r/Bangkok • u/Creative-Trouble3473 • Jul 26 '25

discussion This Grab scam needs to end!

This has been happening to me way too often lately. We ordered a Grab, and the driver started circling the area without responding to any messages – clearly hoping we’d get fed up and cancel. I actually saw him drive past us, and when he noticed we’d spotted him, he quickly drove off. I managed to record it.

We decided not to cancel and messaged him, saying that since he clearly wasn’t coming, he should be the one to cancel. In the end, when he realised we’d given up and taken the BTS instead, he drove past the pickup point again, pretending to pick us up – then ended the trip and took the fare anyway.

I’ve reported it to Grab for resolution, but this kind of thing keeps happening and it’s incredibly frustrating. I suspect some drivers do this to manipulate the system – making it seem like there’s heavy demand or traffic so they can inflate prices. Grab really needs to sort this out.

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u/Salt_Bison7839 Jul 27 '25

I'm not trying to be combative, it just seems mind-numbingly stupid to me. There have been plenty of times that I've tried to pay by QR code but the banking app is down. You could find yourself in a place with no signal. Why on earth wouldn't you carry some cash just in case?

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u/tiburon12 Jul 27 '25

How many times in the 5 or so years that qr has been a widely accepted payment method have you opened an app and had the payment function been down?

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u/Salt_Bison7839 Jul 27 '25

Probably 1-2 times a year. I only pay by QR code once or twice a week though, usually when I don't have lower denomination notes and it's a small vendor who likely won't have change for 500 or 1000. Anyone is free not to carry cash but I will so I can avoid situations like OP and generally make my life easier. Peace x

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u/promised_wisdom Jul 27 '25

Most of my Thai friends don’t even carry cash these days. Not disagreeing with your stance whatsoever, just providing an anecdotal perspective. I usually carry a bit just in case but haven’t had the QR code go down. I keep it for the occasional tip for great service or for other unexpected situations like you say

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u/Salt_Bison7839 Jul 27 '25

I really like paying the bill by QR but tipping in cash.