# XL Question



## MercDuke (Nov 18, 2017)

So, I am at the Airport. Its pretty crowded, I wait an hour, I get a PING. I go to Curbside Pax pickup, and it's a couple, with a baby, and a stroller, and a CAR SEAT, and 6 big suitcases, They're just back from India, visiting her parents, with the new baby. This is an UBERX trip request, but I am driving an XL Vehicle, one of the biggest SUVs Ford Expedition EL. So, all their stuff fits, but as I am loading the stuff, with the dude, while wife is getting the baby settled, I comment that he really should have ordered XL. He is looking at me a little confused. So, I am new to XL, and it turns out, he's pretty new to riding UBER. Or so he said.... anyway, during the trip I mention that all their stuff wouldn't have fit in a regular Uber and when they have a lot of stuff, they need to order XL. I am driving them to a very well to do neighborhood. And we get to their house, a long drive, and I help unload all the bags, in the circular drive of their million dollar house, and that's it, I drive away, and I let Uber know they had too much stuff and to upcharge for XL. and of course they won't. 
So, what should I have done? Uber said I should have refused the trip, and made them reorder. I want Uber to allow me to change the trip to an XL Trip. And the PAX didn't even tip a dollar, so he's obviously cheap.... I am not sure what I will do, but I bt it happens again...... 
Thoughts?


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## LoveBC (May 16, 2017)

MercDuke said:


> So, I am at the Airport. Its pretty crowded, I wait an hour, I get a PING. I go to Curbside Pax pickup, and it's a couple, with a baby, and a stroller, and a CAR SEAT, and 6 big suitcases, They're just back from India, visiting her parents, with the new baby. This is an UBERX trip request, but I am driving an XL Vehicle, one of the biggest SUVs Ford Expedition EL. So, all their stuff fits, but as I am loading the stuff, with the dude, while wife is getting the baby settled, I comment that he really should have ordered XL. He is looking at me a little confused. So, I am new to XL, and it turns out, he's pretty new to riding UBER. Or so he said.... anyway, during the trip I mention that all their stuff wouldn't have fit in a regular Uber and when they have a lot of stuff, they need to order XL. I am driving them to a very well to do neighborhood. And we get to their house, a long drive, and I help unload all the bags, in the circular drive of their million dollar house, and that's it, I drive away, and I let Uber know they had too much stuff and to upcharge for XL. and of course they won't.
> So, what should I have done? Uber said I should have refused the trip, and made them reorder. I want Uber to allow me to change the trip to an XL Trip. And the PAX didn't even tip a dollar, so he's obviously cheap.... I am not sure what I will do, but I bt it happens again......
> Thoughts?


First: what the hell are you doing accepting UberX pings in a brand new Expedition? That car is nearly the equivalent of an UberSUV if you have that in your market. You lost money just dignifying that trip.

Second: yes you can upcharge the fare IF there are five or more pax

Select the trip in question.

Select Help

Select the option "I had a different issue with my fare" USE THIS ONE! Not the one that said I had too many riders! There's a reason.

Send the following message. "this ride had six riders. Upcharge to UberXL rate."

There is no need to lecture the rider. Cheap asses are gonna be cheap. Finish the ride and send in the upcharge request as I outlined above.

In this case since there were only three pax. It's your fault for accepting this ride. Rohit doesn't care if they have a trainload of luggage. 1-4 riders for X or Black. 5-6 for xl or SUV

If you're driving an Expedition. UberX should be turned OFF at all times except when using a DF to get home. I don't know which market your in but doing an X ride in an SUV is equal to a total loss.


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## Skinny1 (Sep 24, 2015)

You learned a lesson. Happens in business don’t let it happen again. 

Oh and yes your bad for taking an X trip... don’t blame the pax.


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## MercDuke (Nov 18, 2017)

Well it was a 40 mile ride I was at the Airport, as mentioned. That's pretty much the only time I am doing UBERX. Tonight it was almost 4 hours to get a 60 dollar XL ride to Littleton I could have done 3 Uber X in that time....


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## LoveBC (May 16, 2017)

MercDuke said:


> Well it was a 40 mile ride I was at the Airport, as mentioned. That's pretty much the only time I am doing UBERX. Tonight it was almost 4 hours to get a 60 dollar XL ride to Littleton I could have done 3 Uber X in that time....


So you're falling for the time is money myth...

So let's say you do those three X trips. You lose money 3 times. But that's ok because you're still busy! Uber loves that logic.

The only car that should be doing X is a fully devalued 12 year old Prius.


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## MercDuke (Nov 18, 2017)

Well, time is money to a lot of degrees. It's a limited resource so it has value, and with that resource we can do things like make money. I don't think that's a myth. Many, many people get paid by the hour, which is a measure of time. Wear and tear on a vehicle is also measurable, and is the cost of fuel, and tires, and oil changes, etc... Insurance and Licensing Fees are other measurable aspects of this Tool we use, our vehicles. So, yes, TIME IS MONEY. It's not a myth. 
AND DEPRECIATION IS A MYTH! IT'S A TAX TERM, THAT'S IT!


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## oldfart (Dec 22, 2017)

Ive has exactly the same experience, nor than once 

I drive a Ford Explorer so I can handle those 4 passengers with lots of luggage X calls and I do

I too have contacted Uber and got the same form letter response that you did. I get it that I could cancel, but I’ve waited 2 hours for this ride and I operate on the principal that something is better than nothing

And to those that would say I’m losing money on rides like this: that’s nonsense. I made money, not as much as I’d like and maybe I would have made more doing something else, but I’ve made money and even if I lose money on one ride, I’m confident I’ll make it op on another

In my experience for every short ride I get I get a long ride and for every 4 passenger, lots of luggage X ride I get, I get a 1 or 2 passenger XL ride. And for ever no tipper; I get a big tipper

Bottom line; do this enough and things tend to even out in the end


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## RideshareGentrification (Apr 10, 2018)

I feel ya man it's annoying, nothing u can really do as xl is for 6 pax so if u accept an X like that it's on you but at Dia its better to get that than nothing . I drive the same way X only from the airport or with DF set going home. 
You could always lie and say they had 6 pax but if the customer complains that could be an issue.really u gotta suck it up and deal with it as an xl driver. 
Were in the same market so I'm sure you get the same thing but the majority of my xl rides are 1 to 3 riders just looking for more space. So really it all evens out

And to the others point in Denver it's worth it to get an X out of the airport since it's nearly 30 miles to get from the airport to Central Denver. The $25 to $35 is better than nothing. The airport in Denver is in the sticks


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## MercDuke (Nov 18, 2017)

Yah I did an X out of DIA tonight was a 30 dollar and I was only in the lot 15 minutes. Now I am over by Red Rocks, Nathaniel Ratliff is a Denver dude should be a lot of locals will to pay for a fun night out...

And yes, at Red Rocks I only do XL!


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## Aerodrifting (Aug 13, 2017)

MercDuke said:


> Well, time is money to a lot of degrees. It's a limited resource so it has value, and with that resource we can do things like make money. I don't think that's a myth. Many, many people get paid by the hour, which is a measure of time. Wear and tear on a vehicle is also measurable, and is the cost of fuel, and tires, and oil changes, etc... Insurance and Licensing Fees are other measurable aspects of this Tool we use, our vehicles. So, yes, TIME IS MONEY. It's not a myth.
> AND DEPRECIATION IS A MYTH! IT'S A TAX TERM, THAT'S IT!


For every X ping you accepted, There could be a XL ping around the corner. When you factor in expenses, You are making 2x on XL. You are better off getting the same distance XL ping in 2 hours than two X ping.


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## oldfart (Dec 22, 2017)

Aerodrifting said:


> For every X ping you accepted, There could be a XL ping around the corner. When you factor in expenses, You are making 2x on XL. You are better off getting the same distance XL ping in 2 hours than two X ping.


I get your point but its not twice as much for me. 
Lets assume the 45 mile ride I got yesterday I was paid $42.. XL would have been 50% more or $63. I figure my expenses to be $0.30/mile so $13.5
X is 42-13.5= $28.50 net
XL is 63- 13.5 = $49.5 net

As I say, I get your point and I agree it makes sense to wait for the XL ride much of the time When things are busy I will set the app for xl only and I agree there is always a ride. I may have to wait a little longer, but it always comes. However when things are slow.. I take whatever comes up first


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## merryon2nd (Aug 31, 2016)

Also can be argued, for every minute you sit waiting on an XL ping, you could have had an X already in the car. The more your wheels are still, the less you're making regardless of vehicle. My X and XL pings are generally equal in amount over a set time. So as long as it isn't a pool, and the perimeters are acceptable, I'll take it.


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## RideshareGentrification (Apr 10, 2018)

merryon2nd said:


> Also can be argued, for every minute you sit waiting on an XL ping, you could have had an X already in the car. The more your wheels are still, the less you're making regardless of vehicle. My X and XL pings are generally equal in amount over a set time. So as long as it isn't a pool, and the perimeters are acceptable, I'll take it.


You gotta take in to account how much your operations cost are . A lot of X rides could net such a small amount that it's not worth it

Both my XL/Select vehicles I own cost me roughly 30 cents a mile to operate

14 cents for gas
11 cents for depreciation
5 cents for maintenance , estimated repair and misc

I don't consider things like insurance or car payment since I'd have those regardless but if I did that's another 12 cents a mile (estimated off the average miles I drive per month)

I'm gonna leave that 12 cents payment insurance out of my equation

So if I take an Uber X from DT Denver to DIA (airport) the average distance is about 27 miles so that's $8.10 cents if I were to take an X to DIA and not get a rematch and not want to waste my life away in the pig pen I'm now going to be out $16.20 in expenses for a ride that averages about $25 so I'm making $8.80 for what will basically be an hour and a half of my time . NOT WORTH IT

This is why I only take XL /Select / Lyft Lux or Lyft Black rides because even a crap XL ride to DIA is going to pay me close to $50 so even if I get hosed and don't get a ride out (I get a ride out of the airport without waiting 75% of the time ) I'm not totally screwing myself . And those DIA to Boulder XL/Select rematch that are pretty common usually pay around $80 . Basically I try to average $1.25 or higher per mile and that's just not possible on UberX during the day


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## henrygates (Mar 29, 2018)

I've had this issue before a few times and Uber adjusted the fare to XL within 10 minutes each time. I didn't even bother mentioning it to the pax, I just contacted Uber as soon as I dropped them off. Pester them until they do it.


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## merryon2nd (Aug 31, 2016)

RideshareGentrification said:


> You gotta take in to account how much your operations cost are . A lot of X rides could net such a small amount that it's not worth it


Hah, trust me, I know. I've crunched my numbers so finely that I know just how many XL runs compared to X runs I need to how much gas and maintenance costs to remain profitable, and how many runs I can go off grid to those numbers and not plateau. I also know, that as someone who is driving full time, I need to take those X runs to stay in the black on any given day. Especially not with this new surge structure in my market.

I also have a nasty habit of running practically everything in my life like a business.

I also keep a square reader (contactless, for apple/Samsung pay and chip cards), in my center console at all times for uncommon but nice cash rides, as, when not on the platform, people tend to be a bit more generous. This also comes in handy for those pesky NYC trips when negotiating a return fee.
Because, money is money. And there's a baby born every second, and once a minute, one of those is born a sucker.


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## RideshareGentrification (Apr 10, 2018)

merryon2nd said:


> Hah, trust me, I know. I've crunched my numbers so finely that I know just how many XL runs compared to X runs I need to how much gas and maintenance costs to remain profitable, and how many runs I can go off grid to those numbers and not plateau. I also know, that as someone who is driving full time, I need to take those X runs to stay in the black on any given day. Especially not with this new surge structure in my market.
> 
> I also have a nasty habit of running practically everything in my life like a business.
> 
> ...


Awesome, I worry about some drivers. Some don't even track their mileage


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## zombieguy (May 22, 2015)

merryon2nd said:


> Hah, trust me, I know. I've crunched my numbers so finely that I know just how many XL runs compared to X runs I need to how much gas and maintenance costs to remain profitable, and how many runs I can go off grid to those numbers and not plateau. I also know, that as someone who is driving full time, I need to take those X runs to stay in the black on any given day. Especially not with this new surge structure in my market.
> 
> I also have a nasty habit of running practically everything in my life like a business.
> 
> ...


Just don't get into an accident. Once the app is off and you accept cash you are now an illegal livery car, god forbid you get into an accident and you get hurt or the pax gets hurt, you are not covered, the pax isn't covered and the car isn't covered, no insurance through Uber or Lyft and even if you have rideshare insurance through your personal insurance you are not covered when the App is off. You're taking a serious risk. You are now committing insurance fraud if you lie as well as asking a total stranger who could be seriously injured to also commit fraud for you. Not worth it.


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## MercDuke (Nov 18, 2017)

That's Bankruptcy you push in your chips and start over ....

And yes with all the Apps out there its amazing how many Drivers dont track miles and expenses. The App tracks the mileage for you! You dont have to do anything but pay like 5 bucks a month.


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## merryon2nd (Aug 31, 2016)

zombieguy said:


> Just don't get into an accident. Once the app is off and you accept cash you are now an illegal livery car, god forbid you get into an accident and you get hurt or the pax gets hurt, you are not covered, the pax isn't covered and the car isn't covered, no insurance through Uber or Lyft and even if you have rideshare insurance through your personal insurance you are not covered when the App is off. You're taking a serious risk. You are now committing insurance fraud if you lie as well as asking a total stranger who could be seriously injured to also commit fraud for you. Not worth it.


I agree, it's a risk. But everything business is a risk. The difference between some people and others is whether they decide to weight the risk to find it wonton. Even though I know I have full commercial coverage on my car (have since I work at the auto part store, as I was delivering parts, and never dropped it as an afterthought), I know that without the proper permits (which I only recently sent out for), I'm still at a risk.
When I get one of my regulars on the horn, I tend to analyze everything that moment. Am I being overly cautious today? Have I noticed a number of reckless drivers that day? Is there an over abundance of road blocks or construction that leads through areas that are accident prone? Has there been an unusual amount of police traffic that day? Got a twitchy feeling that something can go wrong? If the answer to any of these questions is yes, the answer to THEM is no. This cuts down on the chance that something will go wrong, and I go into the job as a calculated risk. Calculated risks are something I'm okay with attempting.

But I also know that I do, some weeks, need the supplement rides to stay on target (if I've been sick, or the work injure that left me out of physical labor acts up, or something of that nature). Its the nature of doing business for yourself. Calculated risk= okay, blind risk= avoid at all cost.


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## MHR (Jul 23, 2017)

henrygates said:


> I've had this issue before a few times and Uber adjusted the fare to XL within 10 minutes each time. I didn't even bother mentioning it to the pax, I just contacted Uber as soon as I dropped them off. Pester them until they do it.


Same here. I just write how many pax I took, tell them that I let pax know it would be upgraded to XL and then Uber adjusts. Haven't denied me yet.


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## merryon2nd (Aug 31, 2016)

MHR said:


> Same here. I just write how many pax I took, tell them that I let pax know it would be upgraded to XL and then Uber adjusts. Haven't denied me yet


Its SO much easier now though, honestly. Just go into the trip, too many riders, instachange!
One of the few things I actually like about the app right now.


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## Boondog1 (Jun 19, 2017)

move on...


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