TNVS drivers warned vs ‘unjustified’ cancellations
In response to mounting complaints from commuters, the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) on Thursday issued a memorandum that will penalize drivers of ride-hailing services who cancel bookings without a valid reason.
This as the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) urged commuters to use these app-based services instead of driving their own vehicles during during the holiday season to avoid accidents that could worsen traffic, especially in Metro Manila.
Under LTFRB Memorandum Circular No. 2025-055, drivers of transport network vehicle service (TNVS)—or ride-hailing services like Grab, inDrive, OWTO, Joyride, Angkas, among others—who unjustifiably cancel a booking that was already accepted and confirmed will be committing a violation classified as “refusal to convey passengers.”
This is the first time that the LTFRB explicitly categorized booking cancellations under this violation.
However, it made exceptions for natural calamities, car maintenance issues and “passenger behavior.”
In a statement, the agency said refusing to convey passengers is considered a violation under Section IV.2 of Joint Administrative Order 2014-01 of the Department of Transportation.
Fines range from P5,000 for the first offense; P10,000 for the second offense and the impounding of the vehicle for 30 days; and P15,000 for the third and subsequent offenses, plus the cancellation of their certificate of public convenience.
Numerous complaints
LTFRB Chair Vigor Mendoza said the memorandum was issued in response to “numerous complaints of commuters about the rampant booking cancellations in areas with traffic jams, and in anticipation with the same modus for the holiday season.”
“The effect of the sudden and shameless booking cancellations of TNVS [drivers] is huge because we are talking about the importance of a passenger’s time, which may be compromised by such a modus,” Mendoza said in the statement.
“This is also a matter of safety and welfare of the passengers because it involves hope of convenience and all of a sudden, the booking is canceled. What if it also involves emergency situations, and then they would just cancel for no reason,” he added.
Under the memo, the LTFRB said cancellation would be penalized if it was done to avoid “short distance” or “nonprofitable” trips in favor of a higher fare charge, or when it involves discrimination against passengers, especially senior citizens, persons with disabilities and other members of vulnerable sectors.
Drivers who cancel a booking while already in transit will also be penalized if done without a valid reason.
Mendoza added that the LTFRB will also be looking into the log systems of transport network companies (TNCs) to determine whether drivers showed deliberate refusal to serve certain areas, time periods or passenger profiles without just cause.
To implement this, the agency will require TNCs to submit a monthly report containing the number and/or percentage of booking cancellations initiated by drivers, passengers and the system.
TNCs will also be required to submit a list of drivers “with unjustified cancellations,” alongside the corresponding actions that were undertaken by the company.
For companies who fail to submit the required report, and are unable to monitor and take corrective actions against erring drivers with repeated unjustified cancellations, the LTFRB said penalties will include “imposition of fines, suspension or cancellation of accreditation.”
MMDA Chair Romando Artes encouraged those who are attending parties this holiday season to just use ride-hailing services.
The advice was also addressed to those who drive, stressing that driving after a drink would only make them more prone to accidents that would in turn worsen traffic congestion.
According to Artes, the MMDA has recorded 43 vehicle collisions in the metro on Friday last week in just four hours.
Vehicle volume this month has already swelled by 5 percent to 10 percent from the monthly average, he added.
The volume spiked during the first two weeks of December, with the average speed of vehicles on Epifanio de los Santos Avenue (Edsa) going down to just 11 kilometers per hour from the usual 17 kph to 20 kph.
An earlier study by the MMDA showed that a single car figuring in an accident and not immediately moved can cause a traffic queue 2-km-long within 30 minutes.
