Can We Trust Uber?

I will never become an Uber customer after the experience I had a few weeks ago. I was at a holiday party and needed to leave early because I suddenly didn't feel well. The hostess insisted on calling a car for me through Uber so I didn't have to take the bus. The driver was very polite and spoke good English, but he did NOT know where he was going. I gave him directions, which he ignored, and we went well out of our way and had to double back. I'm sure my poor hostess got gouged in the process (I've already told her that I owe her a dinner). In any case, I've never had this problem with a cab driver who was licensed by the city of Chicago, because they all have to pass a rigorous geography test. There are very good reasons for this industry to be tightly regulated, and having a driver who actually knows where to go is just one of them.

I think I would rather take a bus than deal with all this malarkey.

I hope that no one has the guts to call this progress!

I drive for Uber, the experience is quite pleasant. I used Uber as a passenger before I decided to partner. That experience helped me decide to drive for Uber. Uber is just as risky as a cab as far as psychopathic drivers go. Uber is in headlines now so it's popular to put Uber down. But you never hear anyone praise a cab company like you hear praise from people who use Uber. Privacy issues are a concern. Still Uber's privacy issues are no worse than Google or Yahoo, Paypal, Ebay etc.

Uber drivers are treated well. Uber drivers are partners, not employees. The 5 star rating system keeps drivers on their toes, inspires them to give 5 star service. Uber passengers are rated also for the similar reason. Passengers must behave respectfully during an Uber trip. No smoking, no drinking spirits, no abusive communication... Passenger who receive too many bad ratings from drivers are blocked from Uber service. I believe the rating system protects booth driver and rider.

I don't agree with all of Uber's policies and business practices, but they improve as needs and issues arise. Uber does Ride Share Service the best, compared to the rest. Uber has some growing up (and explaining) to do, it's a new tech, Uber isn't a saint by any means! Uber is no more evil than any other company in business today. But it is the lesser of all evils by far in the Ride Sharing and Livery Service world. Still, when people try Uber, they don't go back to cabs unless Uber isn't in their city yet.

Hey, I'm a pretty astute consumer advocate (professionally). My wife and I got rid of one of our cars and use Uber and Lyft quite a bit in San Diego. We've been super pleased with both services and find them to be consistently cheaper than a taxi. Last month, we took Lyft to the airport -- it cost $20. Because our airport forbids private car pick-ups, we had to use a taxi. We paid $30 for the return. We've not had many bad experiences (one -- a bad driver) and often the rides are delightful with drivers who are really nice ---- nicer than most of the tired and jaded professional taxi drivers in town. I also disagree with some of Bob's assessments about the Portland dispute; there is a lot of politics and legal maneuvering involved in that issue. Our bottom line: using Uber and Lyft has turned out to cost us less than half of the maintenance and insurance for our second car. I'd not recommend that people write off either Uber or Lyft, although I certainly hope that more competitors develop. In California, some cities are allowing taxi drivers to create their own version of Uber -- that should increase competition and clean up some of the abuses noted by Bob.

I just took UBER in LA for the first time and had a great experience. They have 3 or 4 tiers depending on the car you want and actually got an upgraded driver when we requested the lowest tier UberX.
He told us how he has to keep his car immaculate and send a picture to UBER each day he works. The car was a Mercedes vs a stinky cab and it was about 40% less in cost than a taxi. Coming back to the airport we were going to try LYFT but they were having a surge so we chose UBER again and had a similar great experience.
As far as tipping..when you create your profile you have a choice to automatically tip 10,15, 20% etc which will always be added to your fare once you select which one you want. Its very easy..no hassle paying a cab at the end of the ride etc. Im a fan!.

A few weeks back you mentioned mintlinux (based on ubuntu). Have you checked out puzzlelinux (also based on ubuntu)? http://www.linuxinsider.com/story/81437.html - It looks very interesting, maybe worth sharing with your readers?

I'm all for free market competition. The city cab medallions are in many bigger locales, a huge racket, keeping newer business people (taxi owners/drivers) OUT of the market. Government needs to stop over-regulating nearly everything. Let us hope that visitors to cities where uber and lyft are operating will take their sentiments back and express them to the pols in places where these services are locked out due to over-regulation.

Concerns that I have - in addition to the ones listed. Licensed cab drivers and their companies have liability insurance to protect their passengers. Private individuals - ones who drive for Uber and other companies - are usually relying upon their personal car insurance to protect themselves and their passengers. However, personal car insurance doesn't usually extend to paying passengers - and your insurance may be invalidated.

Not a concern ordinarily, but in the case of a fatality or accident that maims passengers, this may be vital to survival financially and even medically.

When I first considered using Uber, I wanted to determine how thoroughly the drivers were vetted. So I went to the site and clicked on the link "Become an Uber driver." I went through enough steps in the process to determine that there was no vetting at all--no bond, no special insurance, no background or criminal check. So I decided not to use them.

My question is about car insurance. If you're using your car for a business, you need different insurance. Are there instances (there must be) where accidents happen? What happens to liability? And I hope it isn't, "It's the driver's responsibility" as that won't cut it if you only have personal insurance.

In PA I can use any Rail, Bus or Public transportation 24-7 free as a Senior Citizen, this is supported by the PA Lottery. I don't drive very much except for Food Shopping, Dr. Appointments. Only gas up every 2 or 3 months. Uber and unlicensed Cabs are ticketed and towed. They don't have a Chauffer license or insurance.

@Heather,

You cannot over-regulate where public transport is concerned especially in the case of taxi services - you are a woman surely you see the reasons??

Dear Bob,
Uber is a great idea if the drivers are required to carry liability insurance. Anything less should be illegal. Peace, E.

My question is about car insurance. If you're using your car for a business, you need different insurance. Are there instances (there must be) where accidents happen? What happens to liability? And I hope it isn't, "It's the driver's responsibility" as that won't cut it if you only have personal insurance.jim
19 Dec 2014

I agree with the above statement made by Jim. Taxis and public bus drivers have to insurance, to protect them from liability. Ordinary motor vehicle insurance, that these Uber and Lyft drivers have, will not protect them, in the event of an accident, because they are operating in a chauffeur capacity.

This is certainly a subject of interest to many, based on your reader posts. However it has only the slightest of links to end-user computing, and the points you make seem not to involve them. I am not calling you out for this article. I cannot see you posting an article on, say, partisan politics. Still, where should the line be drawn?

EDITOR'S NOTE: "Freedom of the press," I've heard it said, "belongs to him who owns one." As to your point, I've never limited myself to writing about end-user computing. I've posted an article about my dog on this website, and another on cholesterol. It seems fair to say that computers, gadgets, online privacy & security, and internet services are the primary topics here. But occasionally, I'll post other things that strike my fancy as well. :-)