Editor’s Note: Previous version of the article did not include Careem Pakistan’s statement.
Mobile-based cab service apps like Careem and Uber have made life a whole lot easy for Pakistanis. Hailing a ride from urban cities at any time has become all the more convenient and more than anything, women have been very forthcoming of the service. However, every now and then, we come across people experiencing major hiccups. One such issue was raised on social media recently.
Madiha, a food and lifestyle blogger, who runs a page called ‘Madsforfood’ on Facebook shared in a recent post the horrendous experience one of her close family members had to go through in a Careem ride they took on December 27, 2018.
A screenshot shows that a Careem was booked to go to the Daewoo Terminal at 6:30 am.
There was a continuous boisterous sound in the car. The captain justified the sound by blaming it on the gas tank, Madiha shared in the post.
When they reached their destination, the car stopped on its own. When the captain got out of the car to inspect what had happened, an explosion occurred, causing the passenger to hit their head and the car started rolling downhill, only to hit a van which later hit a truck.
“All this happened due to captain’s negligence of leaving the car without pulling the hand break on a busy road,” Madiha told MangoBaaz.
The next day, they went to Careem’s office in F-10. Madiha’s family was told a complaint would be filed against the captain by the staff.
Talking about the incident, here’s what Madiha had to say:
“It is appalling how the captain had no decency of informing the Careem office even though she had three phones with her at the time of the accident.”
Upon insisting that immediate action be taken, the family was asked to visit Careem’s office in G-9, where they were told the customer services representative from the Lahore office would get in touch with them.
“It is outrageous how the captain twisted the whole story in her favor,” Madiha said, while narrating how the captain allegedly lied about everything – from the booking time of the ride to the nature of the incident. Additionally, Madiha claims that the company sided with the captain completely.
In her post, she furiously states:
“We suffered an accident at the hands of a Careem driver yet she has not been fired, nor have we been compensated or even received any apology from Careem Pakistan over the events of that day. Please share [this] with all your friends & family who use Careem. Please beware and don’t get into cars that don’t seem to be operating well or into cars with drivers who seem to be inept at their jobs.”
You can read about the entire horrifying experience here:
MangoBaaz reached out to Careem Pakistan for a response and here is their official statement on the matter:
Safety of our Captains and Customers is an utmost priority at Careem and we have a full-time dedicated team to ensure this along with a 24/7 contact-center.
In reference to the case discussed in your article, it’s an unfortunate experience faced by the Captain and Customer. As soon as this incident took place, our Safety and Security teams were on grounds to investigate and offer support. As per our finding there was no blast. As per policy, Careem offers in-ride accidental medical coverage for injuries caused to both Captain and Customers.
What do you think about the incident? Let us know in the comments section below.
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Cover image via tahawultech.com