Ridesharing adds a lot of value to my life. Because of apps like Uber I can recall exactly two times in the past year that I rented a car, while previously I’d do so all the time. Of course these apps have issues. Sometimes their ethics are questionable, and your experience comes down to the individual driver.
In general I don’t think the quality of Uber drivers is as good as it used to be, but I also don’t expect it to be, given that they’ve kept slashing rates. Still, I felt like when Uber first started everyone went out of their way to be friendly and professional, while nowadays not so much.
I know I’m way too passive (you guys remind me of that all the time, though I’m trying), but I often refuse to complain, even when I should. In an Uber I’ll just sit there, be quiet, say “please” and “thank you,” and unless the driver does anything horrible, I’ll give them five stars, because I realize that even an average four star rating would get them kicked out, and I don’t want to stand in the way of them making a living.
Yesterday I had a driver try to pull a stunt that I’ve only had happen once before. The driver was an arrogant schmuck, he asked which way I wanted to go, I told him which way I thought would be fastest, and then he said “no, we take _______, it’s faster.” It wasn’t. The ride should have taken maybe 25 minutes, but took 40 minutes.
I didn’t argue with him or anything, I said thank you, and I gave him five stars. 10 minutes later I received an email from Uber saying that my fare had been corrected:
“More than 4 riders on trip. Fare adjusted to uberSUV rates to fairly compensate your driver. Thank you!” – DIPANKAR.
Are you freaking kidding me? It was just me and one other person. I immediately disputed it, and they ended up refunding the whole ride and giving me a $60 credit (which seemed really generous — maybe it’s because I use Uber a ton and almost never complain?). I also mentioned that the driver pictured wasn’t actually the guy who picked me up. I wouldn’t have complained about it otherwise, but I figure they should know that it’s not just one of their driver’s being fraudulent, but one of their drivers is violating the rules by having someone else drive, and then being fraudulent on top of that.
But I really don’t get this. Do drivers think they’ll get away with this? I get some people don’t check their receipts, but isn’t the driver taking a big risk? Are there any repercussions for drivers if they do this? When I’m refunded the fare is Uber just absorbing the cost, or are they taking the fare away from the driver?
This is the second time this has happened, though the first time was with a guy where this didn’t surprise me, as he was nuts. I know a vast majority of Uber drivers are good people who play by the rules and who put up with a lot of garbage from passengers. So for the sake of everyone (both good drivers and riders), it’s sad that these people exist.
I guess the moral of the story is to always check your Uber receipts.
Uber changed something in their app in the last 2 weeks and their service has really deteriorated. I have been taking Uber to and from work every day for 6 weeks. The first 4 weeks not a single problem. In the last 2 weeks, I have had 13 booked Uber trip cancellations. In this time, I notice that the Uber app is booking a trip that shows more minutes to walk to the pickup point...
Uber changed something in their app in the last 2 weeks and their service has really deteriorated. I have been taking Uber to and from work every day for 6 weeks. The first 4 weeks not a single problem. In the last 2 weeks, I have had 13 booked Uber trip cancellations. In this time, I notice that the Uber app is booking a trip that shows more minutes to walk to the pickup point than the driver's minutes away from the pickup point. This didn't happen once in the first 4 weeks I use it, and I spoke to my sister and cousin, who both regularly use Uber for years, with both saying the cancellation issues have become a huge problem for them too in the last 2 weeks. It's really terrible to rush 4 blocks to a pickup spot only to have the driver cancel, then another 3 1/2 blocks for the next booking only to have that driver cancel, and then having to walk several blocks for the third booking. It's not right, and I am going to check out the bus schedule since a line is only 3 blocks away from me and will leave me off a block from work. I asked a few of the drivers what happened and they said Uber has told them to cancel if the rider is not there within 2 minutes of arrival. I know a bunch of the cancellations were either before the scheduled driver arrival time, or within 1 minute of same. Well, I'll save money taking the bus, and at least, be able to rely on the bus service, which I can no longer do with Uber.
Drivers are scamming the system more than ever.
- Driver tells app they arrived but in reality they did not and it adds a charge to the riders bill.
-Driver doesn't tell the app they have arrived until after leaving
-Driver accepts but doesn't drive to pick up the rider, rider cancels and gets a charge.
My girlfriend calls Uber every single time. If the driver is clueless or dangerous then she calls as well....
Drivers are scamming the system more than ever.
- Driver tells app they arrived but in reality they did not and it adds a charge to the riders bill.
-Driver doesn't tell the app they have arrived until after leaving
-Driver accepts but doesn't drive to pick up the rider, rider cancels and gets a charge.
My girlfriend calls Uber every single time. If the driver is clueless or dangerous then she calls as well.
Uber told her today that her account has reached the maximum amount of adjustments. It's a shame. She is a very honest Asian girl who is frugal.
I feel that if more people would stand up to bad service then there would be less of it. I'm guilty as I dont complain unless a line is crossed.
The sad thing is she is a consultant and they are going to lose a lot of money with her. She will most likely just use Lyft instead.
do not use it if you can help it.what do they have say as an uber black over say a normal taxi. i would rather have say a Pulsar or a Camry or whatever else they use these days pick me up with a fixed fare and the knowledge whatever I pay them stays in my home state(I am from australia)mints and water and maybe a mercedes,jaguar,audi or bmw excepted I cannot think of any reason why anyone would choose such a thing over their local operator.
Similar event happened to us recently. Driver put in a price adjustment charge after our ride, we were charged additional $20 for a quoted $30 ride. We went from Jersey City to Manhattan. Toll of $22 was included in our initial charge.
We are in the process of disputing, Uber sent us two different canned answers for the same issue of why we are charge for more than 50% of our quoted price:
...
Similar event happened to us recently. Driver put in a price adjustment charge after our ride, we were charged additional $20 for a quoted $30 ride. We went from Jersey City to Manhattan. Toll of $22 was included in our initial charge.
We are in the process of disputing, Uber sent us two different canned answers for the same issue of why we are charge for more than 50% of our quoted price:
"When your driver passes through a toll or travels into an area with a surcharge, a toll or surcharge amount will be added to your rider fare.”
Another response on same dispute:
"Sorry to hear about this.
Your driver let us know that the trip recorded incorrect pickup and drop off points. With that in mind, we adjusted this fare to reflect the actual trip so your driver could be compensated for the full service they provided you.”
Our initial receipt was for the 30$ so we thought nothing of it. What we didn’t pay attention was that a price adjustment of $20 was made sometime afterwards. And we didn’t spot it till we got our credit card statement 2 weed later.
Uber wants us to jump through hoops for us to prove we didn’t have route change. How can we do that?
I feel Completely scammed by driver if he put in the price adjustment and definitely Uber.
We had made the exact same trip the following day with a different driver and no price adjustment.
I've been riding with Uber for urgent rides, and some are quite a good rides, however there are instances that I experienced some bad situations , like one time I requested a ride, and the , problem is the ride indicated my pick up point and there is no destination point in the apps, so I called the driver, about my destination point if he knows it but said no, so I told him to...
I've been riding with Uber for urgent rides, and some are quite a good rides, however there are instances that I experienced some bad situations , like one time I requested a ride, and the , problem is the ride indicated my pick up point and there is no destination point in the apps, so I called the driver, about my destination point if he knows it but said no, so I told him to cancelled the ride, because there is no destination indicated in the apps, now here coms another driver coming, without my knowledge and consent. When he arrived at my pick up point, I ask him about my destination point for my ride. He said there is no destination point, and that the destination point is the pick up point? How could that apps do such thing? So It does not make sense and told him to cacncel the trip. Uber did cancelled it and charged me a cancellation fee. I tried to dispute the cancellation fee, but there is no way I can explain my side in their apps, Can anyone help me how to contact Uber regarding this cancellation fee. Who do you think is faulty in that situation, is it my fault or uber?
The 2nd time, I had this bad experience with Uber, is that, on7/8/18 @around 11:34am, I requested I ride, for urgent reason, but the driver came too slow ,as I was monitoring in the apps,I felt he can't meet the ETA so I called him to cancel the ride. I told him he's too slow in coming, He hanged up, but then another driver is coming without my knowledge, and I told him I cancelled the trip with the previous driver, so there is no point riding with him. He said you did not cancelled mind? What happened next, Uber charged me with cancellation fee of $5 anyway. I disputed it, with reason of waiting ETA too long(more than 20 min in their record), and uber will refund me with Uber credit.
And the worse part on that 7/8/20 at round 4:55pm, I was inside the church the mass is about to begin, and Uber somehow arranged me for a ride without my knowledge and confirmation. Why would I arrange for a ride when I have no plan to go urgently, beside I am in the church to attend Mass with my grand daughter. Some how Uber charged me with a cancellation fee of$5 , I recently found out, also I found out later, that somebody called me, most probably the Uber driver@ around 4:58pm and 5:00pm on that day. On that time my cellphone is off, being inside the church and the mass is about to begin. I was charged with a cancellation fee for a trip I did not request. I tried to dipute this but the Uber help in their apps is limited for me to explain the situation as Uber only chose limited action to act on the dispute and none of their options is helpful to resolve my complain/dispute. Can someone help to proceed with my dipute? Thank you for your time. I hope these experiences enhance your knowledge and be aware in riding with Uber.
You really have to be careful and watchful. I drive for and ride with Uber. Ive seen my share of bogus riders who should be removed off the platform but I've also seen some shady drivers. Once I saw a sick passenger in the grass throwing up and then looked over and his driver was throwing some sort of liquid on the door and taking pictures making it look like the passenger threw up in...
You really have to be careful and watchful. I drive for and ride with Uber. Ive seen my share of bogus riders who should be removed off the platform but I've also seen some shady drivers. Once I saw a sick passenger in the grass throwing up and then looked over and his driver was throwing some sort of liquid on the door and taking pictures making it look like the passenger threw up in the car when they really didn't. If you use a timeshare don't get sick in the car, don't eat or bring open food into the car, and don't leave trash. This stuff is just common sense and proper manners. If you are wronged by a driver let Uber know right away. Chances are you aren't the only one that has had a problem.
This same exact thing happened to me a few weeks ago. After some back and forth, Uber adjusted the price, but I didn't get a full refund or extra credit like you did.
I had an uber driver try to pull something on me in Philadelphia a few months ago. I called right after getting off the plane at PHL, but the wait was 20 so I cancelled immediately (within 1 minute of initially calling it) and took a cab instead. The next morning I woke up to a fare adjustment email, claiming that I had "changed the destination mid-ride," and that the fare was adjusted accordingly.
My...
I had an uber driver try to pull something on me in Philadelphia a few months ago. I called right after getting off the plane at PHL, but the wait was 20 so I cancelled immediately (within 1 minute of initially calling it) and took a cab instead. The next morning I woke up to a fare adjustment email, claiming that I had "changed the destination mid-ride," and that the fare was adjusted accordingly.
My initial complaint- stating that I had not even gotten in the uber- was rebuffed with a form response from Uber. Not until I sent them screenshots of the cancellation and the taxi receipt to prove that what the driver was claiming was physically impossible did I get a full refund, though no credits for me.
I will never use them.I don't use a lot of non taxi alternatives often other than the bus when not driving on my own but the most recent one was a company called smart car in Adelaide Australia from my home to the Airport given there was no other way I could make it safely and in a timely manner for a holiday to get my flight $52 cash in hand and no rip off...
I will never use them.I don't use a lot of non taxi alternatives often other than the bus when not driving on my own but the most recent one was a company called smart car in Adelaide Australia from my home to the Airport given there was no other way I could make it safely and in a timely manner for a holiday to get my flight $52 cash in hand and no rip off and the car was clean and the driver professional with his job.I don't like this new policy of theirs of no cash payments and everything is done with credit cards which is just like the Goober Uber people do but I am sure I can find me a decent legitimate company that does things by the book using either cash or cards for the bookings.Far safer for me to use such things than having my mom getting a 10 year drink driving conviction for driving when not a minimum of half a day has passed since her last cup of wine and dealing with courts and fines.
We have had one long-haul situation in London recently. Been using Uber consistently in London and Amsterdam for the past 4+ years. I do use UberX when I have a short ride, but now prefer Uber Black for longer rides or trips to LHR. Overall, I find UberX drivers to be inconsistent, but haven't had too many bad situations except the recent "long haul" of my wife.
@Nicola
I know the charge is standard for all, the charge itself isn't the problem here. What bothers me is that the charge did not show up due to a glitch in their fare quote engine and instead of Uber team acknowledging and apologizing for their mistake, they outright passed it on to me.
I would have been happy to pay for it had it been quoted in the initial fare. But I...
@Nicola
I know the charge is standard for all, the charge itself isn't the problem here. What bothers me is that the charge did not show up due to a glitch in their fare quote engine and instead of Uber team acknowledging and apologizing for their mistake, they outright passed it on to me.
I would have been happy to pay for it had it been quoted in the initial fare. But I lost my confidence in them after this, I mean, why would I book a ride with them if I know that they can come up with extra charges for whatever reason and pass them on to me every time - no thanks.
I agree that the Uber product is a lot better but to be honest, all taxis in Dubai are Toyota Camrys and that's perfectly fine, I only use taxis once a month and that will do just fine.
@Lucky, I'm curious, why are you using Uber rather than Lyft? Since you can earn a Skymile/USD on Lyft rides (more on airport trips), won't you get a marginally better value for your ride? Not sure if this has been previously discussed. Thanks.
I found the customer service at Lyft to be pretty good with my mishap from home to LAX. We ordered the SUV version of Lyft to LAX (stated in advance). She arrived telling us the trunk was full (huh?) and we'd have to put our huge luggage in the passenger seats in back. There were three of us so we barely fit. Then she said she didn't have a permit to drop in the terminal...
I found the customer service at Lyft to be pretty good with my mishap from home to LAX. We ordered the SUV version of Lyft to LAX (stated in advance). She arrived telling us the trunk was full (huh?) and we'd have to put our huge luggage in the passenger seats in back. There were three of us so we barely fit. Then she said she didn't have a permit to drop in the terminal area but "it's OK, it's just a short shuttle ride" (from the employee shuttle stop near Lot C). I was annoyed, especially after we hauled large luggage onto the shuttle and had to stand the whole way. So I messaged Lyft while waiting a while for our plane in the lounge. They responded before our plane left the ground, saying they'd refund what we paid, but not the tip.
But when we got home a week later, husband (who sat in the front seat on the original ride, because he gets motion sickness) confessed to me that the driver had also told him the front seat belts weren't working. He didn't want to wait for another Lyft so he put up with it, as he does. I saw red. I messaged Lyft and they promised she'd not be driving us anymore. I'm pretty sure she was deactivated. Good riddance.
@Barry
You're assuming that they picked a route through traffic and not that they just took a longer route. I've had a few times where the trip took twice as long because the driver knew as shortcut.
The worst experience I've had on Lyft & Uber is still 10x better than the average can ride. Every few months I give cabs another shot and the customer experience is awful.
Just my two cents. There is NO way a driver takes the 20 minute longer route on purpose. They make money for driving miles. The wait charge for traffic is insignifigant.
@Mike
FYI also taxis in Dubai from airport have a 20 or 30 AED surcharge depending if it's an SUV or a sedan. Especially in the UAE the difference in service and quality between taxis and UBER (which by the way is operated by private fleets) it's immense. UBER Black in Dubai is served by Lexus. They are spot clean. Drivers so far (I am using it since years now) are smooth and professional. I...
@Mike
FYI also taxis in Dubai from airport have a 20 or 30 AED surcharge depending if it's an SUV or a sedan. Especially in the UAE the difference in service and quality between taxis and UBER (which by the way is operated by private fleets) it's immense. UBER Black in Dubai is served by Lexus. They are spot clean. Drivers so far (I am using it since years now) are smooth and professional. I can't really understand how it's possible to compare the service of Uber with Taxis. The last time I took a taxi in Dubai I think was a couple of years back.
Uber sucks.
The first time I used them I needed a lift from Dubai Airport and their app had a glitch which didn't include the AED25 Airport Pick-up charge in the quoted fare. After my ride they texted me saying that AED25 has been charged to my credit card due Airport Pick-up charge.
I immediately messaged their customer relations team, who were completely unhelpful and ignored my request after a really long conversation....
Uber sucks.
The first time I used them I needed a lift from Dubai Airport and their app had a glitch which didn't include the AED25 Airport Pick-up charge in the quoted fare. After my ride they texted me saying that AED25 has been charged to my credit card due Airport Pick-up charge.
I immediately messaged their customer relations team, who were completely unhelpful and ignored my request after a really long conversation. In the end I disputed the charge with my bank and reclaimed my AED25 - not of course for the money but for the principle- I won't pay for the glitchy fare quote engine they've got.
And of course that was the last time I used them or ever will. Regular cabs do just fine for me.
Cheers
@Lucky I’m an Uber driver at LAX. I can always tell when a passenger is going to West Hollywood before I pick them up because they are dressed stylish. Then I start the convo with how was the flight down from San Francisco ? They love that.
@John
I didn’t want to come across as arrogant.
Nowadays UberX is so cheap that many drivers aren’t happy with what they get paid and therefore try to defraud you. I know it’s unacceptable, but that how it is.
Based on my experience of constantly using UberBlack in Europe (Milan & Moscow), I assumed that there wouldn’t be the same problem.
After Lucky’s comment I was very surprised to discover that...
@John
I didn’t want to come across as arrogant.
Nowadays UberX is so cheap that many drivers aren’t happy with what they get paid and therefore try to defraud you. I know it’s unacceptable, but that how it is.
Based on my experience of constantly using UberBlack in Europe (Milan & Moscow), I assumed that there wouldn’t be the same problem.
After Lucky’s comment I was very surprised to discover that this was actually an UberBlack.
For me it’s like Spirit and Emirates First Class. If you buy a $9 Spirit ticket and the flight attendant makes you pay double for your drink, it’s wrong... yes, but you won’t be as surprised, as if in Emirates First Class they would charge you $150 for Dom Perignon.
The more you pay, the better service you expect (and usually get), that’s all I was trying to say. McDonald’s are fine, just unhealthy.
It’s sad to hear that this is not the case with Uber in the US.
@Andrew
There are various solutions. You can use Sixt mydriver, Gett, Blacklane etc.
@Randy
I don't doubt that taxis may work better in some part of the planets but here's two observations:
1) Only because Uber and the alike declared war to them and forced them to update to this millennium customer service and care.
2) If cabs render better service at your area, unfortunately in most of the rest of the planet we can't say the same. In the EU, in S. Africa and most of...
@Randy
I don't doubt that taxis may work better in some part of the planets but here's two observations:
1) Only because Uber and the alike declared war to them and forced them to update to this millennium customer service and care.
2) If cabs render better service at your area, unfortunately in most of the rest of the planet we can't say the same. In the EU, in S. Africa and most of the Gulf countries there's no comparison. Uber and similar services are way better off and wouldn't switch even if cabs were more competitive.
I can't remember off the top of my head if it was Uber or Grab (or both), but here in Thailand the drivers also rate the passengers. If you have a low rating, drivers are inclined to not accept your drive requests. Is that the same in the USA?
@Audrey. Don’t be cheap, use real car service.
The unfortunate truth about MOST UberX drivers are that they are virtually indentured servants... of which they have only themselves to blame. I would venture to guess that most UberX drivers are trapped in a cycle of debt and driving for subsistence income, especially those with leveraged cars.
I will however also highlight that we as riders propagate the perceptions that we unfairly take advantage of these folks' subsidizing our commuting needs - we do....
The unfortunate truth about MOST UberX drivers are that they are virtually indentured servants... of which they have only themselves to blame. I would venture to guess that most UberX drivers are trapped in a cycle of debt and driving for subsistence income, especially those with leveraged cars.
I will however also highlight that we as riders propagate the perceptions that we unfairly take advantage of these folks' subsidizing our commuting needs - we do. This is bad for social cohesion which everyone needs.
@Lucky- Why are you still patronizing Uber after the myriad of sexual harassment claims; firings; executive resignations and bad business practices? I've spoken to drivers who drive for both Lyft and Uber and several are now driving exclusively for Lyft as a result of the way Uber has been treating drivers within the past 6 months.
I am not a fan of Uber. I use it occasionally, but prefer a cab. Some cab companies (local one in my area) now have apps (now Curb app) that do the same function as a Uber/Lift. But you have licensed drivers, driving taxis.
I find that Uber is always more expansive than a cab in my area. I can call the night before and reserve a cab for the morning and pay less.
...I am not a fan of Uber. I use it occasionally, but prefer a cab. Some cab companies (local one in my area) now have apps (now Curb app) that do the same function as a Uber/Lift. But you have licensed drivers, driving taxis.
I find that Uber is always more expansive than a cab in my area. I can call the night before and reserve a cab for the morning and pay less.
Too many people use Uber because they think it is trendy or easy. But with an equivalent taxi App - you get the same functionality for a lower price.
I have to agree with the comments. If you rate him five for trying to rip you off you do a disservice to all the honest people trying to use the service. Even more people get ripped off. At the very least rate the scam artists lower than the hard working drivers doing everything right. Otherwise you are punishing them by rating them the same as scammers.
Just my opinion.
Last Christmas Eve, my husband, mom and a friend took a 4 minute uber ride to dinner (it was snowing or we would have just walked). The driver complained the whole trip about how he hated working on Christmas Eve and wished he could find a way to stop working after our ride. Well, he did. He said that we created a huge mess in his car and that he had to get his vehicle...
Last Christmas Eve, my husband, mom and a friend took a 4 minute uber ride to dinner (it was snowing or we would have just walked). The driver complained the whole trip about how he hated working on Christmas Eve and wished he could find a way to stop working after our ride. Well, he did. He said that we created a huge mess in his car and that he had to get his vehicle detailed before he could go out again. I was charged $150 for this. I disputed, Uber provided pictures (I knew we didn't spill anything and sure didn't get sick, but I wanted to know what the issue was). Based on the pictures, it looked like the driver just spilled water on his seat (you could see the bottle in one of the photos - and we didn't have water with us). It took nearly a week of daily emails with Uber for them to refund this charge. So disappointing - especially since we have him a $50 Christmas Tip - Uber wouldn't refund that either.
After too many bad experiences with Uber I finally deleted the app. Lyft is much more professional and a more ethical company.
Let me preface this by saying thank heavens for Uber and other ride-sharing apps . . . whatever problems they have, they are vastly better than taxis, and I will be forever grateful to them for crushing the taxi cartels that have forever provided poor service and would have continued doing so.
But, one scam I have encountered frequently with Uber, especially in Brazil (and China when Uber was still there), is with drivers confirming...
Let me preface this by saying thank heavens for Uber and other ride-sharing apps . . . whatever problems they have, they are vastly better than taxis, and I will be forever grateful to them for crushing the taxi cartels that have forever provided poor service and would have continued doing so.
But, one scam I have encountered frequently with Uber, especially in Brazil (and China when Uber was still there), is with drivers confirming rides, and then not moving towards your location, or moving but in strange directions. Apparently, they want you to grow frustrated at the ever growing wait and cancel and score a cancellation fee for doing nothing. Uber will refund you if you complain, but its a pain, and the credit is only for the local service, which sometime you can't use for a while. I understand that some of these scammers are not even in cars, but just pretend to be (so-called spoofing), and sit and scam people like this all day.
@Lucky
I’m guessing this was at LAX?
As you’ve probably realized by now - there’s an obscene amount of ex-taxi drivers in LAX now, and they bring their taxi standards and lack of ethics and professionalism with them.
Report it. Each. And. Every. Time.
Surely the moral of the story is not to give five star ratings when the drivers don't deserve it.
Don’t feel bad about giving low ratings. Thinning out the low quality drivers improves the service for everyone. Giving a high rating for a situation like this only puts the next person at risk of the same, or worse, situation.
Despite a handful of negative experience, I think UBER is still a valid option compared to taxis. In NY bit more than a year back we took an UBER to visit the Science Museum. 7 USD approx. Was raining as hell and freezing cold, we decided to go back to the hotel. UBER weren’t immediately available so we stopped a taxi and took us back through a completely different route. Morale, fare was 18 USD....
Despite a handful of negative experience, I think UBER is still a valid option compared to taxis. In NY bit more than a year back we took an UBER to visit the Science Museum. 7 USD approx. Was raining as hell and freezing cold, we decided to go back to the hotel. UBER weren’t immediately available so we stopped a taxi and took us back through a completely different route. Morale, fare was 18 USD. Comparably my negative experience with UBER were very very few while with taxis much more and if it is not a matter of life or death, I try to avoid taxis as much as I can.
I second @Jana - I never rate or give a tip until a few hours later to make sure there's no bad behavior going on (once had a driver not complete the trip to the airport and didn't find out for an hour - I disputed with Uber and they refunded me quickly, but I won't let that happen again)
I noticed this little trick by a driver to get extra $$$
- after you get dropped off, driver is supposed to hit Complete Trip . This ends the trip and you get an immediate Uber app notification to rate your driver.
After a 50 minutes trip, I didn’t get one - I thought maybe some network issue or something .
I get an app notification 30 minutes later . I check the charge and...
I noticed this little trick by a driver to get extra $$$
- after you get dropped off, driver is supposed to hit Complete Trip . This ends the trip and you get an immediate Uber app notification to rate your driver.
After a 50 minutes trip, I didn’t get one - I thought maybe some network issue or something .
I get an app notification 30 minutes later . I check the charge and it wasn’t what I was quoted.
I look at the trip map - the drop off was in another location - not where I was dropped off !
The Complete Trip happened way after the trip ended! Uber refunded me the difference.
Anyway make sure your Complete Trip happens when you get dropped off!!
@Andrey Wrong, as Hbjd said, i've gotten several uber blacks cancelling on me because they decided to pick up my ride, when they were VERY far from my location, and then they cancel me after that, after waiting 10 minutes each time.
I'd just like to call out @Andrey for his arrogant and absurd comments, which seemingly have gone unnoticed. @Andrey first commented, "UberBlack is the solution. Stop being cheap, people. You get what you pay for." After @Lucky pointed out that this *was* an Uber Black ride, @Andrey comments, "Ouch! At UberBlack prices this type of behavior is unacceptable."
@Andrey, defrauding customers is *never* acceptable, no matter what price the customers originally agreed to pay. In...
I'd just like to call out @Andrey for his arrogant and absurd comments, which seemingly have gone unnoticed. @Andrey first commented, "UberBlack is the solution. Stop being cheap, people. You get what you pay for." After @Lucky pointed out that this *was* an Uber Black ride, @Andrey comments, "Ouch! At UberBlack prices this type of behavior is unacceptable."
@Andrey, defrauding customers is *never* acceptable, no matter what price the customers originally agreed to pay. In your world view, are people who work at McDonald's entitled to steal money from the customers who eat there because those customers are "being cheap" by eating at McDonald's rather than a luxury restaurant? Are landlords entitled to steal from tenants who rent inexpensive studios in undesirable neighborhoods because those tenants are "being cheap" by not staying in a luxury building?
If not, then why should customers who either can't afford Uber Black or who regard it as an unnecessary luxury expect to be defrauded when they order UberX?
Sorry Ben but it is because people like you that gives 5 stars to people that deserve zero that Uber is so bad. If this guys was rated what he deserves he would not be driving anymore. You are doing a disservice to everyone.
Why doesn't uber just change everything around to just price to zones and that is your flat rate. If a driver doesn't want to drive within a zone or to a certain zone u won't get that driver. It eliminates the uber drivers that refuses to do the short trips
I rate all my ubereats drivers 5 stars too because I never tip. I think this tip business had effed up uber. So eff you liberals for forcing tips into a business model that had moved away from tips. And illegals go back home.
Lucky, that you realized the driver pictured wasn’t actually the guy who picked you up, yet did not report it, is a text book example of bad citizenship. And one of those uncommon cases that "See something, say something" should be acted upon. Not only this was a safety issue, but also not reporting it means you refrained from standing against fraud when you could very easily do that.
Just some information on the 'shorter' route side of things.
Uber has upfront pricing, not a meter. They will bill you in advance for the LONG way. The driver still gets paid for the distance and time, so if they go the short way, Uber makes more and the driver makes less. There is no connection between what the passenger pays and what the driver makes.
The XL charge was fraud, unless luggage was placed on the front seats.
@Jackie: You don’t get to make up your own scale! Uber sees anything less than 5 stars as bad so you could be causing perfectly good but not “cute” drivers to lose their ability to make a living! You should be ashamed!
In Bangkok the Uber driver started the trip while he was one street away, but I didn't see this until much later. Also in KUL, an suv driver asked me to pay cash. I refused but Uber charged me 5 ringgit for the driver's time. I explained what happened and Uber gave me a credit. I refused the credit and politely demanded a refund, since Uber would be keeping my 5 bucks and force me...
In Bangkok the Uber driver started the trip while he was one street away, but I didn't see this until much later. Also in KUL, an suv driver asked me to pay cash. I refused but Uber charged me 5 ringgit for the driver's time. I explained what happened and Uber gave me a credit. I refused the credit and politely demanded a refund, since Uber would be keeping my 5 bucks and force me to use it again when the one highly inconvenienced was me.
This was all last march. I have to say though that every other Uber experience I had was a positive one, especially in Asia, always brand new and super clean cars, with much nicer drivers than any other transportation service.
Why the hell did you give him 5 stars? What’s the matter with you?
Not being confrontational is one thing, but inflating someone’s rating does a disservice to us all.
I use Uber a fair bit and I haven’t had any issues thus far. However, if the radio is on too loud or if it’s too hot or if I need the route changed, every driver has been happy to comply. If they didn’t, I’d probably argue with them or end the ride there and then and dispute it with Uber.
Lucky, I know you said many times that you don't like change and whatnot, and you stick to Uber for that reason, but honestly, Lyft drivers tend to just be better. Or rather, they treat you better if you book through Lyft, since most drivers are on all those apps. I've had many of them telling me that they much prefer to be booked via Lyft instead of Uber, because Lyft treats them better. Ask...
Lucky, I know you said many times that you don't like change and whatnot, and you stick to Uber for that reason, but honestly, Lyft drivers tend to just be better. Or rather, they treat you better if you book through Lyft, since most drivers are on all those apps. I've had many of them telling me that they much prefer to be booked via Lyft instead of Uber, because Lyft treats them better. Ask your driver next time, they all answer the same thing. I personally only use Uber if Lyft isn't available (or if I have my Amex Platinum Uber credit to burn).
I live in NYC so I use Juno here, as drivers also much prefer that option to Lyft and Uber. It's generally cheaper, there is no surge pricing at all, and at the end on your receipt it tells you how much more money the driver made compared to other apps. It may be a gimmick, but those guys already don't make a lot so if I can pay less and they can get more... count me in.
I rarely give anyone 5 stars. Usually I do 3. That to me is the average. If u inflate the points then it is useless. 5 for exceptional service with cute drivers. 1 for crappy service and unattractive drivers
People who rate him 5-stars are why things like this happen. You feel guilty about standing in the way of his making a living (which is essentially committing fraud). Shouldn't you feel guilty about the extra person or two who will be scammed by him thanks to your 5-star rating? I'm too passive sometimes too, i.e. I probably also would not have verbally confronted the guy about taking me the long way, but rating 1-star...
People who rate him 5-stars are why things like this happen. You feel guilty about standing in the way of his making a living (which is essentially committing fraud). Shouldn't you feel guilty about the extra person or two who will be scammed by him thanks to your 5-star rating? I'm too passive sometimes too, i.e. I probably also would not have verbally confronted the guy about taking me the long way, but rating 1-star in an app after the fact should still be pretty easy for a passive guy to do, especially if you were wronged. You could have even just not rated him. You cause harm to others buy giving him five stars.
Rating him 5 stars knowing he could take a shorter route? What is wrong with you? Just like you tipped the Jewish guy that insulted you...
Get it together!
I'm glad you got your issue resolved quickly, but I've found when I've had blatantly bad or dishonest service I do not get a satisfactory result. Most of the times, the ride is fine, but if I need to complain, you have to move heaven and earth to get a satisfactory response.
I personally have stopped taking Uber and all ride sharing programs. It's been more problems than what it is worth to me. After this trick was pulled on me, I've decided I'd rather take a taxi and know at the end of my trip where I stand. I can't count the times they took a longer route, etc. They ruined it for themselves, in my opinion.
I took a cab from LAS Airport to Aria Las Vegas last month because Uber took forever to arrived ,estimated 15 mins wait time. Anyways, taxi was available right away at a stands & metered ended up $29.- (same price as UberBlack) The driver said I was cheap by giving him $3 tip so I gave him $5 and I asked him to help with luggage he said "normally I'm expecting a $10 tips"???
I think Taxi is worse than Uber,IMO.
No question Uber is bad. They treat their drivers like shit. Given their current state of unprofitability either we see more decline in service or it will cease to operate.
So many regular cab drivers are thinking "If you can't beat 'em, join 'em" and joining the ranks of the app-based services. And since wherever I travel in the world and in my hometown of Minneapolis, cab drivers are the biggest shysters you'll meet. Even before app-based services started, I quit using cabs and used a car service instead (which usually meant a wait but worth it considering the alternative). Old habits die hard. All...
So many regular cab drivers are thinking "If you can't beat 'em, join 'em" and joining the ranks of the app-based services. And since wherever I travel in the world and in my hometown of Minneapolis, cab drivers are the biggest shysters you'll meet. Even before app-based services started, I quit using cabs and used a car service instead (which usually meant a wait but worth it considering the alternative). Old habits die hard. All of the things we hated about traditional cabs are now becoming more frequent on the app-based services as the traditional cabbies continue making the switch. Dirty cars, rudeness, talking on the phone during the entire trip, padding the meter (and now gaming the app), etc. At least they can't tell their favorite whopper: "my credit card machine is down." The thing I've always liked best about the app-based services is the accountability. I hope they step it up and keep it up.
Sorry to hear about your story! Welcome to the world of taxi in the new world! Unfortunately this will not get any better and will get more tricky as driver starts to figure out how to circumvent the pricing and Uber mgt will not even care as long as they get their share of payment. Sad!
I don't worry about the routes because I know I can easily file afterwards, I've only had issues twice so far where I felt like the driver was really to blame. If it's an honest mistake or bad routing from GPS I don't say anything but the times I did dispute I received an immediate partial refund which was fair to me. The other day I had a driver get lost(his GPS was giving the...
I don't worry about the routes because I know I can easily file afterwards, I've only had issues twice so far where I felt like the driver was really to blame. If it's an honest mistake or bad routing from GPS I don't say anything but the times I did dispute I received an immediate partial refund which was fair to me. The other day I had a driver get lost(his GPS was giving the proper directions and he wouldn't listen) and then I watched him give me a 2 star rating over it as I was getting out of the vehicle which is the only time I've given a driver 1 star. However, a different driver being in the vehicle is a safety concern and should absolutely be report.
@Lucky: You started your post with:
"Ridesharing adds a lot of value to my life."
Why are you and others still calling Uber ride sharing. It and Lyft are really taxi services albeit with a predetermined rate for your specific ride. In both cases, you are paying someone you don't know to take you from point A to point B.
So why do we expect something completely different when using Uber/Lyft?
@Lucky I don't think you mention - where did this happen? I've noticed Ubers are far less reliable and shadier, in general, outside of the US.
"Do drivers think they’ll get away with this?"
Answer: yes. Complain and keep insisting they fire drivers who do stuff like this. If you don't get satisfaction then delete your account, which I did after one driver in Brazil twice deliberately drove in the wrong direction even though his GPS was barking out the correct directions in Portuguese and my phone in English. More than 8 months passed before I used Uber again.
I never rate the driver until the next day. That would avoid the problem of rating the person inaccurately when there's a scam.
@Lucky
Ouch!
At UberBlack prices this type of behavior is unacceptable.
I often use Uber in Europe and here an UberBlack comes with good service... all the time
Why on earth would you rate this guy 5 stars??? You’re not doing anyone a favor. He will just go on pulling this kind of stunts and he wasn’t even the actual driver!! So unsafe and so stupid.
@Lucky: I totally get if you're not into confrontation. I'm an introvert and I suck at being demanding and complaining sometimes, particularly in ubers. However, if this driver took a deliberately circuitous or bad route, I would have no hesitation cutting his rating. You're not doing anyone any favours if you don't give accurate feedback. You have employees at your company... do you think it's helping them if you give them 10/10 in their performance...
@Lucky: I totally get if you're not into confrontation. I'm an introvert and I suck at being demanding and complaining sometimes, particularly in ubers. However, if this driver took a deliberately circuitous or bad route, I would have no hesitation cutting his rating. You're not doing anyone any favours if you don't give accurate feedback. You have employees at your company... do you think it's helping them if you give them 10/10 in their performance review even if you know they're output is well below your expectations? How do you think that makes the actually strong performers feel? You wonder why Uber standards are dropping. It's not just to do with lower rates, but also because drivers know that most passengers will just hand out 5-stars so there's no differentiation between excellent drivers and mediocre and maybe even bad ones.
This kind of hassle ( and as we all know, it's not just Uber but mainstream cabs as well...maybe Uber has greater opportunity to scam), is one of the main reasons I take public transport/shuttles/tube/metro/skytrain/subway....in every city I go ( it is extremely rare for me to use private transport...and when I do it's a hotel sourced cab or a private car service).
Grab Taxi , recently taken over Uber is South East Asia, was always a better bet.
Had a similar experience recently with Uber. Called an Uber ski to drive us from Vail to Eagle County airport. When the car arrived at our hotel, the driver let us load all of our things in the car and then refused to take us (two people with ski equipment) unless we paid him more--either via cash or by cancelling the ride and booking an UberXL (which was about $30 more). There are so few...
Had a similar experience recently with Uber. Called an Uber ski to drive us from Vail to Eagle County airport. When the car arrived at our hotel, the driver let us load all of our things in the car and then refused to take us (two people with ski equipment) unless we paid him more--either via cash or by cancelling the ride and booking an UberXL (which was about $30 more). There are so few Ubers in the ski area that we didn't have time to wait for another and make our flight on time so we just rebooked as UberXL and figured we'd send in a complaint to Uber later. Their response was horrible--it didn't seem that they read the complaint at all and they didn't offer any compensation....and this was after 3-4 emails back and forth.
I get Delta miles when I use Lyft. And hotel points (as I use my Hilton Card). And I get a lot less hassle. Maybe consider Lyft. I prefer it to Uber when its available.
UberBlack is the solution.
Stop being cheap, people.
You get what you pay for.
@ Andrey -- This was UberBlack, so not sure that flies. ;)
Uber service has gone to the toillet. I am amazed on how many rides get cancelled by the driver after I wait over 10 minutes. On my hometown I was extremelly lucky that I got an amazing Uber Black driver once and I liked him so much I got his business card and we agreed he would charge me from my home to the airport and vice versa the amount Uber would pay him for...
Uber service has gone to the toillet. I am amazed on how many rides get cancelled by the driver after I wait over 10 minutes. On my hometown I was extremelly lucky that I got an amazing Uber Black driver once and I liked him so much I got his business card and we agreed he would charge me from my home to the airport and vice versa the amount Uber would pay him for the ride so I would save money myself. I have been using him for over 3 years for all my rides now. I text him my flight number and he is there waiting for me. Uber has many bad apples in their crew which is destroying their reputation.
^Edit: this wasn’t last night but several months ago now.
Same exact thing happened to me. I take an Uber 2 to 3 times a week on the exact same route from work. I’m always the sole passenger, and never order an Uber XL. Last night, the Uber that showed up was a Nissan Pathfinder. After leaving the Uber, i got the confirmation email showing the typical ~$50 charge. An hour later, I get a message that my fare has been adjusted to the XL...
Same exact thing happened to me. I take an Uber 2 to 3 times a week on the exact same route from work. I’m always the sole passenger, and never order an Uber XL. Last night, the Uber that showed up was a Nissan Pathfinder. After leaving the Uber, i got the confirmation email showing the typical ~$50 charge. An hour later, I get a message that my fare has been adjusted to the XL rate because the driver informed them that I had more than 4 passengers!
I immediately message them, assuming they will quickly fix the error, but nope! Here’s the response (completely ignoring my message):
“Happy to explain
Your driver let us know that there were more than 4 riders on this trip. When there are more than 4 riders on one trip, we ask that you request one of our higher capacity vehicles - uberXL or UberSUV - to accommodate your group.”
Extremely frustrating. I replied to the message very aggressively, and copied a couple of Uber executives (discovered in a quick google search). It took several tries, but I eventually got the fare adjusted plus a $20 credit.
I avoided Uber for 2 months due to this experience. The other Uber scam that really irks me is when the driver accepts your trip, then calls to ask where you’re going. If he / she is not happy with the ride, they’ll cancel. I was at EWR once and it took me over 30 minutes to get an Uber since they all want to go to NYC (and I was traveling to another part of NJ - still a $35 ride). I get that drivers prefer certain rides, but what about the riders? I had 3 (!) drivers cancel on me for this reason. When I mentioned this experience to another Uber driver, he told me to not answer calls for this reason.
Fraud trick happen frequently in a taxi. It’s much easier to resolve with Uber.
I wonder why you would have given 5 stars knowing this was not the real driver?? This is a safety issue, not clear why you woudn't report such a thing asap??
Uber has totally gone down the tank. I saw a car driving around with inkjet printed sheets of paper in the window explaining that if you're looking for [Name] and [License plate] get in this car instead. The car had all the rental car company barcode stickers on it and everything. I'm sure Uber and the rental companies love drivers blatantly violating the TOS, rental contracts, insurance, etc. like this, not to mention that it...
Uber has totally gone down the tank. I saw a car driving around with inkjet printed sheets of paper in the window explaining that if you're looking for [Name] and [License plate] get in this car instead. The car had all the rental car company barcode stickers on it and everything. I'm sure Uber and the rental companies love drivers blatantly violating the TOS, rental contracts, insurance, etc. like this, not to mention that it looks shady as heck to any rider even minimally concerned about their safety.
They are definitely not absorbing the cost. They will deduct it from the driver.
//ex-Uber employee
there are scummy people in the world and you met one. it was immediately rectified. thank you for writing a painfully long essay on this non-news.