It’s been three years since Uber first came to Sri Lanka. In that time, the ride-hailing giant has been updating and localizing its offerings. Earlier this year, the company launched tuks and introduced its food delivery service to Colombo. Now as the year ends, the company is introducing its Global Safety Toolkit and an insurance program for both drivers and riders in Colombo.
This Safety Kit is a series of features that aim to make your Uber ride safer. One of these is a collection of safety tips, which you can view once your ride starts. Additionally, as a rider, you can also assign five people as trusted contacts. So whenever you take a trip, these 5 people would receive a notification. Additionally, the company is also aiming to launch an SOS button, which would allow you to instantly dial 119.
Uber introduced a series of safety features and an insurance program locally for both drivers and riders (Image credits: Gawker Media)
Alongside the Safety Kit Uber also launched an insurance program. This is done in collaboration with Allianz Insurance Lanka and is offered freely. This means in the event of an accident, both drivers and riders receive complementary coverage for accidental death, permanent disablement and hospitalization.
Speaking at the launch event, Prabhjeet Singh – Uber South Asia Head of Cities said, “To reiterate our commitment to this market, we have launched our ‘Safety Toolkit’, with its inbuilt emergency button, and no cost insurance coverage for riders and drivers while using the Uber App.” He added that Sri Lanka is the fastest growing market for its tuk trips in South Asia and that Colombo is the largest city in South Asia for those trips.
Uber is looking to introduce a feature to directly call the police through the app. However, PickMe has already implemented such features. (Image credits: CNBC)
Globally, Uber has been facing issues with customer safety. The ride-hailing giant hasn’t been safe from complaints locally either. Despite this, the safety kit and insurance program are welcome updates. Of course, one can argue that the company should’ve introduced such features sooner. After all, PickMe already implemented an SOS button and emergency contacts ages ago.
Of course, one could also argue that Uber has taken an extra step further with the insurance program. But we’d prefer to not see how it works first hand after an accident. Thankfully, our experience with the ride-hailing app has seen responsible drivers. Ultimately, it’s a positive step forward Uber has taken to introduce these features to keep both riders and drivers safe.
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