SINGAPORE — A first trip to Singapore for one woman quickly soured after an encounter with a Grab driver, who she said had missed her destination, refused to turn around and then drove recklessly, leaving her distraught and stranded with heavy baggage.

She detailed her supposed unfortunate experience with a Grab driver during her first visit here, in a TikTok video posted on Wednesday (Nov 1) titled Singapore: First Impression.

British-Czech model and actress Nicole Crewe who is based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, says in the video: “So I just got into Singapore, and I must say, first impression — very very bad.

“People are so rude!”

Ms Crewe recounted how she had booked a Grab ride to her hotel, but that the driver had missed her destination, ending up at a different location, which was roughly a five-minute walk away from the intended drop-off point. 

Despite explaining to the driver that she had heavy luggage, he repeatedly told Ms Crewe that she could “walk it”.

Upon her insistence that the Grab driver take her to her intended location, the driver allegedly told her: “I have another customer waiting. If you don’t get out right now, I’m going to drive with you to the next customer.”

After refusing her request to be dropped off at her hotel once more, the driver began driving off to his next destination. 

“And he starts driving recklessly, and I just start crying. I’m, like, fine, I will walk, whatever,” Ms Crewe said at the end of the video, visibly upset. 

The video quickly went viral, attracting more than 642,300 views, 18,300 likes, and 3,807 comments as of Friday afternoon. 

In response to TODAY's queries on Friday, Grab Singapore confirmed that investigations are ongoing after "feedback" was received from a passenger.

"Our driver-partners are expected to drop passengers off at the drop-off point indicated in the app.

"In the event that they do miss the drop-off point, they should drive the passenger back to the agreed drop-off point," it added. 

Many comments on the video talked about bad experiences with Grab drivers in Singapore, with some urging her to file a report. 

One user wrote: “I can feel you, madam. I also had a bad experience with (a) Grab driver. That was my first impression when I reached there for the first time.”

Another user shared an almost identical experience: “I experienced the same thing. Instead of dropping me off at the exact location, he asked me to just walk and it was like 10 minutes away. I PAID for it.”

A top comment with more than 1,290 likes read, “Don't forget to report that Grab driver later, ya. Stay strong”, to which Ms Crewe replied that she had already lodged a report against the driver. 

Other viewers were quick to reassure Ms Crewe that her experience with the Grab driver was an atypical occurrence. 

One wrote: “Take care. There are some stressed-out people. Singapore is a lovely place and they are definitely not all like that.”

Another wrote: "I've been (to Singapore) heaps and never (had) that experience. I find them (Singaporeans) usually happy and helpful. Sorry for what happened!!" 

Someone called for fairness, writing: "There is more to this story, I have had nothing but truly amazing experiences in Singapore."

The video was also posted on a thread on online forum Reddit, where some users shared deeper insights. 

One Redditor explained that, unlike private-hire drivers in other countries, Grab drivers in Singapore would likely not assist customers with handling luggage, since it is not a requirement of their job.

“Singapore customer service is not nice for real. Especially compared to neighbouring countries. If they don’t have to do something, they won’t do,” the person said.

“Fair, but I prefer nicer customer service.”

TODAY has reached out to Ms Crewe for comment.