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Don't Sass Your Uber Driver - He's Rating You Too
HughPickens.com writes David Streitfeld reports at the NYT that people routinely use the Internet to review services from plumbers to hairdressers, but now the tables are turned as companies like Uber are rating their customers, and shunning those who do not make the grade. "An Uber trip should be a good experience for drivers too," says an Uber blog post. "Drivers shouldn't have to deal with aggressive, violent, or disrespectful riders. If a rider exhibits disrespectful, threatening, or unsafe behavior, they, too, may no longer be able to use the service." It does not seem to take much to annoy some Uber drivers. On one online forum, an anonymous driver said he gave poor reviews to "people who are generally negative and would tend to bring down my mood (or anyone around them)." Another was cavalier about the process: "1 star for passengers does not do them any harm. Sensible drivers won't pick them up, but so what?" In response, some consumers are becoming more polite and prompt. "The knowledge that they may be rated is also encouraging people to submit more upbeat reviews themselves, even if the experience was less than stellar," writes Streitfeld. "When services choose whom to serve, no one wants to be labeled difficult."
They aren't "ride sharing". Stop using that ridiculous phrase. When you wait around for someone to ask you for a ride somewhere that you weren't going to go otherwise for money that isn't ride sharing.
Car driven by bobcat would not ride again.
I'm only pointing out the arguments that have already been made, both by columnists and by your average poster on Slashdot and other forums. I've never used a ride-sharing service and I can count the number of times I've used a taxi on one hand; my point is that it sounds like these ride sharing services are in-effect becoming taxi companies and that is being recognized by regulatory agencies. I don't put a value judgement on these companies, but we hear of prices going up, we hear that cities are banning the companies outright, we hear that drivers lack insurance that's mandated when providing service-for-hire, so we start to see structural problems that will only be overcome by the implementation of conventional taxi or sedan service practices.
I'll let you in on a secret though, while the laws and regulations governing passenger livery vehicles may be overly-influenced by those livery companies at this point, they came to be in the first place because of abuses by those ferrying people from place to place, in a manner very much like how these ride-sharing companies operate where the rubber meets the road. That's why I personally think they'll eventually be forced into operating as taxis or licensed sedans, or be forced out.
Do not look into laser with remaining eye.
I can't help but wonder how long it will take the less savory drivers to develop code words for the following:
"Too black."
"Too Jewish."
"Lives in a neighborhood that's too black."
"Too black, and was rude when I called him a nigger and accused him of trying to carjack me because he wouldn't give me a tip of ten times the fare."
Uber is about a hundred different kinds of lawsuits that have found a place to happen.
Now, it's 101.
Actually, I travel a lot in Europe, and take a lot of taxis. I have only had very positive experiences with taxi drivers . . . because I treat them with respect.
Taxi drivers are the eyes and ears of a city . . . the NSA should drop all this online monitoring crap, and just put some taxi drivers on the payroll. They know everything. I was joking with one in Brussels, and asked him if he knew the address of the mistress of the Prime Minister. He answered, "Which one of his mistresses?"
Which is why this scares me a wee bit, when I hear that Über or whoever is harvesting data on passengers. And who will have access to that data . . . I think you know who.
Anyway, I have recently been in Delft, Holland, Paris, France, not Hilton, Nice, France, Birmingham, Southampton, UK, Brussels, Belgium, Zürich, Switzerland, Böblingen, Germany, Stuttgart, Germany, Darmstadt, Germany . . .
And where-ever you are . . . there you go. There is a taxi driver who will take you to where ever you need to go . . . if you treat him or her with respect!
Schroedinger's Brexit: The UK is both in and out of the EU at the same time!
Actually there is. There's a reason why the taxi number and driver name are posted on the back seat. If you have a problem, you take it up with your local transit board about it (or livery commission) and file a complaint. Or even with the taxi company itself (whose name is prominently displayed).
Granted, you actually have to file a complaint, but they do generally listen
Sure it's not as simple as a star rating, but they do want to weed out the janky ones who just are never satisfied or those who file complaints because there was a tear on the underside of the seat.
I wonder if we'll get to the point where a driver won't leave a rating until the customer does and vice-versa, to prevent revenge ratings which were a problem on eBay.