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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

#91

I think that decision to withhold the destination of the ride from drivers was a very bad idea they should repeal. They wanted to be sure that drivers don't choose convenient riders and leave less convenient ones unserved, but a) it didn't work, only introduced this "you cancel, no, you" game after destination becomes apparent, and b) opportunistic drivers can no longer give a ride to people who go in the same direct…

This also means that if your destination is in a bad neighborhood, you are likely to go ignored (unless there is serious surge pricing in effect).

This is the "loss leader" of the industry: long trips from city center to an area which is a) considered "dangerous", and/or b) unlikely to have a fare for the return trip. This is where licensing makes a difference: in New York, for example, a cab that picks you up at the airport was required to take you anywhere in the five boroughs you wanted to go as a condition of the medallion.

Re: Uber is charging passengers a $10 cancellation fee even when the driver cancels

#92
post #91

I think that decision to withhold the destination of the ride from drivers was a very bad idea they should repeal. They wanted to be sure that drivers don't choose convenient riders and leave less convenient ones unserved, but a) it didn't work, only introduced this "you cancel, no, you" game after destination becomes apparent, and b) opportunistic drivers can no longer give a ride to people who go in the same direct…

This also means that if your destination is in a bad neighborhood, you are likely to go ignored (unless there is serious surge pricing in effect). This is the "loss leader" of the industry: long trips from city center to an area which is a) considered "dangerous", and/or b) unlikely to have a fare for the return trip. This is where licensing makes a difference: in New York, for example, a cab that picks you up at the…

They can surely price in the quasi-surge for such destinations. You'll have to pay an extra $5 but get there fast. Will never even know it, as prices appear to be fairly random anyway.

Currently, you're going to be pushed to cancel the ride.

Re: Uber is charging passengers a $10 cancellation fee even when the driver cancels

#93

Earlier quoted context omitted.

When I was young and still lived in my home town of NYC I got into a cab to go to Grand Central. The driver spoke no English and had no idea where that was. I used gestures to get us there. So I know. Can one expect Uber to be better?

That's egregious. How long ago was that? Was it a legitimate cab? Until very recently, NYC's TLC required drivers to pass tests to prove geographical knowledge and basic English.

It was in the 1970s. I know others with similar stories. Yup, a legitimate yellow cab. There may have been a legal testing requirement, but I assume you know how that goes in the big city.

Re: Uber is charging passengers a $10 cancellation fee even when the driver cancels

#94

The 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…

Makes sense, these apps are insanely bad at setting the pickup spot where you actually are. Free $10 for them, so why fix it. Whee.

Re: Uber is charging passengers a $10 cancellation fee even when the driver cancels

#95
post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I do, up to a point. My experience with "sharing economy" taxi companies is that they really, truly, do not care about their drivers or their customers. It's a free for all where customers and drivers are basically left to sort things out themselves. IMO, this is where regulation comes in. In a city like New York, taxis are a part of our public infrastructure -- like buses, subways, etc. There should be baseline serv…

Furthermore, we're all on a hedonic treadmill here. The better these services get, the more intolerable we find the most minor of inconveniences. In the long run, everyone is winning in the free market: riders drivers and TNSs, even as our perception changes to notice new details that can be better.

> The better these services get

The trend seems to go the other way.

Years back small perks such as free bottled water and plugged-in cables to charge your phone while you ride were not that uncommon with drivers striving to get to the 5-star ratings.

Today getting a car that doesn't smell too much and has enough trunk space to transport two luggage bags (not a completely unreasonable expectation in case of an airport pick-up) is close to a miracle.

My pet theory is that early successful drivers quit after running their numbers (that included costs on maintenance, wear and tear, extra tires, insurance that suddenly tripled when the car went way above the typical 12,500 annual miles), the current drivers looking to milk the system for as much as possible before the music stops.

Re: Uber is charging passengers a $10 cancellation fee even when the driver cancels

#96

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In order to do that, they'd have to increase the price for rides to less attractive (to drivers) destinations. A trip that ends somewhere unlikely to have another customer available (like an outlying residential area in the evening) is way less attractive than an identical time/distance trip to somewhere with lots of likely fares (a central business district, for example) So, if drivers can see the destinations, they…

This assumes that rides outnumber drivers so that drivers can be picky. In practice tho, it should be the other way around: drivers should be choosing between a paid ride to "bad" destination, and no ride for some time while they're waiting. You can trivially teach the algorith to give better rides to less choosy drivers first. Second, if you still have amateur drivers on your platform who do ad-hoc carpooling, chanc…

> Or even let them to specify where they want to go. Maybe it's already implemented by someone?

Yes this is already implemented by Uber [1]. I have used it several times on my commute home.

[1] https://techcrunch.com/2015/11/16/uber-drivers-can-now-pick-...

Re: Uber is charging passengers a $10 cancellation fee even when the driver cancels

#97

I've finally deleted Uber and it's primarily because of the tipping issue. I've had almost universal good service around the world with Uber drivers, but the tipping thing is getting aggressive, and subtle hints are rapidly become overt demands. Uber was great when it started but government corruption and meddling, combined with Uber's greed, and the corrupt taxi industry fighting it, is killing the service. Small im…

Why should you tip anyone? You are buying a service for an agreed price, why should the price go up when you get to the point where you pay?

Uber's complete refusal to integrate tipping into the app led to various perverse incentives, mainly drivers blackmailing riders for a tip or else their rating will suffer https://hbr.org/2016/05/ubers-new-tipping-policy-is-a-mistak...

Re: Uber is charging passengers a $10 cancellation fee even when the driver cancels

#99
Happens ALL THE TIME in Hong Kong. The worst case so far, I've had a driver call me as soon as I submitted the pick up request, hung up the phone immediately as I mentioned where I was going, then stayed without moving for the next 90 minutes, without cancelling (I took a cab long before that). Similar, though less intense experience happened to me on about 20% of the rides, every time I have to go through the claim process to (automatically) get my money back.

Infuriating, I really wish there was viable alternative to Uber in HK, but taxi drivers are a lot worse (disgusting, rude, very frequently refuse a hire...).

Re: Uber is charging passengers a $10 cancellation fee even when the driver cancels

#100
post #17

> "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 Aus…

I've canceled rides in several cities around the north east US, usually because the driver is taking too long/lost. Every time, Uber's policy was to charge me $5 if I cancelled 2 min after requesting. When I did dispute the charge, the process was the same as OP on reddit (including an account credit over a refund.) I wonder why there's a difference in how the money is reimbursed.

> the driver is taking too long/lost

> Uber's policy was to charge me $5 if I cancelled 2 min after requesting

To be clear, you waited less than 2 min for a driver before cancelling? Or the charge only applies after 2 min?

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