The upcoming Budi95 quota adjustment, which will see the 300 litre monthly quota for RON 95 petrol under the Budi Madani RON 95 fuel subsidy programme being temporarily adjusted to 200 litres a month – at the present subsidised rate of RM1.99 per litre – from April 1 will not impact e-hailing drivers, as their monthly quota of 800 litres will remain in place.
The retention of that quota has drawn a mixed response from different e-hailing groups. Sahabat E-hailing Malaysia (SEM) believes that the 800-litre amount is insufficient for high-mileage drivers, some of which consume up to 40 litres of petrol a day, forcing them to pay the unsubsidised market rate for RON 95 after exhausting their quotas before the end of the month.
As such, the group has urged the government to review the subsidy mechanism for e-hailing, the New Straits Times reports. “Even before the Middle East conflict, e-hailing drivers were facing a dire financial situation as fares were inadequate to cover operating costs. Now, some are forced to pay for unsubsidised RON 95 starting from the middle of the month after hitting their limit,” SEM said in a statement.
The group criticised the different eligibility criteria and quotas set for e-hailing drivers, diesel-based vehicles and airport taxis. It said using the previous month’s travel record as a prerequisite to determine a quota was unfair. “The requirement for e-hailing drivers to meet a minimum travel distance is a biased policy that primarily benefits service provider companies,” it said.
Under the current tiered system, e-hailing drivers must clock over 5,000 km a month to qualify for the maximum 800-litre quota. Those covering between 2,000 km and 5,000 km receive 600 litres, while those under 2,000 km are entitled only to the base quota.
The group said many drivers risked losing their additional quotas because the eligibility criteria failed to account for unforeseen circumstances, such as losing access to their vehicle through accidents or vehicle breakdowns. “By April, more drivers are expected to lose their additional quotas because they could not meet trip requirements during the Ramadan and festive period,” it added.
Separately, another group says the government’s decision to maintain the monthly ceiling of 800 litres for e-hailing drivers and gig workers is a timely move to stabilise operating costs, Bernama reports.
Malaysian E-hailing Coalition (GEM) chief activist Masrizal Mahidin said the move to retain the 800-litre quota is expected to boost demand for e-hailing services. “The temporary quota adjustment is expected to encourage more users, especially in urban areas, to opt for e-hailing instead of using their own vehicles, thereby creating opportunities for higher income among drivers,” he said.
Masrizal added that maintaining the quota for e-hailing and gig workers provides immediate relief to drivers, but stressed the need for long-term solutions to address global oil price uncertainties. He proposed a more comprehensive approach be explored, including supporting the gradual transition of the e-hailing sector to electric vehicles (EVs) to reduce the dependence on petrol.
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Who supposed to bear cost for e-hailing ? the company supposed to bear the cost and reward driver with additional for their time and vehicle useage. Govt is not responsible for e-hailing company cost !!!… if govt continue to subsidise e-hailing, then govt is indirectly rewarding e-hailing company with subsided fuel cost.
by right e-hailing should bear the fuel cost !!!
correct !!!
was gonna write the same !. grab just recently acquired foodpanda taiwan, so they make tonnes of monies on government subsidies.
When living cost naik
Gaji akan naik juga
Sabarlah sikit
Fake promises remain unfulfilled by fake gomen
what is not fake is your childish immaturity.
high mileage group of e-hailing driver should upgrade their ride to super fuel efficient car or and PHEV car
remember tha subsidised Petrol/Diesel given to Fisherman. They SOLD the “Couponds” to symdicate. Then “EASY MONEY” from the Gvon , which became a “Must” ???
800 liters with RM2 profit per liter = 1600 profit per month. thats still below poverty line, kesian those grab drivers who sell their 800l quota as they are still below minimum wage so gomen should help these smugglers by increasing the quota to 1000 liters.
Nah…this is BS.
Almost all.of us drives to earn money. Its just like when i am driving to work everyday….its to earn money at the end of the month.
If the fare increases, so be it. The industry will adapt itself. Gomen does not have to bear everything for the sake of it. I dont see major factories begging for more tax exemption.
e-hailing will become the new ‘taxi’ gangster/cartel.
What a load of rubbish.. in any business, even the gig economy, you are responsible for your operating expense. Tongkat mentality is truly entrenched in some Malaysians.
E-hailing is becoming just as bad as regular taxis these days. Arrive at KLIA during peak hours and see. No Grab driver wants to do regular drives and Just Grab. They’ll force you to take premium service although the vehicle is just a crappy Bezza. And the cost ends up being just 10 bucks cheaper than the regular airport limo taxi. Same goes for short haul trips. It’s increasingly common for drivers to turn down 5-minute trips. A JustGrab to a mall 5 minutes away used to cost just RM6. Nowadays there won’t be regular drivers available, only premium drivers with crappy cars, making you pay RM20-30 for that 5-minute ride.
This is what happens when Grab is a monopoly and there’s no choices.
well said…it’s like becoming the taxi days of yesteryears!
Silly group still demanding higher quota. They should just transition to cheapest EV, it’s more efficient in start-stop city traffic than petrol cars
Please, upgrade your thinking rather than forever relying on others/govt to keep u alive. Useless ppl..
sg grab has more benifit than bolehland, management blood sucking
High mileage user like salesman
Company gotta apply
Petrol card laa
then use LRT / bus instead!
Count your blessings. Malaysia only Asean country have oil a plenty, high subsidy, no fuel rationing. Iran also letting Malaysian ships thru’ the straits. With so much good things, yet some people want to complain this and that.
800 liters should be enough to drive 12,000km . are you telling me got people exceed 140k km in one year ? i find that difficult to believe.
Too young too naive
so can you give some example of how someone can rack up over 140k km annual mileage in a car?
when the difference is RM1.80, no one is enough, give me 100000 liter, i can use it all.
800L how to ensure none is smuggled?
40 litres a day? Either the bullshit is a rolls royce doing 5km/L or a Bezza with 20km/L a day. So a bezza doing 800km job every day? 24 thousand km a month?
Come on..the logic thing is ehailing drivers won’t use car thar consume high on petrol. Definitely not anything above 2.0 (unless in genting some mitsubishi outlanders, don’t know how they survive that). Most probably economical small cars like axia, myvi, bezza and saga.
Unless one spent a lot of time waiting for passengers in a car with engine running for aircond, yes… that may take 40 litres a day. But again, e hailing drivers are not that stupid to waste a lot of money on engine idling.
Most drivers will use anything between 10-15 litres and that would be good to earn around rm200 per day, depending on trips and the distance each.
Insufficient kepala hotak hang. You are using tax payers subsidies to make money for yourself and still want to demand more.
there is saying…..orang bagi betis, dia nak peha. be thankful for what you get. the govt doesnt even need to give 1.99 petrol…even our unsubsidised petrol is the cheapest in the region. stop complaining and say thank you la
Ramadhan and Raya those e-hailing drivers go for holiday, it is their problem. why need ask for more? no work and still want to enjoy benefits.
800L if 1L=15km….12000km…according to grab earning…12000km x 2.5? RM30k….in theory la….if half of it atleast get RM15k per month…no wonder all go for grab
why should we bear your high cost? why should i pay for ehailing customer?