‘It's not mentioned in the Grab app that we can't pay with coins' — Customer argues with delivery rider as she insists on fully paying in coins

Independent Singapore

2 days ago

SINGAPORE: A Grab food order customer found herself in the middle of a stormy exchange with a GrabFood rider, all over some shimmery little troublemakers: coins.
The woman, who had opted for cash-on-delivery, insisted she had the full payment ready. The only catch was that it was entirely in coins.
'It's not mentioned in the [Grab] app that we're not supposed to pay in coins,' she said in a video posted to the PROFESSIONAL PHV DRIVERS SINGAPORE: G rab, Gojek, Tada n Ryde Facebook group and SGFollowsAll Instagram account, visibly annoyed when the rider refused to accept her shiny metallic offerings.
The GrabFood rider, clearly not in the mood to play cashier, just declined the customer: 'I do not accept coins,' he said, adding that '[according to] the Singapore Currency Law, we can only accept up to 10 pieces of coins for any cash transaction… because you're not Singaporean, you don't know about this Singapore currency law.'
Unimpressed, the customer shot back, 'Yeah, but is it mentioned in the [Grab] app?' before vowing to report the matter to Grab and check the law herself. 10 pieces of coins or 20?
According to a Stomp report, the woman later claimed she went to do her homework and found that the Currency Act allows merchants to reject more than 20 coins of the same denomination, not 10. She also clarified that she had used mixed denominations, implying the rejection was unfounded.
Online netizens poured into the comments section with opinions — and some spare change of their own. Many sided with the rider, saying customers should show more empathy for delivery workers who already face enough physical and mental challenges on the job.
Ng Gan Poh, president of the National Delivery Champions Association, told Shin Min Daily News that such incidents happen once or twice a year. The most extreme case he personally encountered involved a customer who paid S$60 entirely in coins, which weighed up to three kilograms.
'I had to count it quickly and later find ways to spend it myself, because depositing coins in the bank comes with a fee,' Ng explained.
That may sound like a weight-loss ad gone wrong, but it's a real burden for riders on the clock.
While he acknowledged that small amounts (under S$20) are manageable, anything beyond that becomes a logistical pain, especially for riders with physical limitations.
'But if the customer has a genuine reason, we understand,' Ng said. Ideally, 'we hope customers and delivery riders can be understanding and avoid causing unnecessary inconvenience to one another,' he added. 'Most people mix notes and coins — not just coins!'
Another seasoned rider, Zeng Guoshun, 52, echoed that sentiment.
'Most people mix coins and notes. It's rare to see someone pay entirely in coins,' Zeng said, as it's understandable that it may slow things down between deliveries.
Delivery riders operate on tight schedules — especially during peak hours — and even a short delay caused by coin-counting can lead to cold food, late deliveries, and angry customers in the next queue. So… what does the law really say?
According to Singapore's Currency Act, as reported by Mothership , it states that 20 coins per denomination per transaction in total are allowed. Therefore, a seller is only legally obligated to accept up to: 5 cents (20 pieces) = S$1
10 cents (20 pieces) = S$2
20 cents (20 pieces) = S$4
50 cents (20 pieces) = S$10
S$1 (20 pieces) = S$20
Total: S$37
So that's 100 coins in total across all five coin denominations that are limited for transactions.
Beyond that, it's legal for the seller — in this case, the rider — to refuse.
Apps like Grab do not always list payment guidelines in this level of detail, but many platforms reserve the right to allow their delivery partners discretion in accepting cash payments, especially in extreme or inconvenient scenarios. How can riders and customers work things out with some common 'cents'
What started as a payment scuffle became a teachable moment for many — about mutual respect, basic courtesy, and knowing the limits of your spare change. For customers: Just because you can pay in coins doesn't mean you should.
Just because you can pay in coins doesn't mean you should. For riders: Be kind, but don't carry someone else's baggage — or their piggy bank.
As the debate continues, one thing is clear: loose change isn't just a wallet issue. It's a weighty matter in more ways than one.
In other news, when a Tada passenger calmly asked the driver, 'So you will not increase the air-con for us?' did not get any hope for a breezy resolution and were quickly snuffed out instead.
The driver—clearly not in the mood for thermostat negotiations—responded with a sharp: 'Go ahead and get out!'
You can read about what happened next in this fiery exchange Tada-ride drama over here: 'Get out! Get out! This is my car, I'm asking you to get out!' — Tada driver ejects passenger for asking to 'increase air-con speed'