Leading ride-hailing platform Bolt has introduced a new safety feature, Trusted Contacts, aimed at strengthening passenger and driver security. This addition allows users to list friends or family members as emergency contacts, ensuring Bolt’s Safety Team can escalate urgent situations if the account holder is unreachable.
The Trusted Contacts feature is the latest enhancement in Bolt’s in-app safety toolkit, reinforcing its ongoing commitment to improving user security. This development is part of the company’s broader KES 14 billion investment in safety initiatives over the next three years.
With this new feature, both passengers and drivers can add multiple contacts, such as family members or close friends, who will be notified in case of an emergency. If Bolt’s Safety Team is unable to reach the account holder during critical incidents such as an Emergency Assist request or an unusual Ride Check alert, these trusted contacts will be contacted to help escalate the response.
This feature joins Bolt’s existing safety toolkit, including Ride Check, Share Location, and Emergency Assist, reinforcing the company’s commitment to a secure and reliable ride-hailing experience.
Speaking on the launch, Dimmy Kanyankole, General Manager of Bolt Kenya and Tanzania, emphasized the company’s commitpment to ensuring a secure ride-hailing environment.
“With Trusted Contacts, we aim to build on our existing efforts by ensuring we can quickly escalate a Ride Check notification or Emergency Assist request to a friend or family member if we can’t get a hold of the Bolt account holder. It’s part of our ongoing investment in safety through new products, features, and our dedicated in-house specially trained safety team, to ensure that we continue to improve the safety ecosystem of the Bolt app, offering drivers and riders a high-quality ride-hailing experience.”
The introduction of Trusted Contacts reaffirms Bolt’s commitment to passenger and driver safety, providing an added layer of security for users across Kenya and beyond. By integrating loved ones into critical safety measures, Bolt continues to build a platform that not only prioritizes convenience but also ensures peace of mind for all its users.
As the ride-hailing industry evolves, Bolt remains at the forefront of innovation, setting new standards for safety and reliability.