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Uber's New Policy Fines Riders Who Are Two Minutes Late

Posted by msmash on from the not-the-best-month-for-Uber dept.

Uber says it has revised some of its policies to better compensate its drivers. As part of which, the company is testing charging customers a fee if they make a driver wait for more than two minutes (current waiting time is five minutes). Furthermore, the taxi aggregator says it is changing the ride cancellation grace period from five minutes to two minutes, adding that the fees can range from $5 to $10, depending on your city. Our very own Logan Abbott aka Whipslash faced this issue today. Though he tells us that the company refunded his money after he emailed and filed a complaint. The Verge reports:The feature was built in response to drivers' complaints about waiting for passengers, Uber said. In a statement released to The Verge and TechCrunch, Uber noted that these updated terms would ensure that "the whole system runs more smoothly and the Uber experience improves for everyone." Reduced wait times and the ability to charge for idle time, as well as compensation if riders cancel after two minutes, obviously benefit drivers, earning them a few extra dollars and allowing them to move onto the next fare sooner. But how this will make the passenger experience smoother is unclear. Traffic, wrong turns, and faulty GPS all contribute to making pick-up times unreliable. This can leave passengers out in the cold, waiting for drivers to arrive. Uber explained that if a driver is more than five minutes late for an estimated arrival, users can cancel the ride with no penalty.

3 of 172 comments (clear)

  1. What is Uber, a CAB COMPANY? by Frosty+Piss · · Score: 4, Interesting

    $5 to $10 for being a few minutes late? Yeah... No.

    I'll call a cab or maybe Lyft...

    --
    If you want news from today, you have to come back tomorrow.
    1. Re:What is Uber, a CAB COMPANY? by AuMatar · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Have you ever actually used an uber? Try doing it on a crowded street or by a hotel. It can take more than 2 minutes to find the damn car, its not like they're easily marked taxis. I've had ubers go more than 5 minutes late because they decided to park in the lot across the street, how the fuck was I supposed to know that?

      --
      I still have more fans than freaks. WTF is wrong with you people?
  2. My driver was 8 minutes late yesterday by idji · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I didn't get a pop-up at 5 minutes asking me if I wanted to cancel. NOR could I see on the display how many minutes ago I requested the driver.
    And my driver took a wrong turn coming to me making him even later.
    And my driver took 3-4 minutes AFTER the trip before he closed it. Did I pay for that too?