CONTENT COLLABORATION: MICROMOBILITY INDUSTRIES

Bird and Lime are back to sharing the top spot (4.84/5) as the best rated micromobility apps in September, a title that they shared in July while Bird claiming the top spot in August. Voi made the largest leap (1.3%) among all operators to claim a very close second spot (4.83/5). It is important to note that the Google Playstore ratings of Voi went from 3.9 in August to 4.7 in September.

Yulu and Voi improved their overall ratings by 1.3% while Wind and Beam dropped by 0.6%.

In the newly opened UK market, Voi and Lime are the top rated (4.9/5) followed by Tier (4.8/5).

Micromobility Industry average App Store rating: 4.78/5

The total number of app store reviews went up in September, by 108% compared to August numbers. Lime saw the biggest growth in activity (380%), followed by Dott (187%).

Overall five operators, Lime, Bird, Spin, Grin, and Voi, accounted for more than 90% of all international app store reviews last month. Lime had the highest number of ratings (57.2%).

Lime was also the most-reviewed app in several key markets, including the US, Germany, France and Spain. Voi saw the highest review activity in its home country, Sweden with a massive lead of 57.7% compared to Bird’s 15.4%). In France, Tier improved the percentage of ratings from 2.5% to 5.8% last month.

In September, the number of App Store reviews were above January levels for most operators. Maintaining a steady recovery, Lime is above January baseline for the first time in the last eight months – up 251%. Total number of reviews of Voi and Bird were up 96% and 48%. Grin’s app store reviews are still down by 98%, ending last in the list. Grin will continue to stay at these levels until there is significant improvement in the current COVID19 situation in South America. Tier, as in previous months, is way ahead of other operators, closing August at with 372% more reviews compared to January. Asia based Beam saw a massive 600% increase over January numbers.

Net Promoter Score

Net Promoter Score (NPS) is a scoring system for quantifying customer loyalty. Companies generally calculate NPS by asking customers to rate their level of satisfaction on a scale of 0 to 10. 

In a similar manner, App Stores ask their users to rate their level of satisfaction on a scale of 1 to 5.

Typically, on a 0 to 10, those who respond 9 or 10 are considered “promoters,” or enthusiasts who will keep buying and refer others; those who respond 7-8 are considered “passives,” customers who are satisfied but not overly enthusiastic; and those who respond 6 or less are considered “detractors,” or unhappy customers who could hurt the brand through negative reviews. 

To calculate NPS for the scooter apps, I applied the following method, trying to replicate the classic scoring system. 

  • Promoters (5)
  • Passives (4)
  • Detractors (1-3)

Click here to read more on the methodology.

In September, Lime continued to retain the top spot with a NPS score of 91.72, followed by Bird (89.97) and Beam (88.28).

Although Lime ranked the best globally, in some key European markets, local players scored higher in customer experience. In some of the largest markets in Europe like Germany and France and Italy, Voi had a higher NPS than Lime. On the contrary, in Sweden, both Bird and Lime scored higher than their European rivals. Lime led in the U.S (94), Spain (88), Portugal (90), New Zealand (92), South Korea (87) as well as Australia (93). Both in Australia, South Korea and New Zealand, smaller rival Beam is closing in on Lime with an NPS score of 91, 86 and 91 respectively. In UK, Lime took the top spot (93), closely followed by Voi (92).

Micromobility Industry average App Store based NPS Score: 89

User Reported Issues

Going through all user-reported issues from 150+ app stores, most comments from May fall into the following categories:

  • App Issue
  • Scooter Issue
  • Overcharging
  • Cost
  • Unable to Start Ride
  • Unable to End Ride
  • Customer Support

App Issue – 55%: Similar to the previous months, issues with the apps were the most reported, with a massive increase from 34% in August to 55% in September. Users reported trouble with signup, payment setup and annoying notifications among other things. Here are some of illustrative or interesting user comments:

My lime app will not unlock any of the lime scooters. The lime app continuously crashes every time I try to unlock a scooter. There are lots of lime scooters around me and I cannot unlock a single one to ride home. I have tried restarting the app as well as uninstalling and reinstalling the app again and the app still does not work.

Many Lime, Voi, Beam and Spin users mentioned issues related to ID card verification. It is interesting to note that Micromobility operators now verify users – indicating a new level of maturity in the market. Micromobility services started with allowing users to quickly hop on an e-scooter without spending much time on registration. In the last six months, we observed that operators moved to have quality rides – rides that result in a successful payment. They achieved this with applying a temporary hold on the credit cards before a ride. Now, operators moved to the next level, trying to have quality customers – verified for age, possession of a Driver’s license etc.

Here are some comments related to ID Verification.

All reviews already left are accurate. Couldn't ride due to your poor age verification... couldn't scan or input manually, and customer service couldn't even help! Poor process! Everything I use to sign in and pay already verifies your age. Bird is 100 times better!
Wouldn't accept my IL Driver's license barcode as ID. No "Add later" or "send photo" option, so sign-on would not proceed. Now they are writing me about "adding my credit card", but i could never get that far on app. Tried to load "state id" instead of IL DL at home, then tried both again on 2nd smartphone. Multiple fails & a waste of time. No app cust. service report/ reach-out options in app. Not a good experience. Lack of pricing info and deposit info in app notes is Predatory.
First of the app took ages to process my drivers license, so I uninstalled the app and reinstalled it, after reinstalling it wouldn't show my location or any scooters near by even after manually zooming in on the map.
Foreigners with a drivers license from their home country cannot sign up, so therefore cannot use the scooter in South Korea

Even after few months of issues related to passes, Lime did not fix those issues yet. This time, in addition to issues with day pass, there were new issues with Monthly Pass.

Don't use it!!! Bought monthly pass which dont work. Please use different company for scooters as Lime support is useless.

SPIN app on Android had an unusual Black Screen issue reported by many users. Also, Neuron Mobility user reported recurrent crashes.

Spin app sits at a black screen and never actually opens. Good luck to android users

Similarly, Tier App users reported error messages related to internet connection, though their devices had a stable internet connection.

The App suddenly crashed and since then it says that I have no Internet connection but obviously I have a stable connection with the Internet. Reinstalled the app same problem. Since it is unusable 1 Star.

Scooter Issue – 12%: The number of hardware problems reported by users declined from August (17%), but they were still the second biggest source of reviews last month.

Here are some comments:

Scooters that are broken down still show up on the map and are still bookable. So you walk around for ages between broken down scooters, and possibly you will be charged for reservations. Makes the app useless if you're in a hurry. I missed an appointment because of this.
Nothing works, I came across 12 lime bike's, and the were either not showing up on the app or the had no battery life. Useless bike system.

A SPIN user reported issues with Brakes.

Horrible. 🔋 Issues. The brakes were broke on 1 scooter. When returning the 2 scooters when we were done it would not go through. We were charged more because of that. Trying to get help with these issues even worse. 1 star is too good to give but u have to at least give 1 so. Yeah I would go for another scooter.

A Voi user reported bike going on a lock mode after a brief period of parking, during an ongoing ride. Voi seems to have a protection mechanism to avoid users from being charged in excess, when they leave the bikes at their destination without ending the ride on their app. In this case, it worked against the user.

I got a Voi scooter for a day yesterday. I was driving from one Voi area to another and stopped to take a few pictures. I was NOT ending my ride and when I got back on it, it had turned off. I could not end the ride nor could I resume it. I had to contact customer service (by email!) and when I finally got an answer, I got these "you cannot end you ride in no no-zone & you cannot pause in a no-zone". I stopped for a few minutes and had to CARRY the scoot to a Voi zone to be able to go forward..

Few Tier users reported error in scooter GPS data.

Bug. Kept telling me I'm in no parking area even though i wasn't. Delayed 10 minutes on a 10 minute trip (+100%). Plus billed for it. Disaster.

Overcharging – 11%: Overcharging by operators was the third most commonly reported issue in September.

Lime users continue to get charged more, eventhough they have day or monthly passes.

Do not use this company!! They charged me $150.00 for a 2km ride and would not even entertain a refund!! I had even bought and paid for their so called "day pass" Absolute thieves!! Steer clear. Use any other company but this one!!

A Tier user reported having bought a deal where the user was granted 9,999 ride minutes, that expired in 24hrs!

hey! I purchased a deal that says 9999mins and unlimited unlocks but why is it expiring in 24hrs/a day after??? with 9999mins I can use it for 6days I feel like Im scammed 🤬. I pay 99kroner, this is not good.

Unable Start/End Ride – 14%: Many users reported being unable to start or end their rides in the app. Here are some comments:

Just tried to unlock anyone of the four bikes I found in my area. None of them would unlock because they were offline, even though the app showed me where they were located and the bikes was fully charged.
When I tried to finish my ride the application didn't let lock the bike despite I was within the service zone. I tried to refresh and log in again into the application but I lost my session , so I can't even see my ride history. I wrote to support, but their answer wasn't helpful as I did everything they suggested and it didn't work. I have to leave it because I can't wait the whole evening for somebody to get back to me ( I was already waiting 2 hours)
Horrible. Would not work. I tried on 3 different occasions and 2 different scooters. Each time we followed directions, pressed the button and waited for the light to turn blue, which it never did. I was charged 3 times, over $7 total for rides that never happened. Uninstalling the app and disputing the $20 i had to load to begin with to get my money back. Will never use this product again, maybe will consider Lime, which my fiance said worked seamlessly for him and my son to ride.

Customer Support, Cost – 8%: Less people found the service expensive in September compared to previous months. Here are some of the comments

The Lime Pass looks like good value but is not. Normally when there is an issue with the scooter (brake or throttle not working for example) you get an instant refund for your aborted ride. With the Lime Pass you get your ride credit deducted upon unlocking even though your scooter didn't work and you ended your ride after 10 sec. And sadly this happens often... Fix this please.
4.37 ron / km in Brașov. More expensive than a taxi or an uber. The prices charged are aberrantly high. A very expensive walk! The same trip if I did it with my personal car on gasoline cost me 15 RON and in a much shorter time. The application withdrew 65 RON from my account, so that the next day it would send me 30 RON. And the outing was made with my wife so I doubled the costs. In a month I buy my own electric scooter with what money I pay Lime. Disappointed with the lime experience. Uninstall.

A Voi user wrote a comment, expressing disappointment over the price of a monthly pass

59 euros a month for a pass? Over 700 euros a year? Was looking forward to the pass but looks like i'll stick to public transport which only costs a tiny fraction of that price, shame, i thought the prices would be competitive with local transport

Other Reported Issues:

If you are an operator, did you think about scenarios where mobile phones go kaput, or get stolen during a ride?

I had my phone dropped during a ride and it took me 30 minutes to find the phone. I explained it to Lime customer service and they didn't care at all kept charging me for 45 minutes instead of just 15 minutes!!!

A BIRD user reported that the program for low-income households fit not work as promised

BIRD is participating in a pilot program BIRD PROMISED affordable for low-income.(quick approval)Unfortunately it's been my experience that. BIRD is not making a good-faith effort to extend the Community Access program . 3 weeks 15 emails,11 calls. NO YES OR NO Neighbors said they had same issues. Why offer if u don't want to approve low income riders? IF U DON'T WANT TO HELP THE COMMUNITY WHERE U AGREED PLEASE TAKE YOUR SCOOTERS OUT OF BLACK & BROWN NEIGHBORHOODS! Very Dissatisfied

A Yulu user reported what seems to be an organised Crime buy Yulu workers or some people pretending to be Yulu workers.

Yesterday night i was stopped from some yulu workers... they had huge bags with yulu batteries ..they put penalty on me for I'm not even sure what reason ...im pretty sure they're from YULU ...i couldn't do anything about it but pay them ... because it was 12 PM at night ...they asked me to pay 500 rupees or go with them to some office , i was concerned as they didn't have any kind of paperwork for payment , I even have their number , feeling very sad after this happend i need help from YULU

Note: Data gathered from 150+ Apple and Google app stores across the globe. If interested in more insights on the data collected, do send me a message!

Content Collaboration: Micromobility Industries is a digital media and events company devoted to the future of movement. Subscribe to their newsletter here.

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