Here are my addendums:

Drivers Advice, Experiences
,
#1

  1. Set up a quick text on your phone - something that can be sent with just a couple taps - to the effect of “Hi. This is your Uber Driver. I’m on my way. What is the name of the building or business you are in front of?” This tip I got from this forum saved my butt on my very first ride. Rider’s pin was almost a full mile away. Found them, no problem, boom $20 fare. Send the message once you accept the ride by tapping on the little notepad on the top right of your screen.

  2. If they haven’t input a destination by the time they get in, ask them for it and put it in the nav before you drive off. Verify the route is OK. IF they drop off someone enroute, ask the remaining passenger(s) for the next address before continuing. There’s a scam out there where they claim you drove around for a few miles before “ending” the trip.

  3. Never, ever allow more passengers in your car for your level of service (4 for x, 6 for xl, etc).

  4. Make a big point about ending the ride so they know you’ve closed the ticket.

  5. Look into a dash cam. I just use DailyRoads Voyager on my Android running in the background with the mic turned on. It only records ahead, but it captures sound in the car. Could save your butt…

#2

For me, I took a weeknight and drove all over downtown to familiarize myself with all the one ways and no stopping zones. I also took a Friday night and just did some drive strolling to see how traffic is with turns, stops, and stop zones. I recommend doing that before you start; it will help out with any nerves you may get while driving the busy streets of downtown.

#3

Well I was going to open the Uber app and see where other dirvers are and NOT go to those same areas. LOL unless it’s downtown where there’s tons of people and potential PAX.

#4

I looked on google and people were saying 3-4 gigs a month. I have a 15 gig plan. To bump to 20 will make my bill way higher so I just need to stop playing on the internet so much from work on my phone and use the computer lol. I should be good to go.

#5

don’t forget to love and five stars all the 4$ fare rides and offer water and hot towels .
if you want to stay in business . hot towles in a must . warmers are easy to purchase .

#6

I’ve only been at it for two days, but I think I’ve found my sweet spot area to hang out around… one with plenty of bathrooms and fast food with wifi like McDonalds, Starbucks, Panera Bread, etc.

#7

I reactivated my old Samsung S3 for Ubering and use my personal phone for distraction while waiting. I wouldn’t pay $520 a year plus $200 deposit to rent a cell phone, unless you can’t get one any other way.

#8

I’m not doing hot towels and shit… The negativity is so hardcore around here, lol. I think I’ll do the bottled water thing eventually but that’s about it. And I can’t do a $4 ride, the min fare here is $5, BOOM! lol

#9

I completely agree about the dash cam. Mine has a broken holder and they discontinued the model, so I’ll probably buy a new one. I had a $50 Cobra. A little funky to operate and it records in three minute segments. DailyRoads Voyager is an app? I put my Android on the vent mount. Easier to see when it’s sunny outside.

#10

Okay so I went out last night. Two hours first pax no showed so I put that and got $5. Then hit again for a ten mile trip for $26. After uber fees and all I made $24 and went home.

#11

Yeah yeah I noticed that last night and thought of that, lol… But still not too bad. I went out for 2 hours and made $24. Didn’t drive all around and the drop off was on my way home, lol…

#12

I am in Texas and have the USAA “Gap coverage” costing about $10/mo covering that period of time when you have no rider but you are waiting for a ping.USAA is also in about 5 other states.

#13

Not necessarily, I’d say 15 - 25% of the time, there’s something wrong with the addy, maybe two doors off, or a whole block off, or the real addy is on another street entirely. Some addies you get are “ambigous”, such as 100-500 C street ( a range of possibilities ) 'cause the app wasn’t smart enough to figure it out, or they pinged you from a parking lot and there is no address. Text or call the rider on the number provided via the app for addy confirmation ( I do this anytime I have to chase a call for more than 5 minutes ).

#14

Take first request and this will set you up. After each drop off, try to find a safe and legal place to park to wait for next ping.
Don’t drink a lot of liquids before and during driving. And you know why!

#15

Tried that today. In 5 hours, only ping I got was when I was running an errand to the grocery store. 11 minutes away. Turned it down.

Speaking of… Is there any way to know if you missed pings when you have your phone on the charger and you don’t hear it from the other room?