‘Can’t you see me?’: Woman says taxi reversed into her in Punggol
A woman said she was hit by a reversing ComfortDelGro taxi while walking near Block 274B Punggol Place on July 25.
Stomper E, who is a tutor, said the incident happened at around 11.25am as she was on her way to a student’s home near Punggol Bus Interchange.
She was walking along a small road near the rubbish chute centres between Blocks 274B and 274C when a woman about a metre ahead of her boarded a taxi.
“She boarded while I continued walking towards my student’s place,” E told Stomp.
According to E, the taxi driver then reversed quickly.
“The uncle quickly reversed without checking. His taxi hit me on my side, I reacted fast and ‘leapt’ forward,” she alleged.
E said she asked the driver: “Can’t you see me?”
She then took photos of the taxi and its side following the incident to share with Stomp.
However, she claimed the driver neither lowered his window nor got out of the vehicle to check on her or apologise.
“He drove away immediately after I finished taking the pictures,” she said.
‘What if it was a young kid?’
E subsequently reported the incident to ComfortDelGro and lodged a police report online.
Police confirmed with Stomp that a report had been lodged and investigations are ongoing.
ComfortDelGro also sent E a message confirming that an investigation was ongoing. In its message, the company apologised for the “unpleasant incident” and thanked her for bringing it to its attention.
However, as of Aug 11, E claimed she had yet to hear back from the company.
“It’s so disappointing, you know,” she said.
E said she did not see a doctor at the time, as she believed she had only suffered a slight hit, but the incident left her concerned about the driver’s alleged actions.
“I’m not here to break a taxi driver’s rice bowl, but I am worried as to how can he take things lightly?” she said.
“Isn’t that a breach of duty of care to not check the rear-view mirror and side mirrors before reversing and driving off?”
She wondered what might have happened if, instead of her, the pedestrian had been a child or elderly person.
“What if it’s a young kid or an elderly citizen who cannot react as fast as me? Is he going to run over them?” she said.
When contacted, ComfortDelGro declined to comment.
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