# Uber london 15% price reduction



## mitch (Sep 1, 2014)

Uber london prices are generally 35% cheaper then most other firms here,

Now uber have reduced the price a further 15%
And that is without giving their drivers ("partners"as they call us) fair notice. 
22hours notice is not good enough.

BUT havent reduced their commision...

When asked about this they said ...they believe due to more demand, drivers can take home the same amount of money for doing more jobs as there is more demand!!

How the **** is that a positive thing?

Im not here to moan (well maybe)

But partners should have a say if they make a Desicion for us 

If uber reduces our fares then reduce your commission 

Is that not fair?


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## puber (Aug 31, 2014)

How busy are you over there?
Do you wait more than 10 min?


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## mitch (Sep 1, 2014)

Sometimes upto an hour 

but on weekends we call it busy if its 15minutes wait


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## London UberExec Driver (Jul 8, 2014)

Hmm well they removed the rounding down thing so that helps a little. Though increased demand means more fares, less dead mileage and less waiting. Supposedly.


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## Sydney Uber (Apr 15, 2014)

mitch said:


> Uber london prices are generally 35% cheaper then most other firms here,
> 
> Now uber have reduced the price a further 15%
> And that is without giving their drivers ("partners"as they call us) fair notice.
> ...


Hi Mitch, are you in Uber Black or Uber X?


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## uberlondon (Jul 26, 2014)

Hello fellow London driver, I found it really busy today and didn't have to wait more than 10 minutes for a job and we don't have Uber Black here Sydney, we have X Exec And Lux


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## Sydney Uber (Apr 15, 2014)

uberlondon said:


> Hello fellow London driver, I found it really busy today and didn't have to wait more than 10 minutes for a job and we don't have Uber Black here Sydney, we have X Exec And Lux


So the 15% reduction was on Exec fares? This would be the same as black here. I'm just trying to gird my loins for the same treatment here


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## uberlondon (Jul 26, 2014)

No the 15% reduction was on X and to help you with the classes Exec is Merc E Class BMW 5 series and Lux is Merc S Class and BMW 7 Series


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## houstonguy (Aug 17, 2014)

mitch said:


> Sometimes upto an hour
> 
> but on weekends we call it busy if its 15minutes wait


Same bullshit here in Houston. Reduced by 25% for no apparent reason. Demand has *not *gone up since they did it 2 weeks ago.


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## Sydney Uber (Apr 15, 2014)

uberlondon said:


> No the 15% reduction was on X and to help you with the classes Exec is Merc E Class BMW 5 series and Lux is Merc S Class and BMW 7 Series


Seems to me they are trying to build a wider demarcation line between the X product and Uber Black/exec cars


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## uberlondon (Jul 26, 2014)

Sydney Uber said:


> Seems to me they are trying to build a wider demarcation line between the X product and Uber Black/exec cars


Not sure if they do this for you too but they used to round down the fare so if it was £8.50 they would round it down to £8.00 and with the price deduction on X they stopped rounding it down but they stopped doing it on Exec/Lux too so they're actually earning even a little bit more now. Although as I said earlier I actually found it really busy today but not sure if it was because kids went back to school today from their summer holidays (so it usually gets busier this time of year here) or if it is the price reduction or just because it was pouring with rain all day. Time will tell I guess.


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## mitch (Sep 1, 2014)

uberlondon said:


> Hello fellow London driver, I found it really busy today and didn't have to wait more than 10 minutes for a job and we don't have Uber Black here Sydney, we have X Exec And Lux


Hi mate u sound like those new drivers coming in from a different trade like Mcdonalds... Besides u are missing the point..

Ive been in the trade 8-9 years

Why should i accept a fare that used to pay me £26 and now i have to accept £11


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## chi1cabby (May 28, 2014)

Howdy @mitch !
Just read a blog post by your fellow London UberX driver.

http://uberdriverlondon.wordpress.com/2014/08/29/uber-london-15-price-drop-for-uberx/


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## uberlondon (Jul 26, 2014)

mitch said:


> Hi mate u sound like those new drivers coming in from a different trade like Mcdonalds... Besides u are missing the point..
> 
> Ive been in the trade 8-9 years
> 
> Why should i accept a fare that used to pay me £26 and now i have to accept £11


Coming from Mcdonalds? Not quite... and believe me I don't agree with the reduction at all, I was just making an observation that today was really busy.

Also how do you work out a fare that was £26 you get paid £11 for? That is more than 50%?


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## mitch (Sep 1, 2014)

uberlondon said:


> Coming from Mcdonalds? Not quite... and believe me I don't agree with the reduction at all, I was just making an observation that today was really busy.
> 
> Also how do you work out a fare that was £26 you get paid £11 for? That is more than 50%?


The upto 35% discounted to begin with
Then the new forced upon 15%
Then their 20%commission.


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## mitch (Sep 1, 2014)

chi1cabby said:


> Howdy @mitch !
> Just read a blog post by your fellow London UberX driver.


Thanks mate, long essay but all true...

Just gotta decide to work long enough to recoupe the wasted investment (the £18k vehicle) and hand back the iphone...

Theres no point staying in the trade as uber messed it up

I used to think add lee was bad..


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## arif (Sep 12, 2014)

mitch said:


> Uber london prices are generally 35% cheaper then most other firms here,
> 
> Now uber have reduced the price a further 15%
> And that is without giving their drivers ("partners"as they call us) fair notice.
> ...


Uber is a thief they call us partners but actually thry treat us like slaves
If you go in there office at kingscross you will find bunch of stupid dirty people who call themself mansgers of uber I wish I can talk to hihgups on uber because thos lousy uber team in kingscross ate just idiots


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## mitch (Sep 1, 2014)

Hey man, i feel you. Please try and calm down.

The only course of action is to leave the company as many of us already have.

After all we have to be able to make a living.. No point wasting time ranting or hating.

My final words to UBER is:
You pay peanuts, you get monkeys..


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## OCX DRIVER (Jun 9, 2014)

Those reductions will keep coming. Here in the LA area we got ****ed really bad. My ass still hurts. 60% reduction and now fuber is taking more commissions


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## Alan (Aug 13, 2014)

I predict within a year time most of the small cab firms in London will closed down and there won't be a competitors and then they will monopolised the market . After that they can do whatever they like . Life before uber was much better because we could work for a different cab firms but now most of them got quit because of uber , unfortunately we don't have any other choice


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## Sydney Uber (Apr 15, 2014)

Alan said:


> I predict within a year time most of the small cab firms in London will closed down and there won't be a competitors and then they will monopolised the market . After that they can do whatever they like . Life before uber was much better because we could work for a different cab firms but now most of them got quit because of uber , unfortunately we don't have any other choice


Not sure if its the same in London Alan as here, but if a company is found to employ "predatory pricing" offering goods or services below cost in an area till competitors shut down then there is an issue.

If operators can clearly state a case of costs exceeding income I'd hope the regulatory bodies would come down hard on UBER. They aren't a transportation company, and its clear it wishes to crush any semblance of a decent margin for anybody in the industry - even their own "partners".

This does work for them in their future driverless car service. Get riders used to paying silly low prices (at our expense) and when the authorities finally wake up to what is happening, magically they'll have a solution with driverless cars.


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## mitch (Sep 1, 2014)

The only thing that powers uber is the amount of drivers working for them.

If they cannot provide the drivers for the publics demands then customers will have no choice but to go back the cab offices they know and have relied upon for generations.

Simple really, at the moment i have been watching a steady increase of new drivers but at the same time a lot of good drivers with the correct skills and knowledge are leaving, (due to lack of earnings) most are going back to their old firms.

The small firms can now regain there contracts now that they are getting there drivers back.

A companies reputation here is based on the amount of drivers available and the drivers knowledge of london.

At the moment uber only has quantity.
In a few months uber will only have bad drivers. 

What will happen to the no thrills no driving skills, 65% discounted, no sense of direction sat nav drivers????

Time will tell..


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## London UberExec Driver (Jul 8, 2014)

mitch said:


> The only course of action is to leave the company as many of us already have.
> 
> After all we have to be able to make a living.. No point wasting time ranting or hating.


Indeed, there's no use moaning about it.

Simply get yourself an operator's licence (about £1500 for five years - equivalent to about £5 a week, which is a lot less than the cut you're paying to Uber, assuming you're doing at least £25 weeks of worth for them!), and get your own clients, and charge what you think it's right for them and you. Then just use Uber to fill in your quiet gaps to earn a bit extra.

It's what I did, when I was getting fed up of paying £150 a week circuit rent fee to a firm I used to work for.


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## mitch (Sep 1, 2014)

Everyone that has worked with other firms ...check with them and see how many of your old colleagues have returned from there UBER adventure.

And if you have access check how many clients are returning back those firms.

Since drivers are returning the corporate accounts are coming back too..


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## Swifty (Sep 8, 2014)

London UberExec Driver said:


> Indeed, there's no use moaning about it.
> 
> Simply get yourself an operator's licence (about £1500 for five years - equivalent to about £5 a week, which is a lot less than the cut you're paying to Uber, assuming you're doing at least £25 weeks of worth for them!), and get your own clients, and charge what you think it's right for them and you. Then just use Uber to fill in your quiet gaps to earn a bit extra.
> 
> It's what I did, when I was getting fed up of paying £150 a week circuit rent fee to a firm I used to work for.


Can I join you?


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## London UberExec Driver (Jul 8, 2014)

Lol, I just replied to your PM regarding getting your own operator's licence!


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## Swifty (Sep 8, 2014)

Hi thanks got that, I actually have a friend with an operators license but he went abroad and has said i can take it over when he gets back. good work in edgware road area. I have my lux test tomorrow, do you know what sort of questions they ask? I just bought an 11 plate 730ld on friday .. jumped the gun so need to pass the test. i haven't got a radio anywhere so if you need work covering let me know .. any help on questions would be amazing.


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## Russell (Sep 6, 2014)

Excellent blog article by London driver link given. By chi1cabby - the reality is that you er has total co.teol. They have shown time &time again they will abuse it for their own purposes 

Can someone assist. Is it true you er restricts the number of Uber black in some markets?


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## pengduck (Sep 26, 2014)

mitch said:


> Uber london prices are generally 35% cheaper then most other firms here,
> 
> Now uber have reduced the price a further 15%
> And that is without giving their drivers ("partners"as they call us) fair notice.
> ...


You had better check the math! Uber told us it was a 15% reduction when it was actually 20%!


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## Rosita22 (Sep 6, 2014)

It's incredibly unfair. Uber has rolled out these price cuts globally. After gas & wear & tear on your vehicle, you're lucky to be a few pence ahead. More likely, you're losing money. Time to look for another way to make a living...?


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## SCdave (Jun 27, 2014)

Next will be "Temporary Fare Reductions of 15-25%" that Uber offers Riders. This will be for 1-3 months. During this Period, Uber is eating 100% of the fare reduction. But...you will then get a notice that the reduction was sooo popular with Riders that Uber will now be lowering fares 15-20% permanently. This has been the pattern here in the US.

But don't worry, Uber will send you an email giving you a day or three notice and letting you know that the total number of Rides you will get will go up which means although fares/your commission has been reduced per trip, your Driver "Earnings" will increase. Hasn't worked out as additional income for me after a few fare rate reductions in my location but maybe things will be different for you.

Just saying. Be prepared when the "Temporary Fare Reductions" hit your city, "Permanent Fare Reductions" will be coming. And yes, isn't it wonderful that you plan the best you can annually (or further out) for your budget and Uber gives you a day to totally recalculate that budget.

Uber is an amazing P2P App with an aggressive hard pushing group of people not saying no to local regulators and established taxi/livery services. Without that "Machiavellian Won't Take No For An Answer" Travis Kalanick and Google's backing, Uber would still be a blip of a rideshare company in San Francisco and a few other cities and not be a global power within a few short years.

To make a go of it with Uber, the Driver must have the lowest cost vehicle possible that qualifies for their platform, one that has taken that big depreciation hit already, and that you aren't stuck financing your vehicle thinking Uber won't lower fares again - they will. Or have a vehicle that works within your business plan for other private hire livery work/another business and Uber just rounds out your income stream seasonally or during slow periods/hours of the day. If you have budgeted completely on Uber "current/market introduction fares" and not on fares going down 40% and your per trip net income 40%+ over the next 12 months after Uber starting up in your city/location, then you will be in for a big surprise, unfortunately.

You can trust Uber to be aggressive to push regulators to open your local/city market. You can trust they will lower fares to increase total riders using Uber in your city as fast as they can. But you cannot trust Uber to be looking out to for you as an individual driver. The Driver is a commodity and the Driver's Vehicle is a Capital Expense that Uber (and Uber Investor's) uses but does not pay for. This is why they can and do make fare rate reductions quickly and in big chunks - they don't have to depreciate a capital expense over a few years or more like the Driver.

Maybe the London/UK Uber market will be different than that of the US. I can only state what has happened with us here.


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## Backyardpizza (Aug 12, 2014)

Welcome to the party London. San Francisco just got the 15% rate reduction. I had multiple fairs this week with a 2 1/2 surge that where netting me under $10 after ubers cut. Good times. San Francisco is the small city and I lot of the rides are very short and this new rate cut has absolutely killed my mornings.


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## mitch (Sep 1, 2014)

pengduck said:


> You had better check the math! Uber told us it was a 15% reduction when it was actually 20%!


Nope it is 15%

That was reduced with 21hour notice on a thursday evening..

Then last week tgey sent out a newsletter stating tat drivers are earning more (complete utter Bullshit)

Uber has ignored hundreds of drivers plea and then sent out false info about drivers earning more tsk tsk tsk

Oh so far i have found 3x sleeping drivers at trafficlights/junctions and two with passengers.....

Earning more??? ??? Or working to earn the same with investing more hours per week..

Has anyone put there customers in there place when they threatened with giving low ratings as a greeting???


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## SCdave (Jun 27, 2014)

mitch said:


> Nope it is 15%
> 
> That was reduced with 21hour notice on a thursday evening..
> 
> ...


Mitch, just smile and let the Customer know that Drivers also rate Riders


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