# Example of New Surge Screwing Drivers



## johnydynamic (Aug 22, 2016)

I got a unique perspective of how the new Surge can be manipulated to maximize Uber's income while minimizing driver pay.

I fly to Houston every Sunday night and take an Uber from the airport to my hotel downtown. The fare is always between $30 and $35 with no surge or traffic. This past Sunday when I requested my ride, I was quoted $64. This didn't surprise me because there were a lot of people coming in at the same time.

Being an Uber driver, I have the driver app, the passenger app, and an app called "Surge 2x" that can accurately track the surge status of wherever I am accurately and in real time. I opened Surge 2x and was not surprised to see that there was a 2.4x surge in effect. I then opened the driver app to see what drivers were seeing; the airport was red with a $17 surge amount. I booked the ride at $64 and waited.

That's when something very interested happened; the surge disappeared from the driver app while the Surge app showed that there was still a 2.3x surge in effect. This means that passengers who booked rides would be paying the large premium with nothing going to the drivers. When I got to the hotel I asked the driver how much he got for the ride. His pay was $33. I know from Houston Uber drivers that the typical pay for that same ride is about $18.

This experience shows that Uber is doing passenger-side only surges to maximize revenue with nothing going to drivers and that the new surge is a screw-job. At 2.4x, my driver would have gotten something like $43 under the old system.

Here are some screen shots.


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## UberLyftFlexWhatever (Nov 23, 2018)

Shocking


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## Fuzzyelvis (Dec 7, 2014)

UberLyftFlexWhatever said:


> Shocking


Not really. It's uber.


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## UberLyftFlexWhatever (Nov 23, 2018)

Fuzzyelvis said:


> Not really. It's uber.


Same thing


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## Atom guy (Jul 27, 2016)

So the driver got a 1.8x surge on that ride, and you paid a 2.3x. So the driver got screwed - IN THIS SCENARIO ONLY. The driver could have just as easily gotten a minimum fare ride with that +$17 surge and made out extremely well. I'm not defending Uber's pay practices, but you really can't compare old surge and new surge. It's apples to oranges now. 

Since the flat surge started in my market, Uber has lost money on nearly all of the surge rides I've given because my next ride originated outside of the surge zone. So the passenger didn't pay any surge, but I got paid surge. It's a messed up system that complicates something that was very simple.


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## johnydynamic (Aug 22, 2016)

It has occurred to me that the second screen-shot of the driver app may not be showing me the surge because I’m not authorized to drive here. In the first screen shot the system is in “go” mode but in the second it’s in “out of area” mode.


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## steveK2016 (Jul 31, 2016)

Its obviously no longer accurately as the algorithm has changed and the app developer haven't adjusted their app to reflect that. The app thinks a 2.3x surge is up but that means nothing as the data is different coming from Uber now that the driver app has changed.

$17 would be a 6x surge on a minimum ride.


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## johnydynamic (Aug 22, 2016)

It just happened again, and the app is accurate from the passenger side. Just headed back to airport. The Surge app showed 1.5x and that’s what I was quoted for the fare. The driver ended the ride with me still there. He got ZERO extra money. $18.00 plus the toll. That’s it.


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## yankdog (Jul 19, 2016)

It's highway robbery but we'll documented. There is no link between what they charge pax and what they pay you anymore.


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## Jo3030 (Jan 2, 2016)

johnydynamic said:


> It just happened again, and the app is accurate from the passenger side. Just headed back to airport. The Surge app showed 1.5x and that's what I was quoted for the fare. The driver ended the ride with me still there. He got ZERO extra money. $18.00 plus the toll. That's it.


The scams continue.


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## #professoruber (Feb 19, 2018)

The only way to combat this is to hand the driver $60 cash and cancel the trip. Win win for both parties and Uber loses big time.


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## johnydynamic (Aug 22, 2016)

#professoruber said:


> The only way to combat this is to hand the driver $60 cash and cancel the trip. Win win for both parties and Uber loses big time.


Unless something happens and you find yourself with no insurance coverage. Cash rides are a huge risk.


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## #professoruber (Feb 19, 2018)

johnydynamic said:


> Unless something happens and you find yourself with no insurance coverage. Cash rides are a huge risk.


I agree however Uber and Lyft are putting drivers in a corner and desperatate drivers do desperate things.


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