In life-threatening emergencies, be flexible in enforcing rules governing child seats

Last month, I faced a child emergency, but a Grab driver refused to take me and my son — then nine months old — to the accident and emergency department, claiming that transport regulations forbade her from doing so.

On July 24, my son ingested some egg white for the first time, which caused an adverse allergic reaction that did not subside. He did not display such symptoms when he consumed an egg yolk before.

As my husband was at work and I had no one to turn to, I immediately booked a ride via JustGrab, Grab’s fixed-fare service, which was the fastest option on the app.

When the driver arrived, she glanced at me and my son, and said she could not take us to the hospital, as Ministry of Transport regulations disallowed it.

She drove off and cancelled my booking despite seeing the state my child was in.

Fortunately, another driver accepted my booking and took us to the emergency unit of Mount Alvernia Hospital.

I understand that children below 1.35m must use a child restraint when travelling in private-hire cars. I could not take my own child seat along, as it was in my husband’s car.

I hope the Government and Grab can show flexibility in life-threatening emergencies.

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