Taxi-hailing service Bolt has announced plans to work with the Directorate of Criminal Investigations to verify the details and backgrounds of new drivers signing up on the app.
While hailing apps usually require new drivers to have a certificate of good conduct from the police, Bolt is looking to tighten any loose ends by involving the DCI.
The company says it will block any driver with a criminal past.
“To further bolster ride safety, Bolt has also strengthened its drivers screening processes and is closely monitoring drivers for criminal offences in real-time, conducting periodic inspection of their vehicles and also providing them with safety training on how to recognise, avoid, or calm potentially violent situations,” Bolt country manager Ola Akinnusi said.
Bolt says it has also improved its customer support to enable better access and improve customer experience.
“We’ve up-scaled our safety features and policies guidelines on our platform that are easily accessible from the app’s home screen such as the driver and rider SOS button, giving drivers and riders a quick way to contact first responders in the event that something goes wrong during a Bolt trip,” Mr Akinnusi said.
Bolt also upgraded the SOS emergency button, embedded with an emergency tracking device and auto location trailing features for security purposes.
It has also included a single tap booking and canceling feature and re-enforced its 24/7 in-app customer support services to improve customer experience.
