Maxim Ride App Drivers

[sqwakvfr]

I stopped using Grab because I was overcharged last month without explanation.  It did take 3 weeks to get the overcharge amount refunded.  As usual no expalnation. no admission of anything and of course no apology.  That is that for Grab rides.

 

I started using Maxim and in the beginning things were fine.  For the last two rides this is the process:  3 to 5 drivers take the ride and then cancel.  Today the first 5 drivers took the ride from Central Airport to Nimman Soi 12 and then canceled.  The 5th driver was stationary on the Kad Luang side of the mall and I was on the Top Markets side on Mahidol road.  My location was clearly visible on the Maxim application map.  This driver called me and asked two questions: Where are you and how many people?  I replied on the Tops Market entrance side and one.  She then replied "forget you" and canceled.  OK, TiT and "welcome to the land of smiles" (555).  I finally got a driver to take my request for ride.  This was the 7th driver.  I have no idea what is going on now with Maxim drivers. The 7th driver was actually polite and courteous.  The service was good and this has became a rarity for me in CNX. 
 

[richard_smith237]

8 minutes ago, sqwakvfr said:

I stopped using Grab because I was overcharged last month without explanation.  It did take 3 weeks to get the overcharge amount refunded.  As usual no expalnation. no admission of anything and of course no apology.  That is that for Grab rides.

 

I started using Maxim and in the beginning things were fine.  For the last two rides this is the process:  3 to 5 drivers take the ride and then cancel.  Today the first 5 drivers took the ride from Central Airport to Nimman Soi 12 and then canceled.  The 5th driver was stationary on the Kad Luang side of the mall and I was on the Top Markets side on Mahidol road.  My location was clearly visible on the Maxim application map.  This driver called me and asked two questions: Where are you and how many people?  I replied on the Tops Market entrance side and one.  She then replied "forget you" and canceled.  OK, TiT and "welcome to the land of smiles" (555).  I finally got a driver to take my request for ride.  This was the 7th driver.  I have no idea what is going on now with Maxim drivers. The 7th driver was actually polite and courteous.  The service was good and this has became a rarity for me in CNX. 

 

I never have any issues with ride hailing apps in other countries that have them... (of the countries I visit).

 

... except for Thailand and Turkey... whereby for whatever reasons a certain characteristic often surfaces...  one where they expect the customer to make it more convenient for them, there is an outright scam running, or the services is often tarnished by a sense of entitlement in the individual service provider. 

 

 

I've lost count of the amount of times I've ordered a Grab or Bolt here... and the driver accepts the ride only to not move at all for an extended period of time... until it becomes obvious to me that they are not infact 'wanting to take the ride' but are forced to take x amount of riders per hour or face some sort of penalty such as loosing their 'service points' etc...   So, they wait us out, and for 'us' to cancel as if they cancel too often, they lose a degree of their rating.

 

... It turns the whole system into a farce... 

 

 

 

 

[sqwakvfr]

1 minute ago, richard_smith237 said:

 

I never have any issues with ride hailing apps in other countries that have them... (of the countries I visit).

 

... except for Thailand and Turkey... whereby for whatever reasons a certain characteristic often surfaces...  one where they expect the customer to make it more convenient for them, there is an outright scam running, or the services is often tarnished by a sense of entitlement in the individual service provider. 

 

 

I've lost count of the amount of times I've ordered a Grab or Bolt here... and the driver accepts the ride only to not move at all for an extended period of time... until it becomes obvious to me that they are not infact 'wanting to take the ride' but are forced to take x amount of riders per hour or face some sort of penalty such as loosing their 'service points' etc...   So, they wait us out, and for 'us' to cancel as if they cancel too often, they lose a degree of their rating.

 

... It turns the whole system into a farce... 

 

 

 

 

Yes. I have seen the "driver not moving " after accepting the riide request many times.  Do these driver not realize that the customer can see the map? 

[richard_smith237]

5 minutes ago, sqwakvfr said:

Yes. I have seen the "driver not moving " after accepting the riide request many times.  Do these driver not realize that the customer can see the map? 

 

I think they really don't care... 

 

Just a few weeks ago, I was with my Son, late at night (about 10pm) after watching the football. 

 

We'd taken the BTS out of the high-traffic area to avoid taxi-congestion... but it was proving difficult to get a Grab or a Bolt...

 

We walked 10mins up the road, out of the way... and tried again.

 

- we had on driver - about 50m up the road on the opposite side accept the ride. 

- we waited, waited, waited...  no movement, the roads were clear.

- I cancelled the booking and tried again. 

- the same driver accepted the ride, we waited, waited, waited - I could see the car parked up (and MG ZS), no movement, and I didn't want to cross the road with my Son as it was fairly clear and the traffic was moving quickly.

 

I ended up using a different app, and waiting another 15 mins for a vehicle to arrive from a few KMs away.

 

 

 

Its a real shame that a 'taxi driver mindset' seems to have slipped into many of those driving for these apps. 

[georgegeorgia]

10 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

 

I think they really don't care... 

 

Just a few weeks ago, I was with my Son, late at night (about 10pm) after watching the football. 

 

We'd taken the BTS out of the high-traffic area to avoid taxi-congestion... but it was proving difficult to get a Grab or a Bolt...

 

We walked 10mins up the road, out of the way... and tried again.

 

- we had on driver - about 50m up the road on the opposite side accept the ride. 

- we waited, waited, waited...  no movement, the roads were clear.

- I cancelled the booking and tried again. 

- the same driver accepted the ride, we waited, waited, waited - I could see the car parked up (and MG ZS), no movement, and I didn't want to cross the road with my Son as it was fairly clear and the traffic was moving quickly.

 

I ended up using a different app, and waiting another 15 mins for a vehicle to arrive from a few KMs away.

 

 

 

Its a real shame that a 'taxi driver mindset' seems to have slipped into many of those driving for these apps. 

We can't be too judgemental ,they have to maximise their profit 

Personally I always walk to them when I see them stopped on a map somewhere 

I caught one earlier this year parked up waiting for me to cancel so he could get the cancellation fee 

A quick tap on the window and fly zipper down and Raji was off 

[bradiston]

I used Maxim extensively in Philippines. They're more than 50% cheaper than trikes. But you do have to bear with them as the trikes are a mafia and have got City Hall to post signs saying no pickup within 50m of a trike station for a whole array of hail and ride services, including taxis and Maxim. Often they cancel because they don't want trouble. So they park 30m away out of sight of the trike drivers. I saved a small fortune using them. They always had a spare helmet. But insurance? No idea.

[Caldera]

I really can't fault Grab. I use Grab all the time and mostly without any issues. One time a driver was dumb enough to overcharge me for toll fees. I reported him and got a refund and an apology without fuss. Help them kick out the bad apples and that's what they'll do!

[Dionigi]

stopped using maxim as their mapping system is rubbish. They could never locate where I was I had to walk a kilometer one afternoon just to find somewhere that appeared on their map.

[Old Curmudgeon]

I think there is another aspect to this that hasn't been mentioned yet.

 

I've discussed this situation -- accept, then cancel, or maybe not moving -- with drivers from Grab and LineMan. 

I expect similar applies to Maxim, but not sure.

 

Every driver has told me the same thing:

On their app (drivers' app) they do not see destination until after they accept the ride. 

Only then do they know where they are supposed to go.

And that's the rub.

 

Drivers going anywhere always think ahead to their next trip from there.

If your ride request is to some out-of-the-way location, or at a time of high traffic jams, they don't want it. 

More income for them if they stay in an area with lots of passengers moving in all directions.

Can't fault them for thinking like that.

 

They have two options: cancel on their app, or not move and hope I cancel on my side.

 

My solution to the problem:  patience, lots of patience, and keep trying.

Is there a better way?

 

Well, yes I think there is: give drivers a big tip.

Drivers rate us, just like we rate them.

Giving a big tip gives you, the passenger, a good rating that shows up on their app.

Drivers are more likely to accept and actually come to pick you up if you have a good rating and they might get a generous tip.

 

So, especially when going to out-of-the-way locations, I always tip very well.

 

The Cheap Charlies reading this won't like that suggestion, but I'll be in the car and on my way while they are still waiting, waiting, waiting for a ride.

 

 

Edited Friday at 09:21 PM by Old Curmudgeon

[sqwakvfr]

1) I live in the middle of the city.  My usual destinations are major malls in the city or the airprot.  

2) I used to always tip Grab drivers.  No more.

3) The same problem still persists with Grab and now Maxim.  

[amexpat]

Maxim, Bolt, the countdown goes for example:
Will arrive in 7 minutes.
5 minutes later - will arrive in 5 minutes
later - will arrive in 1 minute
3 minutes later - will arrive SOON
eventually arrives

[sqwakvfr]

3 hours ago, amexpat said:

Maxim, Bolt, the countdown goes for example:
Will arrive in 7 minutes.
5 minutes later - will arrive in 5 minutes
later - will arrive in 1 minute
3 minutes later - will arrive SOON
eventually arrives

Soon can be a long time.  I looked at the map on my last ride and it took the driver 15 minutes to arrive and he started at 2 kilometers from the pickup point.  I know traffic is bad but "come on mab".  

[sqwakvfr]

Did a little experiment this morning comparing Maxim with InDrive.

 

Location: CNX-Nimman Soi 12

Destination: Pantip Plaza approximate distance of 4 Km

Time: 1030

 

1) Hailed on Maxim and the result was no drivers available.  I gave it 10 minutes and canceled.  Maxim asked "why"???

2) Hailed InDrive and the friendly female driver arrived in 4 minutes.

3) Cost was about the same:  Maxim was 75 Baht and InDrive was 71 Baht.

 

The conclusion was on this day and time InDrive was the better option. 

[john donson]

could it be you are FLAGGED or something? that nobody wants you?

[sqwakvfr]

1 hour ago, john donson said:

could it be you are FLAGGED or something? that nobody wants you?

Doubt that. I have been using Maxim for about 2 weeks and Indrive for 2 days. Was with Grab for 5 years and the last 3 to 4 months have been the worst But Grad Food Delivery still is very good. I would say Grab probably has me flagged because I  raised a stink for the 60% overcharge until it was resolved.  It took mutiple messages and mutiple screenshots of the overcharge before Grab settled the matter. It seemed like at first Grab did not believe me.  Hence i no longer use Grab for rides.

 

Also, one fo the Grab drivers showed me what he sees when he picks up a ride request.  The App on his end shows a customer rating.  Last time I checked mine was 5 stars.  This was because I always tipped. The drivers rate the passengers just as a passenger can rate a driver. As for Maxim the only rating option was a thumbs up or thumbs down.  No stars on Maxim.  

Edited 1 hour ago by sqwakvfr