MANILA, Philippines — Following the Philippine Competition Commission's order for not meeting commitments on price cap and price cancellations, Grab Philippines on Thursday said it will start to refund select users on December 31.
In a statement, the ride-hailing giant said a refund of P1 will be given to those riders who booked a GrabCar ride in Metro Manila:
- For every P1,200 total fares booked from February 10 to May 10
- For every P450 total fares booked from May 11 to August 10
"As approved and ordered by the PCC, the passenger disbursement is computed from the proportion of the total fare of the passenger incurred within the time period, multiplied by the total fine to be disbursed," Grab explained.
Those eligible for refund "may claim their disbursements through the GrabRewards catalog," it added.
GrabRewards is a program where riders earn points that they can exchange for items, freebies, or rebates.
In compliance with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Bank regulations, they will be asked to complete a Know Your Customers (KYC) process before they claim their refund.
Complying with the KYC process would required the rider to provide name, email address, date and place of birth, nationality, address, and ID type and number.
Last December 18, PCC slapped the ride-hailing giant with P16.15-million fine for violating its price and service quality commitments from May to August.
Broken down, the antitrust agency said Grab should pay P14.5 million after its price surges went beyond the cap set by regulators, and P2 million for exceeding the allowed driver cancellations to 7.76% instead of the committed 5%.
In November, PCC also ordered Grab to refund P5.05 million to its customers after it found the company violated its pricing commitments. It also ordered Grab to pay a P23.45 million fine.
Grab earlier committed to give its customers the rebates no later than Feb. 10, 2020.
It also maintained that its pricing is compliant with the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board fare matrix, adding that lack of supply and “worsening” traffic condition caused the deviation from its commitments.