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The only acceptable rating to leave an Uber driver is 5 stars

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Re: The only acceptable rating to leave an Uber driver is 5 stars

#91

Without thinking too deeply about the incentives and unintended consequences, it seems a better rating system would be "thumbs up" and "thumbs down", with the latter requiring some rationale (the text can be checked with AI to make sure it isn't just gibberish).

One of Uber's competitors have a 5 star system where 4 and 5 stars show you a few options below with the title "What did you like?". Those are optional. for 3 and 2 they will show "What was the issue?" and you have to write a shot message describing the issue. And for 1 they show no options but will call you and ask what was so terrible about your ride.

Re: The only acceptable rating to leave an Uber driver is 5 stars

#92
post #57

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You don’t tip. I have a similar rating for the same reason. Tipping is obnoxious, especially when it’s asked for at the start of the transaction.

The Uber app should ask the driver to rate the passenger before knowing whether they tipped. Otherwise it's just a rate of tipping which together with local expectations is a recipe for just making it useless. Do drivers really see tips before rating riders?

There are drivers out there who'll ding you for not tipping *in cash*

Re: The only acceptable rating to leave an Uber driver is 5 stars

#93

I just checked my rating and i'm a 4.62. I have never had a problematic ride, i'm always waiting exactly where I summon the Uber to. Not once have I made an Uber wait for me. I sit in the back and don't say a word unless spoken to.. is that what i'm doing wrong?

Passengers get rated on a lot of things but I think your willingness to tip is foremost, and then from there it's a lot of biases, racial, gender, etc. I've been hit on by a lot of drivers and I've wondered if politely rejecting their advances has caused me to have a lower score. 4.8 on Uber, and a 5.0 on Lyft. Go figure.

One I've seen brought up a lot in driver forums are smokers. So if you reek of smoke they'll ding you. Which makes sense I suppose because their complaint is that the smell lingers in the car and then *they* get dinged by the next rider

Re: The only acceptable rating to leave an Uber driver is 5 stars

#94

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The parallels are eerie. > Sometimes, she gets worried about picking up passengers rated less than 4.8. Like a 4.79 is really low. I wonder, ‘Do I have to fear for my life with this person?’

I used to buy vintage cameras on ebay (not so much lately--no more room) and one of the things you quickly realize is that a 'seller rating' of less than say 95% means 'avoid'. The way the ratings are calculated mean that if they're getting enough dings to bring the score down even a few points, they're doing something wrong.

Usually the thing they are doing "wrong" is not focusing on volume to overcome the occasional bad rating.

Re: The only acceptable rating to leave an Uber driver is 5 stars

#95

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I used to buy vintage cameras on ebay (not so much lately--no more room) and one of the things you quickly realize is that a 'seller rating' of less than say 95% means 'avoid'. The way the ratings are calculated mean that if they're getting enough dings to bring the score down even a few points, they're doing something wrong.

I remember in the early days of ebay before they had the official rating system it became accepted that you had to leave a review containing A+++++++++++ if the shipper did an acceptable job because a grade of merely A+ meant that you got the thing you bought but something wasn't great about the experience and anything worse than that meant the seller was a scammer.

I used to really enjoy writing and reading those ridiculous reviews.

"Shipping came so fast I had to duck!!!"

"If I were locked in prison this seller could be my bunk mate!"

Re: The only acceptable rating to leave an Uber driver is 5 stars

#96
post #6

Good to know that I should have left the driver who crashed their car mid-trip and then charged us for the full trip a five-star rating.

If only the article had covered such a scenario... And I quote: > *****: This person deserves to have access to this platform and the ability to earn a living through it > *, **, ***, ****: This person is a danger to me, themself, and others and should be removed from the service Sure sounds like your exact experience falls under that second group!

Almost sounds like the title is clickbait!

Re: The only acceptable rating to leave an Uber driver is 5 stars

#97

Without thinking too deeply about the incentives and unintended consequences, it seems a better rating system would be "thumbs up" and "thumbs down", with the latter requiring some rationale (the text can be checked with AI to make sure it isn't just gibberish).

I agree with this, although I wouldn't bother with the rationale. It's either you had an overall good experience or an overall bad experience. I'd add a third option called "favorite" or "star" which you could you only give out to 10 drivers/restaurants/places at a time to highlight really exceptional experiences.

Re: The only acceptable rating to leave an Uber driver is 5 stars

#98

I just checked my rating and i'm a 4.62. I have never had a problematic ride, i'm always waiting exactly where I summon the Uber to. Not once have I made an Uber wait for me. I sit in the back and don't say a word unless spoken to.. is that what i'm doing wrong?

I saw the Uber driver give me a bad rating once because he complained I'd tricked the app into giving me a fare that was too cheap.

Re: The only acceptable rating to leave an Uber driver is 5 stars

#100

A rating for Uber is silly. It's just a ride to get you to A to B, having a five star rating system is what creates a situation where leaving a 5 star review i the 'only acceptable rating' I think maybe it should just be a few simple questions that are yes or no, based on did the driver follow procedures, get you to your location, provide a suitable vehicle etc. Maybe these questions are randomised so you only get as…

The variables in the quality of driving are far from being a few, and include: - driving aggressively/dangerously/poorly - the above includes not being focused on driving (eg. talking on the phone) - reacting angrily to other drivers - driving illegally - allowing a ride without safety measures (eg. child seat), which is also a case of driving illegally - not replying to requests (messages) at all before actually sta…

> Uber's star rating has a sensible design - anything below 5 requires the user to explain why.

That is not a sensible design at all. That's effectively demanding that all reviews be 5 stars.

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