Uber is charging passengers a $10 cancellation fee even when the driver cancels
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Re: Uber is charging passengers a $10 cancellation fee even when the driver cancels
#2a lot of corporate accounts would simply get milked by this dodgy functionality
Seems like they're trying everything they can..
Re: Uber is charging passengers a $10 cancellation fee even when the driver cancels
#3The comments point out a perfectly reasonable explanation for why this charge might exist:
One reason that drivers can specify for a cancellation is that the rider wasn't at the pickup location. Even though it's the driver cancelling in this case, it's reasonable for Uber to charge the rider in my opinion. If this is the case, the poster is still being improperly charged the fee, but it's more about the driver lying about a cancellation reason than some plot on Uber's part.
Re: Uber is charging passengers a $10 cancellation fee even when the driver cancels
#4Once I asked for a Uber driver on my corporate account during a business trip and the driver cancelled on me. I asked for the cancellation fee back and got $5 on my account.
Wait, what? Weren't my business supposed to get the $5 fee back? I am just an employee there and even if I was the point of contact or the owner, it's not how things should work.
I just earned $5 (that was probably charged) for being cancelled on and I most likely used it on a private trip later on.
I bet the contracts they have for corporate accounts make it clear (or else companies would be mad at them already) so it's not my problem, but it's weird nonetheless.
Re: Uber is charging passengers a $10 cancellation fee even when the driver cancels
#5> "Whats more is that they don't refund the money they took unlawfully - instead they credit it to your Uber account."
I think that's the part that seems the most messed up. However, I will say that in the USA (Chicago) I've had this happen before (it's only a $5 charge, not $10) and when I disputed it, I got a credit back to my credit card and not an Uber credit like they mentioned. I wonder if it's different in Australia (assuming this is where it happened because r/australia)?
EDIT: As others have mentioned both here and on reddit, I am chalking this up to the drivers trying to scam riders, and not Uber directly doing it out of malice. I've had the same issue before when a driver tries to call me and tell me to cancel the ride for X reason that is their fault, that way they don't get the fee/penalty, but I'm not stupid. I know what they are trying to do. ha As someone else here said, this just bad design that is a lose-lose for either side, driver or rider, depending how it's done. All in all, I think Uber will always make this right if you just dispute it, and contact their support. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Re: Uber is charging passengers a $10 cancellation fee even when the driver cancels
#6I think it is one of those cases where this applies: Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity.
I think it may be a loophole or bad system design rather than a willful scam by uber to make some extra money.
Re: Uber is charging passengers a $10 cancellation fee even when the driver cancels
#7It's just driver being an ass or an idiot. Pretty sure the driver has an option to cancel without charging you and the one that does. I had experienced both. The first driver said his GPS isn't working and told me to cancel, which I refused because then I would be charged (also happened to me before). He cancelled, and I was still charged. I got a refund later (via customer service). The second time the driver was 10 minutes away and he called me and suggested me to cancel and get another ride. I refused because I assumed the app chose the closest driver to me. After a while he cancelled and I wasn't charged.
Re: Uber is charging passengers a $10 cancellation fee even when the driver cancels
#8I think it is one of those cases where this applies: Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity. I think it may be a loophole or bad system design rather than a willful scam by uber to make some extra money.
That may have been the case 4 years ago, but Uber is a fairly seasoned company with many iterations of their app. I don't think it's safe to jump to "uber is scamming us" but this is definitely something that was done on purpose.
Re: Uber is charging passengers a $10 cancellation fee even when the driver cancels
#9The comments point out a perfectly reasonable explanation for why this charge might exist: One reason that drivers can specify for a cancellation is that the rider wasn't at the pickup location. Even though it's the driver cancelling in this case, it's reasonable for Uber to charge the rider in my opinion. If this is the case, the poster is still being improperly charged the fee, but it's more about the driver lying…
Yeah, it sounds like Uber is basically favoring the driver by default in cancellation. Which is ironic when you consider that we are usually hearing stories about Uber screwing their drivers.
I'm curious how often in these cases was it actually user error [standing in the wrong spot] vs system error [GPS reporting a wrong location] vs driver error [driver navigated to wrong location, assumed user had walked away] vs driver malice [intentionally cancelling with no intent of pickup]. Most of the users getting canceled on assume the last, but I'd hope that either this sort of driver malice is rare or Uber has some sort of "driver fraud detection" algorithm.
Re: Uber is charging passengers a $10 cancellation fee even when the driver cancels
#10There's a lot of reasons to hate Uber these days but I'm not sure this is one of them. The problem with cancellations is real, I have to cancel rides constantly because I live and work in Brooklyn Heights/ DUMBO and the app just can't seem to get the hang of the river, the bridges, and the expressway that runs through our neighborhood.
It's pretty much routine to get assigned a car and then watch as it speeds over your head rapidly towards Manhattan, or get assigned a car already on Wall Street, which is about 1000 yards away on the map on the other side of the East River.
It's super annoying, but if you get hit with the cancellation fee you can just go into the app and do it and it's always simple and instantaneous. Calling it a scam seems a little extreme.