# I took a passenger knowing I would get one-starred



## shin (Dec 10, 2015)

I arrived at the pin, but there was no builiding number matching the address. I get a call, and he sounds very angry. He tells me he's on a certain street. I don't know where that street is exactly, so I don't know what to say. I drive up, and go to the end of the street, and see the street. He was on the other side. 

When he got in he was pissed. It was -10 degrees out. First words out of his mouth were, "I'm going to take another Uber next time!"

He then complained he didn't have a coat on. 

I dropped him off, but I am 100% sure he will one star me, affecting my rating, as I only have a handful of rides.

What would you have done?


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## forqalso (Jun 1, 2015)

When you think you'll get a one ★, it's better to cancel instead of risking your rating.


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## Coachman (Sep 22, 2015)

If I discover the passenger is angry before he gets in my car I cancel the ride. I had a guy tonight who didn't know the gate code for his apartment and he was cursing on the phone. Cancel. He pinged me again and I let it go.


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## sellkatsell44 (Oct 25, 2015)

shin said:


> I arrived at the pin, but there was no builiding number matching the address. I get a call, and he sounds very angry. He tells me he's on a certain street. I don't know where that street is exactly, so I don't know what to say. I drive up, and go to the end of the street, and see the street. He was on the other side.
> 
> When he got in he was pissed. It was -10 degrees out. First words out of his mouth were,* "I'm going to take another Uber next time!"*
> 
> ...


If he had said that right when he got in--I would have canceled the trip instead of starting it and than politely tell him that's probably for the best.

If it was in the middle of the trip, I would have pulled over and again, look at him politely and say, I don't want to stand in your way sir, and so I'm leaving u here at this micky d where if you enter that in your app, the next driver is guaranteed not to have any trouble finding you, as I did with that obscene addy you gave me and no need for tip sir, you can take that $1 and grab yourself a cup of hot coffee while you wait.

Either way he's gonna 1 star you. Why subject yourself to it any further. Cut your ties, 1 star him and pick up as many rides to get as many 5s before you rating gets averaged in.


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## Jack Marrero (Oct 24, 2015)

That's a no-brainer: Cancel!


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## nickd8775 (Jul 12, 2015)

Provide 1 star service if you expect a 1 star.


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## Phil H (May 28, 2015)

shin said:


> I arrived at the pin, but there was no builiding number matching the address. I get a call, and he sounds very angry. He tells me he's on a certain street. I don't know where that street is exactly, so I don't know what to say. I drive up, and go to the end of the street, and see the street. He was on the other side.
> 
> When he got in he was pissed. It was -10 degrees out. First words out of his mouth were, "I'm going to take another Uber next time!"
> 
> ...


That is part of the job but it you don't feel comfortable with the riders tone you have the right to cancel that person


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## Choochie (Jan 4, 2015)

shin said:


> I arrived at the pin, but there was no builiding number matching the address. I get a call, and he sounds very angry. He tells me he's on a certain street. I don't know where that street is exactly, so I don't know what to say. I drive up, and go to the end of the street, and see the street. He was on the other side.
> 
> When he got in he was pissed. It was -10 degrees out. First words out of his mouth were, "I'm going to take another Uber next time!"
> 
> ...


Tell the next one not to use the pin, type in the correct address and you'll know how to get there.


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## Realityshark (Sep 22, 2014)

My market has dropped below $1 per mile, so I never would have been in this situation since I don't even turn on my app anymore. I take one ride per month to stay active and I hope it's a minimum ride. I wont waste my time for slave wages. All risk...no reward.


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## UberEddie2015 (Nov 2, 2015)

I do the same thing RealityShark. Drivers are oblivious to the real cost to drive. Most don't even know what thier cost per mile is. I had one person say less than .10 per mile. There are alot of desperate drivers that just look at the immediate expenses and see money coming in. On short rides you are losing money. On long rides without a return fare you are losing money. Thats why 60% of drivers quit after 16 months. It takes them that long to figure it out.


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## kaigor (Aug 28, 2015)

UberEddie2015 said:


> I do the same thing RealityShark. Drivers are oblivious to the real cost to drive. Most don't even know what thier cost per mile is. I had one person say less than .10 per mile. There are alot of desperate drivers that just look at the immediate expenses and see money coming in. On short rides you are losing money. On long rides without a return fare you are losing money. Thats why 60% of drivers quit after 16 months. It takes them that long to figure it out.


Losing money based on what? Depreciation and gas? Those are both relative to what you drive... I'm making money not losing money!


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## SafeT (Nov 23, 2015)

Uber has tilted the ratings system so far in favor of bad and rude riders, we have no choice but deny rides to all but the best riders. Not really a great business model if Uber wants to steal passengers from cabs. Uber is forcing us to leave tons of riders at the curb.
https://uberpeople.net/threads/5-st...rs-have-7x-more-votes-than-good-riders.49330/


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## Expired Tablet (Dec 17, 2015)

Like it, drive it, hate it, don't drive it. It's that simple.


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## Another Uber Driver (May 27, 2015)

forqalso said:


> When you think you'll get a one ★, it's better to cancel instead of risking your rating.





SafeT said:


> Uber has tilted the ratings system so far in favor of bad and rude riders, we have no choice but deny rides to all but the best riders. Uber is forcing us to leave tons of riders at the curb.


The above quotes illustrate one, of several, flaws in Uber's star rating system and the way that Uber adminsters and uses it. It forces the sacrifice of customer service at the Altar of Ratings.

In the radio cab business, we had more than a few whiny, no tipping, constantly complaining customers who kept you waiting. We had a few, even, who would call back the Radio Room every two minutes until the cab showed up. This same customer would then keep the driver waiting ten minutes outside his address then want to argue with the driver about the waiting time; both the amount and paying any at all. Of course, these people always flatted the driver, waiting time charged, or not. I told more than one of them more than once that one reason, of several, that I was charging him the waiting time, even though he rode every day, was that he did not tip, so I had to get every penny out of him that I could, legally. Management was aware of these chronic whiners, so, when they did call to complain, Management would tell the crybaby "Yes, Ma'am, when he comes in to pay his bill, he will be very severely reprimanded". But I stray.

As cab drivers, we did not need to worry about ratings to keep working. Most of us did realise and understand that you did have to take care of the repeat customers, even if you did not like them. Thus, most of us would go and pick them up. If we heard the dispatcher's having a hard time getting one covered, we would offer to go a little, (a little, only, mind you) out of our way to get this difficult customer. Either that, or, if we were headed that way, at some point, we would tell the dispatcher that we would pick up the difficult customer after we had dropped or gotten up that way. One of the basic rules it that if at the end of the day, you have their money, you win. Thus, we could take these difficult customers.

On Uber, it is more difficult, because these chronic whiners can fix it so that you can not work. To avoid that, drivers will not carry difficult customers. Further, since most TNC drivers do not spend long hours all day, every day hauling around people, they are not steeled to these difficult people as are we taxi drivers. Uber will de-activate drivers who consistently rate their passengers poorly. It should de-activate users who do similarly. If not that, it sould at least program its computers to disregard ratings from whining customers and not figure them into drivers' ratings. This will not solve the problem with the Star System, but it will be a first step in the right direction.


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## Expired Tablet (Dec 17, 2015)

That makes sense about rating system, some people will rate poorly without having any problems, like other day one driver said he doesn't like certain types of people, so as the passengers, some people keeps grudges against others no matter what.
Simply I try to avoid low rated customer even if that's my first customer. Anyone below 4.7 should be a warning sign so buckle up yourself well if u decide to pick them up.


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## Expired Tablet (Dec 17, 2015)

So rate properly and sincerely riders, so that helps others too, and keep the losers lose the cheap fare and hard to get rides.


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## Coachman (Sep 22, 2015)

UberEddie2015 said:


> I Thats why 60% of drivers quit after 16 months. It takes them that long to figure it out.


The 60% that quit are the drivers that don't know how to do it or are just burned out. If they drive the way you describe, 50 miles out, 50 miles back with no surge and no return fare, then they are making about minimum wage, _after expenses_. Anybody who is "losing money" driving for Uber must be doing something very, very wrong.


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## Expired Tablet (Dec 17, 2015)

Think it this way, very simple. U drove 100k miles and made 100k $ as per $1 per mile rule, right?
You paid off your car right? You paid for gas and maintenance right? Still good enough left for you to live if you don't have good job than this. I ain't counted surge pricing.
By the way you are not selling cars to make money if mileage worrying you, so many cars can go 200k without having big issues.
I could be wrong in few ways but it's better than nothing job.


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## Hunt to Eat (Nov 19, 2015)

shin said:


> I arrived at the pin, but there was no builiding number matching the address. I get a call, and he sounds very angry. He tells me he's on a certain street. I don't know where that street is exactly, so I don't know what to say. I drive up, and go to the end of the street, and see the street. He was on the other side.
> 
> When he got in he was pissed. It was -10 degrees out. First words out of his mouth were, "I'm going to take another Uber next time!"
> 
> ...


PRO TIP: If pax calls or texts and if there is even a hint they're in a disagreeable mood, do both of you a favor and cancel. When the re-ping comes, ignore it. There is no upside picking up a pax you already know has a stick up his arse.


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## RamzFanz (Jan 31, 2015)

Another Uber Driver said:


> The above quotes illustrate one, of several, flaws in Uber's star rating system and the way that Uber adminsters and uses it. It forces the sacrifice of customer service at the Altar of Ratings.
> 
> In the radio cab business, we had more than a few whiny, no tipping, constantly complaining customers who kept you waiting. We had a few, even, who would call back the Radio Room every two minutes until the cab showed up. This same customer would then keep the driver waiting ten minutes outside his address then want to argue with the driver about the waiting time; both the amount and paying any at all. Of course, these people always flatted the driver, waiting time charged, or not. I told more than one of them more than once that one reason, of several, that I was charging him the waiting time, even though he rode every day, was that he did not tip, so I had to get every penny out of him that I could, legally. Management was aware of these chronic whiners, so, when they did call to complain, Management would tell the crybaby "Yes, Ma'am, when he comes in to pay his bill, he will be very severely reprimanded". But I stray.
> 
> ...


Ratings are one of the reasons pax consistently like Uber drivers better than cab drivers. Cab drivers had no consequences. Flawed or not, this system ensures better drivers.

I have never heard of a driver being deactivated for giving low ratings. Do you have a source?

Poor passengers, like poor drivers, don't last long. We SHOULD sacrifice bad customers and so should Uber.



shin said:


> What would you have done?


I would have not picked him up and canceled. No doubt about it. THEY are responsible for the pin, not you. Any insinuation otherwise, lock doors, drive off, and cancel.


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## Another Uber Driver (May 27, 2015)

RamzFanz said:


> Ratings are one of the reasons pax consistently like Uber drivers better than cab drivers.
> 
> Cab drivers had no consequences.
> 
> ...


Your first quoted statement is flawed and does not agree with my experience. It is consistent with your constant, baseless and incessant bashing of cab drivers, the cab business and touting of Uber as the be-all, end all or all of it. Due to your stereotyping and obvious prejudice, any statement that you make on the business of ground transportation for hire is, at best, questionable.

Your second quoted statement is false. There are sanctioning processes administered by regulators and licencing authorities. More than a few of the companies here have sanctioning and disciplinary processes, as well. I was an official of one such company who administered the disciplinary process at various times during my tenure, there. Further, it was part of my job as a company official to provide assistance to drivers who were going through the regulatory sanctioning process. This included attending hearings with these drivers. Said hearings are a matter of public record, so I did sit in on hearings involving drivers other than mine. As I have been an eye-witness to the regulatory complaint process, I can assure you that poor cab drivers did, and still do, face consequences. Further, I have been the subject of complaints both as a driver and company official. Thus, I have personal experience. Never has any complaint against me been substantiated, but I have gone through the process myself.

The star system does nothing of the kind. I hear the same complaints about Uber drivers and their vehicles that I have heard. In fact, I am hearing more and worse laments about both, of late. I hear these complaints not only in the taxi but also in the UberXmobile. Remember, I drive both.

A driver put a topic on one of these boards about his being de-activated due to his giving low ratings to passengers. I forget where it is, now, but it was here, somewhere. I seem to recall that the driver in question is from either Florida or California, but I would not bet even the telephone bill on one, the other, or both.

Poor passengers do last quite some time. As long as the passenger pays, does not interfere with the safe operation of the vehicle and does not trash the vehicle, he can be serviced. Whining and complaining does not necessarily interfere with the safe operation of a vehicle. If the customer yells, that is one thing. Constant cavilling and complaining in a whiny voice does not interfere with the safe operation of the vehicle.


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## tohellwithu (Nov 30, 2014)

F*** those rider...thats why I usually screen people and plus rating.......


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## FlDriver (Oct 16, 2015)

shin said:


> I arrived at the pin, but there was no builiding number matching the address. I get a call, and he sounds very angry.


Right at that point, I cancel. Then I wait 5 min and make sure he gets charged. I've had this exact situation happen, and that's what I did.

If you're already angry and apparently blaming me for your mistake, I'm not giving you a ride. If you want a ride, you need to say something like "Sorry I put in the wrong address. I'm actually at 234 Oak St. Can you pick me up there?" Then I will be happy to give you a ride. I've had that situation happen as well.

People need to be trained that they can't abuse us and get away with it. If you go into a restaurant and treat the waitress like dirt as soon as she greets you, what kind of service would you expect?


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## UberEddie2015 (Nov 2, 2015)

ExpiredTablet you don't drive 100K miles and get $100,000. More like 50K to 65K. Do they pay you to drive to the pax. Do they pay you to drive all your dead head miles. You are in for a rude awakening. Good luck. Have a Merry Christmas. Be safe.


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## Cruisinelli (Dec 19, 2015)

Another Uber Driver said:


> The above quotes illustrate one, of several, flaws in Uber's star rating system and the way that Uber adminsters and uses it. It forces the sacrifice of customer service at the Altar of Ratings.
> 
> In the radio cab business, we had more than a few whiny, no tipping, constantly complaining customers who kept you waiting. We had a few, even, who would call back the Radio Room every two minutes until the cab showed up. This same customer would then keep the driver waiting ten minutes outside his address then want to argue with the driver about the waiting time; both the amount and paying any at all. Of course, these people always flatted the driver, waiting time charged, or not. I told more than one of them more than once that one reason, of several, that I was charging him the waiting time, even though he rode every day, was that he did not tip, so I had to get every penny out of him that I could, legally. Management was aware of these chronic whiners, so, when they did call to complain, Management would tell the crybaby "Yes, Ma'am, when he comes in to pay his bill, he will be very severely reprimanded". But I stray.
> 
> ...





Another Uber Driver said:


> The above quotes illustrate one, of several, flaws in Uber's star rating system and the way that Uber adminsters and uses it. It forces the sacrifice of customer service at the Altar of Ratings.
> 
> In the radio cab business, we had more than a few whiny, no tipping, constantly complaining customers who kept you waiting. We had a few, even, who would call back the Radio Room every two minutes until the cab showed up. This same customer would then keep the driver waiting ten minutes outside his address then want to argue with the driver about the waiting time; both the amount and paying any at all. Of course, these people always flatted the driver, waiting time charged, or not. I told more than one of them more than once that one reason, of several, that I was charging him the waiting time, even though he rode every day, was that he did not tip, so I had to get every penny out of him that I could, legally. Management was aware of these chronic whiners, so, when they did call to complain, Management would tell the crybaby "Yes, Ma'am, when he comes in to pay his bill, he will be very severely reprimanded". But I stray.
> 
> ...


I agree about the ratings system being tilted in favor of the passengers. I think that we as the drivers should be able to actually write out a comment on the pax, and not just star them.


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## uberfareestimator.co (Dec 14, 2015)

In my honest opinion, don't take risk on such a client. Since you already have taken that risk reach out to Uber and explain your situation. Their support staff is usually very helpful.


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## North End Eric (Sep 12, 2015)

RamzFanz said:


> Ratings are one of the reasons pax consistently like Uber drivers better than cab drivers. Cab drivers had no consequences. Flawed or not, this system ensures better drivers.
> 
> I have never heard of a driver being deactivated for giving low ratings. Do you have a source?
> 
> ...


Wrong again. Cab drivers face very serious consequences for legitimate complaints. They can lose their ability to lease a cab from companies (banned) or have their license revoked by the city/county.


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## Ziggy (Feb 27, 2015)

shin said:


> I get a call, and he sounds very angry.


*CANCEL* ... no good can come from this trip


shin said:


> First words out of his mouth were, "I'm going to take another Uber next time!"


*CANCEL* ... Let him ride with the other Uber that he is so eager to ride with.


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## RamzFanz (Jan 31, 2015)

Another Uber Driver said:


> Your first quoted statement is flawed and does not agree with my experience. It is consistent with your constant, baseless and incessant bashing of cab drivers, the cab business and touting of Uber as the be-all, end all or all of it. Due to your stereotyping and obvious prejudice, any statement that you make on the business of ground transportation for hire is, at best, questionable.
> 
> Your second quoted statement is false. There are sanctioning processes administered by regulators and licencing authorities. More than a few of the companies here have sanctioning and disciplinary processes, as well. I was an official of one such company who administered the disciplinary process at various times during my tenure, there. Further, it was part of my job as a company official to provide assistance to drivers who were going through the regulatory sanctioning process. This included attending hearings with these drivers. Said hearings are a matter of public record, so I did sit in on hearings involving drivers other than mine. As I have been an eye-witness to the regulatory complaint process, I can assure you that poor cab drivers did, and still do, face consequences. Further, I have been the subject of complaints both as a driver and company official. Thus, I have personal experience. Never has any complaint against me been substantiated, but I have gone through the process myself.
> 
> ...


So one driver has made this claim about being deactivated for giving low ratings, allegedly, and now it's fact? That says a LOT about your other assertions.

I can't speak for all cities, but here I hear cab horror stories all day long. I have yet to hear a bad Uber driver story.

Cab companies and the commissions they often control have screwed the public and drivers for decades, that's why they fear Uber.

And no, I have never once stated or implied that Uber is the end all be all. I hope Uber is replaced by a more driver friendly company, but for passengers, it's a far better product than cabs. Arguing it isn't is just silly. It's cheaper, faster, and THEY ultimately decide who stays a driver. Cabs could never stand the bright light of ratings.


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## RamzFanz (Jan 31, 2015)

North End Eric said:


> Wrong again. Cab drivers face very serious consequences for legitimate complaints. They can lose their ability to lease a cab from companies (banned) or have their license revoked by the city/county.


A three ring circus? I can see how well that has worked.

Na, as a passenger, I don't want cities, states, unions, and lawyers getting involved because a driver has BO and doesn't care. I want the ability to give a quick and fair rating along with other passengers, without any coercion or cooperation, and get rid of him. How many passengers would go through a circus just to report a stinky driver or one that made inappropriate comments?


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## Another Uber Driver (May 27, 2015)

RamzFanz said:


> *1. *So one driver has made this claim about being deactivated for giving low ratings, allegedly, and now it's fact?
> 
> *2. *That says a LOT about your other assertions.
> 
> ...


1. Your question was about _*a*_ (emphasis mine) driver's being de-activated for low ratings. I cited my source. I was not specific about it because I can not remember where he posted about it. I know that it was on these boards and I read it. He provoked a number of comments. In fact, I told him that Uber's de-activating him was something similar to a boss' telling an employee "It is obvious that you do not like this job, so you need to find something else to do, you are fired". If Uber can do it once, it could do it, again. Why does that escape you?

2. It has nothing to do with any other unrelated statement that I have made, am making or will make.

3. I hear Uber horror stories all day long. I hear fewer cab horror stories than I used to hear. I find it difficult to believe that in a city as large as St. Louis, there are no Uber horror stories. I suspect that you ignore them due to your obvious bias against the cab business and those involved in it.

4. I do not know the structure of the companies in St. Louis, nor am I aware of the regulatory situation.

Here, the drivers do not work for the companies. Some companies may operate dispatch services, but those are few. It is difficult for the companies to "screw" the public when they do not deal directly with it, with the possible exception of taking orders for cab service. Your statement about the companies' "screwing" the drivers does have some basis when it comes to drivers who rent from large companies. In the case of the suburban drivers, Uber does treat them better than did their former companies, with the exception of the earnings. The extremely low rates have pushed more than one driver back to his old company. As for the City rental drivers, Uber does not treat them much, if at all, better than did the cab companies from whom they rented.

I do not know what happens in St. Louis, but here, in the City, the relationship between companies and regulators has been adversarial since the 1960s. Companies have no control over any regulatory authority. A former Mayor made it even worse by appointing to the Taxicab Commission members of the hotel, restaurant and tourism trades whose trade organisations are and have been, on record for at least thirty five years as being hostile to the cab business. Even before that, though, the relationship between regulator and regulated was adversarial, at best. For the past nine years, it has been openly hostile.

In the suburbs, some of the companies did have excessive influence over the regulatory authorities until about twenty, or so, years past. Twenty years past, there was no such thing as Uber. I am guessing that T. Kalanick was still a college student twenty years past.

5. Your incessant bashing of the cab business and incessant touting of Uber implies just that.

6. The only category in which UberX beats the cabs is price. "The bitter taste of low quality lingers long after the sweetness of low price has faded".

7. Arguing that UberX is better is, in fact silly. In addition, it is myopic and ignores certain realities. It is living in Pangloss' "best of all possible worlds".

8. It is cheaper. When the UberX driver gets lost because he is hugging his GPS, it _*ain't*_ faster. *CRASH* goes that chariot.

9. Cab companies can decide who drives for them and who does not. The cab company can not take a hack licence because cab companies here do not issue them. The regulatory authorities can take a hack licence as they issue them, here. What is so unusual about a regulatory authority's deciding if someone has a licence?

10. How would you know that? You have no experience there. I do. The only entities that ever have tried to rate taxicabs on any consistent or ongoing basis are Uber, Hail-O and My Taxi (at least in the U.S. of A.). In the case of the majority of drivers for those entities, they have in fact, stood up to a rating system, and this, a rating system that almost everyone on these boards as well as more than a few informed members of the riding public are aware is flawed, especially with respect to the driver. *CRASH* goes that chariot.


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## RamzFanz (Jan 31, 2015)

"Uber *will* de-activate *drivers* who consistently rate their passengers poorly." Stated as fact, not as an alleged single driver claim, not singular, plural, why does that escape you?

Of course there are probably bad passenger experiences here with Uber. I have just never heard one from a passenger. What I do hear every day all day is how arrogant, unreliable, and offensive the cab drivers are. It is what it is. Here, in my city, my pax really do not like cabs or cab drivers.



Another Uber Driver said:


> A former Mayor made it even worse by appointing to the Taxicab Commission members of the hotel, restaurant and tourism trades whose trade organisations are and have been, on record for at least thirty five years as being hostile to the cab business.


And why would companies that should have a mutualism relationship be adversarial? Perhaps their customers have related decades of experiences that they find offensive? Or do hotels and restaurants just have it out for taxis for carrying new customers to them? _Damn you taxis for bringing us customers! We hate you!



Another Uber Driver said:



Your incessant bashing of the cab business and incessant touting of Uber implies just that.

Click to expand...

_
I don't tout Uber. I do dislike what cab companies and their criminal political puppets do to the passengers and drivers for their own benefit.



Another Uber Driver said:


> The only category in which UberX beats the cabs is price.


Again, not in my experience. My passengers RAVE about how much nicer the Uber drivers and cars are. It's come to the point that I want to tell them _we get it already, cabs here suck, just like most places. _ My own experiences with cabs is very much in line with all the horror stories I hear. Lying dispatchers, no-show cabs, stinky cars, lost drivers, and hour+ long waits.

The reality is you can't even admit the obvious. The fact that the pax can see where the driver is and has an estimated arrival alone is superior to cab service. The use of an easy app request vs having to go through a dispatcher is superior. Even when a feature is obviously beneficial to the pax, you can't admit it's better.



Another Uber Driver said:


> 7. Arguing that UberX is better is, in fact silly. In addition, it is myopic and ignores certain realities. It is living in Pangloss' "best of all possible worlds".
> 
> 8. It is cheaper. When the UberX driver gets lost because he is hugging his GPS, it _*ain't*_ faster. *CRASH* goes that chariot.


All nonsense. I am as familiar with my city as the majority of cabbies. I have watched cabs come flying by the wrong way on a major one way. I have watched them jumble up and destroy traffic flow. Cabbies are not trained professionals with some extensive testing for natural ability or intensive training, they are people who drive cars, same as Uber drivers.



Another Uber Driver said:


> Cab companies can decide who drives for them and who does not. The cab company can not take a hack licence because cab companies here do not issue them. The regulatory authorities can take a hack licence as they issue them, here. What is so unusual about a regulatory authority's deciding if someone has a licence?


Nothing is unusual about "regulators" (here that means taxicab companies who have bought out the politicians) controlling the licensing. Being common, doesn't make it right. It's a system of corruption and is anti-competitive to the detriment of both the pax and the driver.



Another Uber Driver said:


> 10. How would you know that? You have no experience there. I do


As I have already clearly stated, the rating system is flawed. It is still at least a system in which the pax have a say as to the quality of their driver rather than counting on pax to go to the circus of a good ol boy network with their complaints. If I can't rely on a cab to even show, how can I rely on the same network to act on my complaint?

Of course my belief that cab drivers couldn't survive a rating system is admittedly anecdotal. I can only rely on my experiences, my passenger's, and news accounts of quality of service because taxi companies don't give the pax an easy, anonymous, and transparent feedback tool for individual drivers.

When they did try to give the pax an opportunity to relate their positive cab experiences recently on twitter, they were swamped with thousands of complaints. Mean drivers, b.o., lying about cc terminals, running up the fares, all the same complaints I hear every day. I guess it's all just coincidence and bad pax because you are highly trained drivers in a competitive service that clearly has passenger experience as a top priority. I suppose I'll just take your word over the thousands.


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## DieselkW (Jul 21, 2015)

This is unskilled labor, but I still feel woefully underpaid. 
Way too underpaid to put up with jerks.

Jerks don't place the pin where they want to be picked up, they place the pin somewhere else. 
Jerks blame others for the cold, when they are not wearing a coat.
Jerks give drivers 1* for events out of driver's control.
Jerks think they have some kind of control over which "uber" they get.
Jerks think they have "hired" me. I'm a dude with a car and some extra time on my hands. I'm not "yours" to berate or belittle. Your threat of a 1* rating is nothing more than impotent rage, now shut up and get out of my car. 

Jerk or not. I go to the pin. If I get a phone call about where they are, I tell them I'll be at their new location in "less than 5 minutes". Then I let the original timer run down, collect my cancellation fee, and go to the new address. "Hi, I don't know what happened, but it got canceled, would you mind pinging again? (If they haven't already).

My way, you get the fare plus a $4-5 "tip" out of them. Unless it's the biggest jerk of all, the one that puts the pin at destination, not pickup. DUH!


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## Another Uber Driver (May 27, 2015)

RamzFanz said:


> *1. *"Uber *will* de-activate *drivers* who consistently rate their passengers poorly." Stated as fact, not as an alleged single driver claim,
> 
> *2. *Of course there are probably bad passenger experiences here with Uber. I have just never heard one from a passenger. What I do hear every day all day is how arrogant, unreliable, and offensive the cab drivers are. It is what it is. Here, in my city, my pax really do not like cabs or cab drivers.
> 
> ...


1. I took the driver's word for it. I could see no reason for him to lie about it. Why is that unusual? If Uber did it once, what is to stop it from doing that, again? All that it takes is once. If you assume the opposite, that Uber will not de-activate for consistently low rating, and it de-activates one driver for that, that gives lie to the statement. DIPSO FACTO, QED: Uber will de-activate for consistently low rating passengers.

2. I hear complaints from passengers about bad experiences with UberX every day. The passengers tell me that UberX drivers do not know where they are going. are arrogant, obnoxious, rude, nasty, do not bathe, have filthy and smelly cars and do not speak English. When the passengers call the drivers on their mistakes or flaws, the drivers become threatening, belligerent, violent and throw them out of the car. If a cab driver here tried any of that, not only would the Taxicab Commission take his hack licence, it would re-instate it so that it could take it twice.

3. That one gets the "HUH?" button.

4. That one gets the "HUH?" button.

5. I have never managed to get anyone from any of the hotel, restaurant or tourism business trade group to give a coherent and specific explanation of their distaste for the cab business. I get all sorts of generalisations, stereotypes and profiling. In fact, I wonder if some of the Uber trolls who post that nonsense about cab drivers on this board are really from the hotel, restaurant and tourism trade groups in Washington. Those trade groups have supported anything that harms the cab drivers. They have opposed anything that helps them.

Some of the problems that we have with them are their dumping their problems on us (obnoxious drunks, street people with no money, mentally disturbed people), when they need to call the police, who are trained to deal with those types of people. We are not trained to deal with them. Further, the hotels tolerate certain practices of their employees that either harm our bottom line or make our lives difficult.

6. Cab companies here have no political influence. You consistently post how wonderful Uber is and consistently attack the cab business. If that _*ain't*_ touting Uber, what is it?

7. It happens in my experience. My passengers complain about the nasty UberX drivers and dirty cars more than they do about the cabs. The number one complaint is that the drivers do not know where they are going and can not get anywhere even with the GPS. Price. It is the only thing on which UberX beats the cabs.

8. There you go, again, bashing the cab business. You add stereotyping and profiling to it. I could post the converse, substituting "UberX" for "cab" or any form thereof. If you are going to bash the cabs, I will defend them and bash UberX drivers. My statements about UberX drivers have basis in fact. Your statements about the cab business are nonsense based on your imagination and propped up by your use of the anonymity of the internet.

9. Those stories are at best, archaic. Either that, or they are based on one bad experience. Most cab rides go like this: You hail the cab. It stops. You get in. You give the driver your address. He takes yyou there. The meter reads something close to what it should, at worst. You pay what is on the meter and render a tip, if you are so inclined. The driver renders a receipt, if you require it. You get out. The driver drives away. Normal, everyday, have a nice day.

..and about that "smelly, dirty" garbage": I used to tell those who sung the praises of the "nice UberX cars" to come back to me in three years on that. I was being optimistic. The complaints started after one year. These cloth covered seats and carpeted floors do not stand up to twenty people getting in and out everyday. They have various hygenic habits. Some of them smoke; maybe not in the car, but the smell lingers long after they put out the thing. These people carry leaky bags of pungent carryout.

10. The reality is that you do not know your subject. I do. There are more than a few taxi hailing applications that do the same thing that Uber's does. They do just what you described. Uber does not own the licence for the GPS.

11. I call B.S. on that one. I have seen UberX and Uber Black drivers go the wrong way down a one way street, clog up an intersection when three of them all stop at a green light, give their brake pedals a workout hoping to help a lawyer get rich, pull a U turn from the extreme right lane in the middle of rush hour, make an inside turn, gridlock intersections and cause all sorts of collisions.

Cab drivers have one thing that a dilettantes do not have: experience. We know the traffic patterns, the places where you can not turn and when, the construction zones and anything else that stops up the flow of traffic. We know which street moves and which one does not and when it moves and when it does not. We know the shortest way from point A to point B as well as the ways that are faster, but longer. That knowledge is gained by experience.

12. I have stated, already, that the cab companies and the regulators here have an adversarial relationship. The companies do not control the licences, here. The regulators and legislators do.

13. I have stated already, that the relationship between drivers and regulators is adversarial as well as that between regulators and companies. There is no "circus of good ol' boy networks" here in the cab business.

My statement was that cab drivers have stood up to the Uber Taxi rating system, which is the same star system that Uber uses on all levels of Uber service. If taxi drivers could not stand up to Uber's rating system, there would be no Uber Taxi anywhere.

14. Passing over the business of "relying on the cab to show", which has nothing to do with who handles the complaints, we will go to who handles the complaints. Here, there is an adversarial relationship between companies and regulators. The regulators do have a system for handling complaints. It is not connected to the companies. In fact, the regulators hold the companies responsible for what their drivers do.

15. ....every taxi hailing application of which I am aware, be it Uber, My Taxi, Hail-O, Curb, Way2Ride, Arro and several local ones here (Red Top, D.C. Yellow, D.C. Taxi Transportation, the D.C. Government Taxi Hailing application), have a feedback feature. Perhaps St. Louis cab companies do not use any of the available applications, but the companies and drivers do here.

16. Someone here posted something about that, but failed to state that it was about Australian cab companies. There are more trolls on twitter than ever, these days. In fact, there are more trolls on twitter than ever there were on the old ya-HOO! message boards. Any statistic drawn from twitter is at best, suspect.


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## uberpa (Nov 12, 2015)

Arrive, Cancel, ask him cash for 3x surge price. Or he can call another car.
Treat him as an a**hole if he acts like one.


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## RamzFanz (Jan 31, 2015)

Another Uber Driver said:


> 1. I took the driver's word for it. I could see no reason for him to lie about it. Why is that unusual? If Uber did it once, what is to stop it from doing that, again? All that it takes is once. If you assume the opposite, that Uber will not de-activate for consistently low rating, and it de-activates one driver for that, that gives lie to the statement. DIPSO FACTO, QED: Uber will de-activate for consistently low rating passengers.
> 
> 2. I hear complaints from passengers about bad experiences with UberX every day. The passengers tell me that UberX drivers do not know where they are going. are arrogant, obnoxious, rude, nasty, do not bathe, have filthy and smelly cars and do not speak English. When the passengers call the drivers on their mistakes or flaws, the drivers become threatening, belligerent, violent and throw them out of the car. If a cab driver here tried any of that, not only would the Taxicab Commission take his hack licence, it would re-instate it so that it could take it twice.
> 
> ...


I do not tout Uber. It is better than what we had. How is it better?

1) You see how many minutes until your Uber will arrive.
2) You see the Uber in the app and know where he is.
3) You can communicate directly with your driver/passenger if there is any issue.
4) The CC terminals don't all mysteriously break.
5) You can rate the driver giving the power to the passengers as to what a good driver means. If your area has the Uber drivers you claim they do, that's on the passengers. My guess is they are probably moonlighting cab drivers.
6) You can rate the passenger giving the power to the driver as to what a good passenger is.

I'm not going on to reply on your long winded non-replies and false replies.

If the Hotel and Restaurants, who depend on cabs to bring them customers don't like you, what does that say to you? Nothing, I'm sure. It's a conspiracy. A big mystery.

When a cab company solicites stories and they get inundated with thousands of horror stories, it's a conspiracy.

We all know cab drivers hold a Master's in driving from the day they exit the womb. Who am I to point out the daily antics I see from them? I've only been driving cars for 35 years.


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## Another Uber Driver (May 27, 2015)

RamzFanz said:


> I do not tout Uber. It is better than what we had. How is it better?
> 
> 1) You see how many minutes until your Uber will arrive.
> 2) You see the Uber in the app and know where he is.
> ...


You did not read the post did you? I stated that there are taxi applications that do everything that the Uber application does. My Taxi, Hail-O, Curb, the D.C. Taxi application, Way2Ride, Arro are some of the taxi applications in use around the world to-day. They do everything that the Uber applications does. They do everything that you listed #1 through #6. Read the post. Or can you?

You call my replies "false" because you can not reply to them. The only thing of which you are capable is demeaning the cab business with out any basis to do so. You profile cab drivers and companies, you stereotype them yet you criticise the drivers for doing exactly what you do. That is a textbook definition of hypocrisy.

I stated that cab drivers have something that you and dilettantes like you, do not have: experience. Yes, there are rookies who do not know as much as even you might (and I stress the "might", particullarly in your case), but if they do not catch on, they do not last.

The hotels and restaurants do not like us because we will not p ut up with their nonsense. They tolerate practices from their employees, practices which they state repeatedly are against their rules, that harm our bottom line. They dump their problems on us instead of calling the police, who are trained to deal with those problems. That is what it tells me.

Nobody likes people who do not put up with their nonsense. Consider this little back and forth as well as the others that we have had. The nonsense from you is your baseless bashing of cab drivers and the cab business. The nonsense from you is stereotyping and profiling them while you condemn them for doing what you are doing, I will not put up with that nonsense. That nonsense will not go unanswered. You want me to stop replying to you? Stop attacking cab drivers. Simple.

You post as if you are so much better than cab drivers. *BULLETIN! BULLETIN!! BULLETIN!!!*:_* You ain't no better than no cab driver.*_ Add to it that driving UberX does not make you better than a cab driver, either. You *ain't nothin' but no dilettante, cut-rate, inexperienced, illegal, unlicenced and unregulated cab driver.*

I stated "trolls", not "conspiracy". Read the post. .....Or can you?

Who are you to point out their antics? Be honest. Do you pull the same stunts for which you criticise them? Considering how many UberX, Uber Black and especially Uber SUV drivers pull those stunts, _*ain't no Uber driver better 'n no cab driver. *_Be honest, do you get a ping in the middle of rush hour when you are in the extreme right lane, the ping is to the left of you, so you turn left across three lanes of traffic and almost cause four collisions and almost mow down eight pedestrians who have a signal in their favour? I see the Uber drivers do this every day and more than once. Do you pull U turns across a main commuter artery and tie up eight lanes of traffic while you do it. That is routine for Uber drivers, here. Do you give your brake pedal a serious workout as you drive two miles per hour hoping to help a lawyer get rich? That is the norm for Uber drivers, here.

How do I know all of the above? I have driven in Big City traffic far more and far longer than you have and have seen and still see it all.

You fail to read what I post about the cab drivers adversarial relationship with the Authorities, here. The police love to give summonses to cab drivers. A cab driver receives too many of them and he loses his hack licence; his livelihood. The Taxicab Commission loves to take hack licences, especially from veteran drivers.

You want me to stop replying to you? Leave your Uber elitism off these boards.


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## RamzFanz (Jan 31, 2015)

The people have spoken and they prefer Uber. The taxi monopoly is over and no one but cab company owners, their political puppets, unions, and drivers think that's a bad idea. A few taxi apps trying to play catchup after decades of passenger neglect isn't impressing anyone.

Claiming taxis are professionals is not reflected in public opinion, and the part they will never accept is, that's all that matters. Not regulations, not fees, not medallions, public opinion based on their experiences.


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## Another Uber Driver (May 27, 2015)

RamzFanz said:


> The people have spoken and they prefer Uber.
> 
> A few taxi apps trying to play catchup after decades of passenger neglect isn't impressing anyone.
> 
> Claiming taxis are professionals is not reflected in public opinion


Not necessarily.

Now you admit that there are taxi applications that do just what the Uber application does. People are using them where they are available. They might not impress you, but you are one person despite your claiming to speak for "the people".

It is reflected in public opinion here. My cab passengers tell me that every day. UberX beats taxis on one thing only: price. When it surges, it does not do that, even.

Uber Pool? Who knows? People here complain about it, and, from what others have posted about it, they complain about it, elsewhere. Part of it is that users try to pretend that they did not summon Uber Pool, but still want to get away with a cheap ride.


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## RamzFanz (Jan 31, 2015)

Another Uber Driver said:


> Not necessarily.
> 
> Now you admit that there are taxi applications that do just what the Uber application does. People are using them where they are available. They might not impress you, but you are one person despite your claiming to speak for "the people".
> 
> ...


Nope. I don't speak for the people, the people speak for the people, and I have yet to meet a single one here that has anything nice to say about the taxi industry. Not one. It is what it is.

There was a major formal event tonight in STL and, despite surges that made Uber 50%+ more expensive than cabs, the cabs sat there in a queue while we picked up pax after pax. Right there at the entrance, on a shut down street for the event, 30-40 cabs, two steps away, and they waited in the cold for an Uber at a higher cost. You dismiss all evidence in order to live in your world where cabs are loved professionals and not part of a corrupt system of gouging. So be it.

I have no idea what those apps do or don't do, I've never even heard of them. I'm sure not taking your word that they do all the same things. You pass any one time allegation off as system wide Uber policy if it feeds into your preconceived agenda. I also know you change my intent and even my words to fit your agenda:

I said:

_A few taxi apps trying to play catchup after decades of passenger neglect isn't impressing anyone._

You changed it to:

_Now you admit that there are taxi applications that do just what the Uber application does._

Did you think we didn't all see that you changed what I said and have done so several times?

In Uber, you rate a driver low if he doesn't meet your standards. If others agree, over time he will be deactivated.

I just went and looked at the 4 step process for reporting a cab in NYC which includes providing form after form of information, speaking with some "representative" if they actually follow up, and having to attend a hearing if needed. _That's not how you ensure you are giving a great service, it's how you bury the customer's opinion. _ Make it not worth the time to do, instead of anonymous and mandatory.


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## elelegido (Sep 24, 2014)

shin said:


> I arrived at the pin, but there was no builiding number matching the address. I get a call, and he sounds very angry. He tells me he's on a certain street. I don't know where that street is exactly, so I don't know what to say. I drive up, and go to the end of the street, and see the street. He was on the other side.
> 
> When he got in he was pissed. It was -10 degrees out. First words out of his mouth were, "I'm going to take another Uber next time!"
> 
> ...


Standard operating procedure is to start your timer as soon as you arrive at the pin. Wait five minutes, if it's a no show at 5:00 then no show him in the app and collect the cancellation fee. If he calls while you are waiting to ask where you are then you tell him to look at his Uber app and that he will see that you are at the pickup pin location. If he asks you to go to a different location to pick him up then you say "ok, I'll be right there". Then hang up, wait for the five minutes to be up, no show him, collect the fee and you're back online. If he makes his way to your car before the five minutes are up then no show him before he reaches you; you won't get the cancellation fee but no 1* either. The process becomes automatic after a while.

If there was no driver rating system then this pax type would still get a ride. But there is a driver rating system and Uber wants it this way; all we can do is play the game and protect our ratings. Tough luck for pax who are not spatially aware or are challenged in some other way.


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## RamzFanz (Jan 31, 2015)

elelegido said:


> Standard operating procedure is to start your timer as soon as you arrive at the pin. Wait five minutes, if it's a no show at 5:00 then no show him in the app and collect the cancellation fee. If he calls while you are waiting to ask where you are then you tell him to look at his Uber app and that he will see that you are at the pickup pin location. If he asks you to go to a different location to pick him up then you say "ok, I'll be right there". Then hang up, wait for the five minutes to be up, no show him, collect the fee and you're back online. If he makes his way to your car before the five minutes are up then no show him before he reaches you; you won't get the cancellation fee but no 1* either. The process becomes automatic after a while.
> 
> If there was no driver rating system then this pax type would still get a ride. But there is a driver rating system and Uber wants it this way; all we can do is play the game and protect our ratings. Tough luck for pax who are not spatially aware or are challenged in some other way.


Our cities are very different. I don't get low ratings for finding a pax that is usually a block away, I get a warm thank you. And then I nicely educate them on how to properly place a pin. I get another thank you.

Your drive to the pin, lie to the pax, and cancel, is almost certainly why they are getting rid of cancellation fees. Good job, you're not just screwing the pax, you're screwing everyone, including yourself for bailing on what could have been a great fare.


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## elelegido (Sep 24, 2014)

RamzFanz said:


> Your drive to the pin, lie to the pax, and cancel, is probably why they are getting rid of cancellation fees.


I still get paid cancellation fees just fine, every time.



> Good job, you're not just screwing the pax, you're screwing everyone, including yourself for bailing on what could have been a great fare.


I don't deal in coulda woulda shoulda. Maybe the pin misdrop fare would have been a 3 block ride and maybe the ping I got just after the no show was a $50 fare.

I suppose if you're in a quiet market where there are few pings you may feel the need to drop 'em and grab your ankles, but thankfully I never wait long for the next ping.

And no, I'm not screwing the pax. They request that I go to x location, I go to x location. Request fulfilled and I don't play hide and seek.


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## RamzFanz (Jan 31, 2015)

Nope, you said you lie to them, then hose them for the fee, that's screwing them and why many markets are losing the fee.



elelegido said:


> If he asks you to go to a different location to pick him up then you say "ok, I'll be right there". Then hang up, wait for the five minutes to be up, no show him, collect the fee and you're back online. If he makes his way to your car before the five minutes are up then no show him before he reaches you;


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## elelegido (Sep 24, 2014)

RamzFanz said:


> Nope, you said you lie to them, then hose them for the fee, that's screwing them and why many markets are losing the fee.


As is usual with you, conjecture replaces informed comment. When did Uber confirm that markets are losing the fee because of alleged driver abuse of the cancellation system? Please quote your source.

Since I first implemented strict pax screening & filtering, my ratings have improved from the mid 4.7s up to the low 4.9s. Uber is very pleased with this - I get the weekly summaries with the "Well done, this week your driver rating was above average" message. I certainly see no evidence that they are in any way displeased.


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## RamzFanz (Jan 31, 2015)

elelegido said:


> As is usual with you, conjecture replaces informed comment. When did Uber confirm that markets are losing the fee because of alleged driver abuse of the cancellation system? Please quote your source.


_"Your drive to the pin, lie to the pax, and cancel, is *almost certainly* why they are getting rid of cancellation fees."_ Operative words highlighted. Speculation but logical. Unless you think Uber wants the driver out of commission and doesn't want the $1. Could be. No logic, but possible.



elelegido said:


> Since I first implemented strict pax screening & filtering, my ratings have improved from the mid 4.7s up to the low 4.9s. Uber is very pleased with this - I get the weekly summaries with the "Well done, this week your driver rating was above average" message. I certainly see no evidence that they are in any way displeased.


The evidence is _*almost certainly *_contained within the cancellation of the fee.


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## elelegido (Sep 24, 2014)

RamzFanz said:


> _"Your drive to the pin, lie to the pax, and cancel, is *almost certainly* why they are getting rid of cancellation fees."_ Operative words highlighted. Speculation but logical. Unless you think Uber wants the driver out of commission and doesn't want the $1. Could be. No logic, but possible.
> 
> The evidence is _*almost certainly *_contained within the cancellation of the fee.


LOL; you'd be any criminal's dream DA.

"He's guilty, your honor"
"What's your evidence?'
"I got nothing. But he almost certainly did it"
"Next!"


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## RamzFanz (Jan 31, 2015)

elelegido said:


> LOL; you'd be any criminal's dream DA.
> 
> "He's guilty, your honor"
> "What's your evidence?'
> ...


People get convicted on circumstantial evidence all the time. You don't need the body if all reason and logic derived from what you do have points to an obvious conclusion.

Uber had a fee.

Uber drivers abused the fee and the passengers.

Uber drivers came on here and bragged about it while encouraging other drivers to abuse.

Now drivers are losing the fee.

_Do you have an alternative theory as to why Uber wants drivers to be unavailable and for Uber to not get paid?_


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## Another Uber Driver (May 27, 2015)

RamzFanz said:


> I have yet to meet a single one here that has anything nice to say about the taxi industry.
> 
> There was a major formal event tonight in STL and, despite surges that made Uber 50%+ more expensive than cabs, the cabs sat there in a queue while we picked up pax after pax.
> 
> ...


You must not meet many people, then. Either that, or I need to call BS on that one.

I call BS on that one. You will never convince me that people in St. Louis are that stupid. If that happened here, the people would be in the cabs and there would be no cabs on the stand. In fact, if a surge hit here that made the UberX half again more expensive than a cab, people would be summoning Uber Taxi and Uber Black, if they were summoning Uber at all. They might indeed, be summoning Uber Black and Uber Taxi as the stand would be empty. Some moght catch a cab that pulled up to the stand. While I do realise that there is no Uber Taxi in St, Louis, I can not believe that people would stand out there in the cold, heat or anything in between and wait for something to show up, especially if it were going to cost them more. Nobody here would do that.

You do not seem to understand that once is a precedent.

If you state that there are taxi applications, then you acknowledge that they exist. Do not take my word for it, check out the applications yourself. You open it, it shows the available vehicles. You submit your order, it shows you what cab is coming, a description thereof, a licence plate number and a rather unflattering photograph of the driver. It shows on the map where your vehicle is and renders unto the user an Estimated Time of Arrival. This is everything that the Uber application does. Given to-day's technology, it _*ain't*_ difficult to do it. But check out Hail-O and My Taxi. The D.C. Taxi application also has those features. Hail-O is like Uber in that you can pay only through the application. My Taxi and the D.C. Taxi application allow you a choice on how to pay. You can pay through the application, or, you can use the application merely to summon your vehicle. You then pay the driver either cash or use a card. Do not take my word for it. Check them out. There might be one available in St. Louis, but I do not know, as I do not live there and have not been there since 2004. (I am originally from Massachusetts, so guess why I was there at that time.........)

The Uber star system has too many flaws as Uber administers it. Did not you , yourself admit that it was flawed? Do keep in mind that the foregoing is in the form of a question. It requires a "yes" or "no" answer. It is in the form of a question because:

A. I am too lazy to look back to see exactly what you did state
B. I do not need to give you even the most flimsy of bases on which you might accuse me of twisting words.

Thus, it is in the form of a question.

There are two major flaws in the way that Uber administers its star system.

The first is that it fails to educate its users on how it works. Do keep in mind that the middle management of Uber is from the Participation Trophy generation. Thus, it considers anything less than five stars a failure. It thinks that you render five stars for an average ride. Sadly, when the Participation Trophy generation actually must rate, it reverts to the mindset of its parents and rates low. Either that, or it rates in a manner similar to Michelin. Michelin's star system considers three stars acceptable, four stars pretty good and five stars goes only to scrape, bow and kowtow. Uber does not tell its users how they should rate.

The second flaw is that a driver has no opportunity to defend himself against unmerited poor ratings. Thus, there is potential that the Uber driver can lose his income for no justifiable cause. The process in New York allows a driver to defend himself against baseless and unfair accusations as well as frivolous complaints. If you want to take a driver's income or earnings, is it not fair that he be afforded an opportunity to defend himself and protect his income and earnings? Washington used to have similar protections, but, thanks to the regulators from the hotel, restaurant and tourism businesses, the Taxicab Commission has obliterated the majority of those protections. It is back to the old guilty even when proved innocent.

.................or are you one of those people who thinks that just because someone accuses someone of something that it makes that accusation true?


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## RamzFanz (Jan 31, 2015)

Another Uber Driver said:


> You must not meet many people, then. Either that, or I need to call BS on that one.


I meet people every day. Today, about 30. None that brought up the subject of Uber and taxis had a positive taxi story or negative Uber story. I'll let you know when I hear one, but it may be awhile because the taxis here have set the bar so low.



Another Uber Driver said:


> I call BS on that one. You will never convince me that people in St. Louis are that stupid. If that happened here, the people would be in the cabs and there would be no cabs on the stand. In fact, if a surge hit here that made the UberX half again more expensive than a cab, people would be summoning Uber Taxi and Uber Black, if they were summoning Uber at all. They might indeed, be summoning Uber Black and Uber Taxi as the stand would be empty. Some moght catch a cab that pulled up to the stand. While I do realise that there is no Uber Taxi in St, Louis, I can not believe that people would stand out there in the cold, heat or anything in between and wait for something to show up, especially if it were going to cost them more. Nobody here would do that.


If you don't believe, go ask in the Saint Louis forum. Calling me a liar just makes you look small. Maybe you have better taxis than STL or maybe you have cheaper pax. It is what it is and it happened. From 11PM until 3AM at the downtown Arch Hyatt for the VP charity ball. Tuxedos and $500 dresses. Sleeveless and backless women in the cold when taxis were RIGHT THERE.

Masses of taxis and we were getting 2x-3x surge pings and they waited for us. I got one while still on I-64, a solid 8 minute wait in the cold for that pax. Some waited inside, but most of mine were on the curb. We even formed our own line up the street outside of the corrupt collusion zone and we were getting pinged every 2-3 minutes.



Another Uber Driver said:


> You do not seem to understand that once is a precedent.


If the one alleged claim were verified and we knew all of the history of the rider and the tone and content of his correspondence, it would be a precedent of sorts, that it is possible, but not necessarily a policy. One random claim amongst hundreds of thousands of drivers over almost a decade sounds very suspect to me and certainly not anything I would repeat as if it were fact.



Another Uber Driver said:


> If you state that there are taxi applications, then you acknowledge that they exist. Do not take my word for it, check out the applications yourself. You open it, it shows the available vehicles. You submit your order, it shows you what cab is coming, a description thereof, a licence plate number and a rather unflattering photograph of the driver. It shows on the map where your vehicle is and renders unto the user an Estimated Time of Arrival. This is everything that the Uber application does. Given to-day's technology, it _*ain't*_ difficult to do it. But check out Hail-O and My Taxi. The D.C. Taxi application also has those features. Hail-O is like Uber in that you can pay only through the application. My Taxi and the D.C. Taxi application allow you a choice on how to pay. You can pay through the application, or, you can use the application merely to summon your vehicle. You then pay the driver either cash or use a card. Do not take my word for it. Check them out. There might be one available in St. Louis, but I do not know, as I do not live there and have not been there since 2004. (I am originally from Massachusetts, so guess why I was there at that time.........)


That's good. I'll take your word for it. I'm glad the taxi industry is being forced by competition to start offering a service better than what we had in the 1920's.

2004? Yeah, I was dumbfounded.



Another Uber Driver said:


> The Uber star system has too many flaws as Uber administers it. Did not you , yourself admit that it was flawed? Do keep in mind that the foregoing is in the form of a question. It requires a "yes" or "no" answer. It is in the form of a question because:


Oh yes, I said it was flawed, and it is. I agree with you, it needs a guidance chart and comments and the driver should have an opportunity to remove ratings that are fare based or for other issues out of their control. But it's better than the next to nothing taxis offer. Uber drivers are too exposed and Taxi drivers are too sheltered, but for the passenger, it is a godsend. No more powerlessness or fighting the system to be heard. No more weighing if it's worth the effort to call or write or fill out a 4 page web form. Just rate and move on. It only matters if others also see what you see and rate likewise.

They do have an app here. I have never opened it. I have had pax tell me it's basically texts, no cab is guaranteed at any given time, and it's down half the time. I have heard you make a request and if or when it gets filled, you get the driver info and an eta that, I have heard, is worthless. But that's all hearsay.


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## North End Eric (Sep 12, 2015)

RamzFanz said:


> A three ring circus? I can see how well that has worked.
> 
> Na, as a passenger, I don't want cities, states, unions, and lawyers getting involved because a driver has BO and doesn't care. I want the ability to give a quick and fair rating along with other passengers, without any coercion or cooperation, and get rid of him. How many passengers would go through a circus just to report a stinky driver or one that made inappropriate comments?


What the hell are you babbling about? If someone has a complaint about a driver they call my company and talk directly to a supervisor about the problem. There is no "circus." One of the main complaints about Uber is the fact that they can not be reached by phone and any problem must be solved by emailing back and forth. Not great customer service, in my opinion.


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## Another Uber Driver (May 27, 2015)

RamzFanz said:


> None that brought up the subject of Uber and taxis had a positive taxi story or negative Uber story.
> 
> If you don't believe, go ask in the Saint Louis forum. Sleeveless and backless women in the cold when taxis were RIGHT THERE.
> 
> ...


I call BS on that one.

No one here would have waited in the cold when a less expensive and good ride were available right there. It makes no sense. Enough people here ride the cabs when UberX is on regular rates, as it is. Even more use them when UberX surges. More than a few people here have nothing good to state about UberX.

My question stands. If they do it once, and get away with it, what is to stop them from doing it, again?

Its flaws make it no better than any complaint procedure for taxis. How is something that is so heavily weighted against the accused better?


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## RamzFanz (Jan 31, 2015)

North End Eric said:


> What the hell are you babbling about? If someone has a complaint about a driver they call my company and talk directly to a supervisor about the problem. There is no "circus." One of the main complaints about Uber is the fact that they can not be reached by phone and any problem must be solved by emailing back and forth. Not great customer service, in my opinion.


If the passengers agree they don't like the service of a particular Uber driver, they remove him. There is no need to call, the power s theirs.

Calling some taxi company and expecting anything to get done is both cumbersome and unreliable. If it worked the horror stories would have ended or, at least, be uncommon.


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## gearhead (Nov 30, 2015)

I'm a new newbe how do you cancel once you've accepted it?


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## RamzFanz (Jan 31, 2015)

Another Uber Driver said:


> I call BS on that one.
> 
> No one here would have waited in the cold when a less expensive and good ride were available right there. It makes no sense. Enough people here ride the cabs when UberX is on regular rates, as it is. Even more use them when UberX surges. More than a few people here have nothing good to state about UberX.
> 
> ...


There is no purpose in debating with a person who has called me a liar multiple times. I gave you the opportunity to verify what I said and you didn't because we both know the answer you will get and you don't want to hear it.

All of your arguments dismiss what the people say and what they choose. Taxis became monopolies by force and acted like they were untouchable and now the chickens have come home to roost. Taxis, as you know them as a corrupt collusion monopoly are going away.

I'm calling BS on anything you say. It is tainted by your false impression of the skills of a cab driver and your victimization agenda. Taxis are failing because they had a terrible service born from being a protected class. You just bought into the big lie that it was about the people and not about corruption, profit, and power.


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## RamzFanz (Jan 31, 2015)

gearhead said:


> I'm a new newbe how do you cancel once you've accepted it?


You tap on their name, bottom left, on the iPhone. Once you start trip, you can only end trip. Only the pax can cancel once you start trip.


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## gearhead (Nov 30, 2015)

I'm using the android platform so I guess it's different than the I phone system


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## North End Eric (Sep 12, 2015)

RamzFanz said:


> If the passengers agree they don't like the service of a particular Uber driver, they remove him. There is no need to call, the power s theirs.
> 
> Calling some taxi company and expecting anything to get done is both cumbersome and unreliable. If it worked the horror stories would have ended or, at least, be uncommon.


You think the ability to 1* a driver and hope enough people do the same to get him deactivated is more effective than a direct dialogue with his supervisor? Seriously?


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## North End Eric (Sep 12, 2015)

RamzFanz said:


> The people have spoken and they prefer Uber. The taxi monopoly is over and no one but cab company owners, their political puppets, unions, and drivers think that's a bad idea. A few taxi apps trying to play catchup after decades of passenger neglect isn't impressing anyone.
> 
> Claiming taxis are professionals is not reflected in public opinion, and the part they will never accept is, that's all that matters. Not regulations, not fees, not medallions, public opinion based on their experiences.


The people have spoken and they prefer Uber? You obviously haven't checked Uber's Yelp reviews.


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## elelegido (Sep 24, 2014)

RamzFanz said:


> People get convicted on circumstantial evidence all the time


On circumstancial evidence, yes, but not on no evidence at all. As you said in an earlier post, your opinion as to why the cancellation fee has been withdrawn is


RamzFanz said:


> Speculation


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## Another Uber Driver (May 27, 2015)

RamzFanz said:


> I gave you the opportunity to verify what I said and you didn't because we both know the answer you will get and you don't want to hear it.
> 
> All of your arguments dismiss what the people say and what they choose.
> 
> ...


How am I supposed to verify what your alleged passengers supposedly tell you? You do not have their contact information, even. How am I supposed to have it?

My arguments dismiss what you are stating because what you state conflicts with what I am hearing, here. Washington's being what it is, I have passengers from all over the country and the world. What they tell me conflicts mostly with what you are stating.

You have no basis on which to make that statement except your Uber elitism.

It is not an "impression" of the skills of a cab driver, it is reality. People like you who seem to think that the only thing to this business is release the brake, put it into gear, open the throttle and go are those who Labour under s serious misconception.

Taxis are not failing here. I drive a taxi and I am not failing.

This is America: EVERYTHING here is about corruption, profit and power.

When Rome was growing into an empire, there was an enemy chieftain who once stated: Romae, omnia sunt venalia. That translates: At Rome, everything is for sale. Had Juba lived in these times, he would have said the same thing about the U.S. of A.


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## Pooty711 (Dec 20, 2015)

you have to ask? lol


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## RamzFanz (Jan 31, 2015)

North End Eric said:


> You think the ability to 1* a driver and hope enough people do the same to get him deactivated is more effective than a direct dialogue with his supervisor? Seriously?


Yes. And more likely to be effective. You have no idea if his supervisor will do anything at all.


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## Baby Cakes (Sep 6, 2015)

shin said:


> I arrived at the pin, but there was no builiding number matching the address. I get a call, and he sounds very angry. He tells me he's on a certain street. I don't know where that street is exactly, so I don't know what to say. I drive up, and go to the end of the street, and see the street. He was on the other side.
> 
> When he got in he was pissed. It was -10 degrees out. First words out of his mouth were, "I'm going to take another Uber next time!"
> 
> ...


always consider that its was a technical error and not the users error, in which case you are being very nice and taking the one star hits so that angry 
PAX doesnt have to wait 5-10 more minutes for a ride. Me personally I push back this feeling because as an Uber driver its hard to come out on top and you must do everything possible. Take those $5 no-show any day of the week. There are some cases where it is so slow you want to take more time to find PAX and not cancel since most trips are over $5 but it is certainly more efficient of your time to mark no-show when the pin is not accurate.


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## North End Eric (Sep 12, 2015)

RamzFanz said:


> Yes. And more likely to be effective. You have no idea if his supervisor will do anything at all.


You have no idea if enough passengers will 1* him to get him deactivated. As a supervisor in the real taxi business (not ********* like yourself) I assure you complaints are taken seriously and dealt with accordingly. Real and valid complaints are separated from the invalid complaints, unlike the Uber rating system. Nobody should lose their job because he wouldn't allow five riders in a four passenger vehicle or wouldn't let a passenger drink alcohol, a situation that can happen with Uber. But a real customer service complaint is taken seriously and the driver is either suspended or dismissed. The only driver that has been dismissed this year for poor customer service was a former Uber driver. Imagine that.


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## KMANDERSON (Jul 19, 2015)

shin said:


> I arrived at the pin, but there was no builiding number matching the address. I get a call, and he sounds very angry. He tells me he's on a certain street. I don't know where that street is exactly, so I don't know what to say. I drive up, and go to the end of the street, and see the street. He was on the other side.
> 
> When he got in he was pissed. It was -10 degrees out. First words out of his mouth were, "I'm going to take another Uber next time!"
> 
> ...


ACCEPT CANCEL REASON OTHERS ACRO


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## RamzFanz (Jan 31, 2015)

North End Eric said:


> You have no idea if enough passengers will 1* him to get him deactivated. As a supervisor in the real taxi business (not ********* like yourself) I assure you complaints are taken seriously and dealt with accordingly. Real and valid complaints are separated from the invalid complaints, unlike the Uber rating system. Nobody should lose their job because he wouldn't allow five riders in a four passenger vehicle or wouldn't let a passenger drink alcohol, a situation that can happen with Uber. But a real customer service complaint is taken seriously and the driver is either suspended or dismissed. The only driver that has been dismissed this year for poor customer service was a former Uber driver. Imagine that.


You can pretend all you want that taxi drivers are some well governed group of ultra-professionals striving for pax satisfaction. The reality is what it is. Most people have little good to say about cab companies or drivers. Uber drivers either produce or get deactivated. Power to the people.


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## North End Eric (Sep 12, 2015)

RamzFanz said:


> You can pretend all you want that taxi drivers are some well governed group of ultra-professionals striving for pax satisfaction. The reality is what it is. Most people have little good to say about cab companies or drivers. Uber drivers either produce or get deactivated. Power to the people.


Uber drivers ARE taxi drivers. They are just poorly trained and under-insured.
Who are "most people"? The people that get in your Ubercab and tell you how wonderful Uber is? Read between the lines, what they are really saying is "thanks for doing this for less than half the cost of a real cab, SUCKER!" Real taxi drivers have passengers tell them how much Uber sucks. Main complaints are surge pricing and incompetent, poorly trained drivers that don't understand how addresses work and must rely on GPS.


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## RamzFanz (Jan 31, 2015)

North End Eric said:


> Uber drivers ARE taxi drivers. They are just poorly trained and under-insured.


No, we are like the cure for taxi drivers.



North End Eric said:


> Who are "most people"? The people that get in your Ubercab and tell you how wonderful Uber is? Read between the lines, what they are really saying is "thanks for doing this for less than half the cost of a real cab, SUCKER!"


...and thanks for not smelling, stealing, having an easy way to pay, and being nice. They take Uber even when it costs more than cabs that are sitting there waiting for a pax. What does that say to you?

To be a cabbie, all you really have to do is pay the man. You have no skill sets I don't. Professionals are not widely despised.


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## North End Eric (Sep 12, 2015)

Do a Google search for "Uber yelp reviews" and tell me what you find, gypsy cabbie.


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## Another Uber Driver (May 27, 2015)

RamzFanz said:


> No, we are like the cure for taxi drivers....and thanks for not smelling, stealing, having an easy way to pay, and being nice. They take Uber even when it costs more than cabs that are sitting there waiting for a pax. What does that say to you? To be a cabbie, all you really have to do is pay the man. You have no skill sets I don't. Professionals are not widely despised.


Delusion, lies, misconceptions, stereotypes, profiling and baseless statements. This is what the quoted poster is made of. From an elitist dilettante, I expect nothing other.

I had backed off in the spirit of the Christmas Holiday. Since you refuse to stop with your lies and baseless demeaning of cab drivers and the cab business and refuse to stop criticising in others what you and your sponsors practice yourselves, I am back.

Stop with your lies and baseless statements.


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## Coachman (Sep 22, 2015)

I've had a number of passengers tell me that they enjoy Uber so much because most of the drivers are "normal people." I live in the area I service. I know the area, the things to do, and the people. I'm "one of them."

If they call a cab, they're probably going to get a Pakistani driver with broken English who's never been to the neighborhood. That's exactly what I got the last time I called a cab here. And it took 45 minutes and 3 phone calls to the dispatcher before he found me. Plus $25.00 to go two miles.


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## Another Uber Driver (May 27, 2015)

Coachman said:


> Plus $25.00 to go two miles.


...........more profiling, stereotyping and elitist TNC driver false propaganda. There is no place in the United States of America where a regular, licenced taxicab costs over ten dollars per mile. That obvious falsehood makes the rest of your post questionable, at best..


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## RamzFanz (Jan 31, 2015)

Another Uber Driver said:


> Delusion, lies, misconceptions, stereotypes, profiling and baseless statements. This is what the quoted poster is made of. From an elitist dilettante, I expect nothing other.
> 
> I had backed off in the spirit of the Christmas Holiday. Since you refuse to stop with your lies and baseless demeaning of cab drivers and the cab business and refuse to stop criticising in others what you and your sponsors practice yourselves, I am back.
> 
> Stop with your lies and baseless statements.


As long as cabbies are on here bashing Uber drivers and perpetuating the myth that they are highly trained exceptional professionals that are just picked on for being so great, I will respond.


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## North End Eric (Sep 12, 2015)

RamzFanz said:


> As long as cabbies are on here bashing Uber drivers and perpetuating the myth that they are highly trained exceptional professionals that are just picked on for being so great, I will respond.


I don't bash Uber drivers, I bash Uber. I feel sorry for the people they sucker into their scam, even you. Seems like you got a double-dose of the Kool-Aid.


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## Another Uber Driver (May 27, 2015)

RamzFanz said:


> As long as cabbies are on here bashing Uber drivers and perpetuating the myth that they are highly trained exceptional professionals that are just picked on for being so great, I will respond.


No cab driver here states, or, for that matter, "perpetuates [any] myth" that he is a "highly trained" professional. No cab driver here states that he is "trained" as is trained an electrician, carpenter or computer programmer. We are the professionals, yes, because we have one thing that a dilettante like you lacks: EXPERIENCE. When did UberX launch in St. Louis? This year, 2015, was it? That means that you do not have even one year experience in hauling passengers for compensation. You are a rookie, at best, and an amateur, to boot. Your insistence that the only thing to this job is to turn the key and go only proves that point. There is no substitute on ANY job for experience. That goes for teaching, lawyering, carpentry, mechanics, engineering, computer programming, you name it. I have it; the other cab drivers on these boards have it, you LACK it.

Telling an Uber driver that he lacks experience is hardly "bashing" him. Stating that the majority of Uber drivers hug their GPS is not "bash" it is fact.

No cab driver on these boards claims that he is picked on "for being so great". Playing the victim is the job of a whiny, unlicenced, unregulated, underinsured (or even UNinsured) inexperienced, cut rate cab driver better known as a TNC driver. If you do not believe that TNC drivers whine and play the victim, you _*ain't*_ *readin' none too many o' these hyar' boards, m'boy.

*
..............and you wonder why I call B.S. on half of what you post. You seem to dedicate the majority of your posting time here to demeaning cab drivers and the cab business. What makes it so sad is that you do not, nor can you, it seems, even begin to grasp the truth of what North End Eric is trying to tell you about what you are doing. People like North End Eric, Huberis, Chi1cabby, Another Uber Driver, the Bison and a few others are the Tom Cruises of this business: WE _*KNOWWWWWW*_ about ground transportation for hire. ...and who are you?...... the Al Gore who thinks that he "invented" it?


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## Coachman (Sep 22, 2015)

Another Uber Driver said:


> ...........more profiling, stereotyping and elitist TNC driver false propaganda. There is no place in the United States of America where a regular, licenced taxicab costs over ten dollars per mile. That obvious falsehood makes the rest of your post questionable, at best..


So if I'd said it was $25.00 for 2.5 miles you would have been good with my post? Good grief!

And I tipped of course. Or do you think that's a lie as well?


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## Coachman (Sep 22, 2015)

Another Uber Driver said:


> We are the professionals, yes, because we have one thing that a dilettante like you lacks: EXPERIENCE. When did UberX launch in St. Louis? This year, 2015, was it?


The thing about something like taxi driving is the learning curve is very steep. A couple months on the job and you know 90% of what you need to know.


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## Another Uber Driver (May 27, 2015)

Coachman said:


> The thing about something like taxi driving is the learning curve is very steep. A couple months on the job and you know 90% of what you need to know.


Keep posting. Every post that you put up here demonstrates even further how little you know about this business.


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## Another Uber Driver (May 27, 2015)

Coachman said:


> So if I'd said it was $25.00 for 2.5 miles you would have been good with my post? Good grief!


You are twisting words. Be that as it may, there is no place in the Continental United States of America where a taxicab costs ten dollars per mile. It may not cost that in Alaska or Hawaii, even. The average taxi rate in the lower Forty Eight is something on the order of two dollars per mile. Keep posting and keep showing everyone how little it is that you know about this business.

............must be a Cowboys fan, no other explanation is possible.....................


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## Coachman (Sep 22, 2015)

Another Uber Driver said:


> You are twisting words. Be that as it may, there is no place in the Continental United States of America where a taxicab costs ten dollars per mile. It may not cost that in Alaska or Hawaii, even. The average taxi rate in the lower Forty Eight is something on the order of two dollars per mile. Keep posting and keep showing everyone how little it is that you know about this business.
> 
> ............must be a Cowboys fan, no other explanation is possible.....................


See, this is why people don't like cabbies. Everybody has a story about getting ripped off by a cabby. It happens all the time. I paid that cabby $25 to go two miles. If that's an illegal rate then he ripped me off. Because everybody knows cabbies are shady like that. I'm stranded out in the middle of nowhere. I've got no ride. There's no other cab for 20 miles. He figured he could gouge me.

But of course, your expertise tells you that couldn't have happened.

And by the way, he was Middle Eastern. A crook.


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## Another Uber Driver (May 27, 2015)

^^^^^^^^You paid it? You did not ask to see his meter? Did he have a meter? You did not just get out and walk away? You just let him do that to you? Yes, everyone has a "story". Yours is just that--a STORY. I am calling BS on it.

"Everyone" has a story about being ripped off by mechanics. so "everyone" hates mechanics, correct? All mechanics are crooks who smell bad and do not speak English? "Everyone" knows that all mechanics are shady like that.

"Everyone" has a story about being ripped off by plumbers, so "everyone" hates plumbers, correct? All plumbers are crooks who smell bad and do not speak English? "Everyone" knows that all plumbers are shady like that.

"Everyone" has a story about being ripped off by cashiers, so "everyone" hates cashiers, correct? All cashiers are crooks who smell bad and do not speak English, correct? "Everyone" knows that all cashiers are shady like that.

"Everyone" has a story about being ripped off by Customer Service Representatives, so "everyone" hates Customer Service Representatives, correct? All Customer Service Representatives are crooks who smell bad (in fact, they smell so bad that you can smell it through the telephone or on their e-Mails. correct?) and do not speak English. "Everyone" knows that all Customer Service Representatives are shady like that.

Keep it up, Skippy. Keep up that profiling, racism and stereotyping that you criticise in cab drivers but practice yourself. The more that you post, the worse that you look.


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## DieselkW (Jul 21, 2015)

Picture taken from my car of the taxi next to me at a red light. How ridiculous is it that TNC rates are less than half of this, just to gain market share?
I mean, wouldn't people, at this stage of the evolution of TNC, still use their phones to call a ride share for 30¢ per 1/5 mile?

Cabbies are underpaid. TNC drivers are twice as underpaid.


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## Coachman (Sep 22, 2015)

Another Uber Driver said:


> ^^^^^^^^You paid it? You did not ask to see his meter? Did he have a meter? You did not just get out and walk away? You just let him do that to you? Yes, everyone has a "story". Yours is just that--a STORY. I am calling BS on it.


This is exactly why unscrupulous cabbies can get away with gouging people. I don't take cab rides. I don't know the costs. I didn't ask for the fare up front. I just got in his cab and rode. And he knew I was clueless. And he screwed me. And after he screwed me I gave him a $2 tip!

Of course your expertise tells you that couldn't have happened.

By the way, I've had several local hotel pickups where the rider told me they took a cab from the airport to the hotel and were "driven around in circles" for about half an hour. Do you call BS on their stories too?


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## Another Uber Driver (May 27, 2015)

^^^^^^^^^^^I never stated that it did not happen. In fact, here, there was the case of John Dembo, who made a habit of it, despite repeated warnings and sanctions. It took a special request from the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Commission (not to be confused with the AUTHORITY) to get the D.C. Taxicab Commission to yank his hack licence. The last that I heard, Mr. Dembo owned a limousine service in Ocean City, Maryland. I would not hire one of his cars. I could tell you a few stories about Mr. Dembo.

The problem with many of these "stories" is that when an acquaintance tells such a story, suddenly it happens to them. Another thing that happens is that a driver tries, it, the customer calls him on it, the driver mends his ways, but the customer exaggerates the story. Then there is it happens here and there to a person or two and suddenly every driver is doing it to every person. From this arises all of this profiling and stereotyping. So yeah, I will call Beta Sigma on more than a few of their stories.....not all, but more than one or two......................My expertise tells me, has demonstrated to me and all experience _*hath shewn*_ me that it does not happen as often as people would have you believe. That goes double for elitist TNC drivers and companies.

If you took a five minute cab ride and the driver wanted twenty-five bananas, would not common sense tell you that it is excessive? Further, there is the old taking of responsibility and calling the company/regulatory authority (or going to the website) and asking for an estimate if street hailing . If calling by telephone, ask for an estimate when putting in your order. When the driver arrives, make sure that you and he agree on everything. I do this in places where I do not live if I want to ride a cab. In my area, I know what the fares are and know the streets.

If you must fork over the excess funds, most jurisdictions have a complaint procedure. In fact, in cases of an overcharge, often the regulatory authority will give the offending driver the opportunity to refund the entire fare (in other words, that ride was on the driver) and the complaint goes away. There is something on the driver's record about it, but the regulatory authority uses it against him only if he continues his malfeasance. All of this can be accomplished through a few e-Mails, these days.

When I was a company official, I handled those complaints and responded promptly. If I could determine from the what the customer told me that the driver was in the wrong, I mailed a cheque immediately and got it from the driver later. At times, I would mail the cheque anyhow, and the company would eat it if the driver subsequently vindicated himself.
I accomplished this through the efforts of a few e-Mails or telephone calls on the part of the customer.

Do not believe what that guy from St. Louis is stating about non response to complaints. My experience and expertise dictate something markedly different from what he thinks.


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## Coachman (Sep 22, 2015)

Another Uber Driver said:


> If you took a five minute cab ride and the driver wanted twenty-five bananas, would not common sense tell you that it is excessive?


What was going through my mind at the time was... "wow, I didn't know a cab ride was so expensive." And "I guess they charge extra for the 45 minutes it took for him to find me while he was lost." And "maybe there's a surcharge for driving out in the suburbs."

But those are the kind of thoughts that many Americans will automatically think. Because unlike some cultures, Americans are not brought up to haggle. When someone states a price, we normally take it or leave it. Which is why it's not irrelevant or bigoted or racist to note that this cabby was Middle Eastern. That's the way Middle Easterners do business. I lived with an Afghani for a year and a half and saw first hand how she interacted with people. She just assumed that everyone was trying to rip her off. Because in Afghanistan, when you hail a cab, they'll tell you the price is five times what you actually need to pay. They don't view it as being unethical or corrupt. They think it's simply smart business.


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## Another Uber Driver (May 27, 2015)

Coachman said:


> What was going through my mind at the time was... "wow, I didn't know a cab ride was so expensive." And "I guess they charge extra for the 45 minutes it took for him to find me while he was lost." And "maybe there's a surcharge for driving out in the suburbs.


There are all sorts of replies available to me for this post, but, ya' know what? In the spirit of New Year Time, I am done with this flame war. I will fight another flame war another day. I have little doubt that there will be plenty of opportunity for it.....and likely a ban from Moderators, at some point. Until that time..........................................

*HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL ON UBERPEOPLEDOTNET!!!!!!!!*


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## Dude in the Car (Aug 31, 2015)

shin said:


> I arrived at the pin, but there was no builiding number matching the address. I get a call, and he sounds very angry. He tells me he's on a certain street. I don't know where that street is exactly, so I don't know what to say. I drive up, and go to the end of the street, and see the street. He was on the other side.
> 
> When he got in he was pissed. It was -10 degrees out. First words out of his mouth were, "I'm going to take another Uber next time!"
> 
> ...


Never pick up a pissed off pax it affects your rating. Cancel the ride and stay offline for a few minutes such that he pings someone else. If you dont feel comfortable driving them after picking them up, just Pullover and politely tell them to get another ride, ask them to cancel the ride in order to request another one. Email UBER immediately.


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