Uber gives the rider MORE info about the situation than Uber gives the driver

Drivers Advice, Experiences
,
#1

All the driver knows is the pickup location determined by Uber’s software. The rider on the other hand sees nearly live, continuously updated information on where the driver is IN ADDITION TO the location the driver is headed. Then they get notification that the driver has arrived.

At that point the driver is in a no lose situation. Either the rider gets into the car, the rider pays and the driver gets paid, or the rider doesn’t get in the car, the rider pays and the driver gets paid. Either way the driver is getting paid at that point. So what motivates the driver to hunt for the missing passenger? Nothing. Unless the Uber driver has his nose shoved half way up Uber’s butt. Those that don’t have done the math and realize a cancel earns them 67% MORE than a minimum fare AND WITH ZERO MILES! So at that point, if the rider isn’t at the pickup location, the ONLY reason I even wait is in hopes of getting the cancel fee. If the rider shows up before the five minutes, then maybe there’s a chance the fare will be more lucrative than a cancel, but at these rates odds are against it.

#2

I am through calling and texting paxs. I had two fares last night in which I arrived, hit ARRIVED, and then sat. I watched my time closely and as soon as I hit 5 minutes, I hit CANCEL and I collected my $8. (I prefer the ghost ride after two minutes of waiting, but I was feeling charitable last night.) In one case I could actually see the guy in the bar. According to the pin drop, I was damn near on top of him.

#3

In the second case I was at a condo complex and I was within a couple dozen feet of the pax there, too. In the second case, less than a minute after I cancelled she pinged me again. Yeah, right. I’m not a glutton for punishment, so I continued on my way. Bottom line here is that there are a lot of stupid/rude/inconsiderate paxs and Uber really needs to do a better job of educating these assholes.

#4

Pings are pretty steady and regular down here in Columbus. There’s very little boredom. There was in late december before the rate cuts when the market was saturated with so many drivers, but since the rate cut, it’s never boring.

#5

I had this happen for a lady that was on a train and sent request about 5 minutes before she arrived to station. I was less than a minute from there so of course I wait while she wants her personal driver already there to take her to her $6 ride.

#6

You’re right Uber is EXACTLY like playing casino. The house almost always wins. But every once in a while someone posts here about a jackpot day. That is just the right amount of hook to keep you at the tables.

#7

Sometimes I think when I read a driver having a jackpot day, I wonder if it’s actually Uber corporate running more of their PsyOps on us. I never hit anything close to some of those jackpots some have posted here. $100 seems to be a good day for me and at that point I usually cash out, because I worry my luck will run out and get in accident or pulled over or something.

#8

I have 2 texts that I constantly copy paste over and over, either:

“I have arrived at the “requested” location.”
This gives the sense that I’m at the pin they set, and helps if there appears to be no one waiting on the curb as the Uber hap has serious delay issues, no need to wait an extra 2 minutes because the Uber app is slow.

#9

For the PAX thats waiting curbside at correct location when I pull up, I generally try to mention that I appreciate it. These PAX are almost always a stress free experience.

#10

Today I accepted a ping and the pax immediately called me to ask how long it would take me to get there. I told him the app said seven minutes. He said, “Oh, ok. Sometimes that thing isn’t right.”

#11

My fear would be that the pax would seek revenge against you the next time they encounter you, whether in the form of physical violence or worse. Or, they’ll rate you one star and get their friends to do the same.

#12

What’s “wrong with that” is that almost all of my $5 customer no-show end up getting voided out to $0 when that piece-of-sh*t rider sees the $5 fee and contacts customer support and the CSR automatically sides with the customer.

#13

The minute you stop fearing the assh-le customer and his ability to 1 star you is the minute that customer no longer has power over you. And that type of d-bag usually will only terrorize people who are obviously scared of him.

#14

That hasn’t happened to me…yet, but I certainly get what you’re saying. In the eyes of Uber, anything a pax says is carved in granite, while what we drivers say is scrawled in shit.

#15

I’m pretty certain the way the deal with the cancellation fee varies between markets, and probably between your luck of the CSR draw and that person’s cellestial cycle at the time. However, if what I’ve heard about the first cancel fee no longer being waived is actually true, then we need to either push back on such reversals, or make it a point to be the first to email support for each cancel situation EVERY TIME until Uber gets the message.