Shopee