# 42 trips, rating 4.43?



## Charlie Schwartz (Aug 17, 2016)

And Uber had sent me an email that being under 4.5 at 50 trips can get me deactivated.

I'm learning, I'm learning... I'm new to the app, new to the business, new to the city, new and strange car, and I don't even have much driving experience. But I've learned so much over the past few days! I feel sure that even if Uber deactivates me, if they just give me one more week of experience I can start with Lyft and easily maintain a 4.6 rating.

Are they serious about this 50 trip thing? And is it really that hard to be reactivated once you're deactivated?


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## stephan (Aug 25, 2016)

Don't worry, I was at 4.14 just be cool,be nice with passengers, greet them,ask them how is their going. .ect after start your trip, I was sometimes rude with them lol ,don't talk too much, if they like to talk them talk, if not keep quit lol. If you get disactivated which I doubt, they will make you pay 50$ or 100$ to attend a class kinda like a training then they will reactivate your I know a guy he been disactivated, after a month they send him an email ok go back, uber need drivers since a lot quit and are quiting, so no worries man


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## tohunt4me (Nov 23, 2015)

Charlie Schwartz said:


> And Uber had sent me an email that being under 4.5 at 50 trips can get me deactivated.
> 
> I'm learning, I'm learning... I'm new to the app, new to the business, new to the city, new and strange car, and I don't even have much driving experience. But I've learned so much over the past few days! I feel sure that even if Uber deactivates me, if they just give me one more week of experience I can start with Lyft and easily maintain a 4.6 rating.
> 
> Are they serious about this 50 trip thing? And is it really that hard to be reactivated once you're deactivated?


I hear Burger King pays $8.00 an hour.
Being a night stocker at Lowe's pays $11.00 an hour starting.
Ups pays even better for seasonal help. Christmas is coming.


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## Agent99 (Nov 4, 2015)

Charlie Schwartz said:


> And Uber had sent me an email that being under 4.5 at 50 trips can get me deactivated.
> 
> I'm learning, I'm learning... I'm new to the app, new to the business, new to the city, new and strange car, and I don't even have much driving experience. But I've learned so much over the past few days! I feel sure that even if Uber deactivates me, if they just give me one more week of experience I can start with Lyft and easily maintain a 4.6 rating.
> 
> Are they serious about this 50 trip thing? And is it really that hard to be reactivated once you're deactivated?


You need to be more picky on the quality of trip requests you accept. Refuse all Uberpool rides and passengers with a low rating.


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## Charlie Schwartz (Aug 17, 2016)

its mostly my fault here... i couldnt figure out how to adjust the seats... forgot to unlock doors b4 pax arrived... made wrong turns (no more waze for me!)... etc. i pretty much know when im going to receive a bad rating


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## Charlie Schwartz (Aug 17, 2016)

ive had an entirely positive experience so far with pool pax, btw. curious whether anyone else the same


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## Agent99 (Nov 4, 2015)

Charlie Schwartz said:


> ive had an entirely positive experience so far with pool pax, btw. curious whether anyone else the same


 You have taken relatively few Uberpool rides so far. Not every UberPool ride is a bad experience for the driver or for the pool passenger. But the probability is higher for a bad experience and a bad rating. Doing UberPool rides pays the driver worse than UberX rides. There are some well paid UberPool rides but it is a losing proposition over time. Taking UberPool rides also hurts other drivers.


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## Charlie Schwartz (Aug 17, 2016)

51 trips, rating 4.26 

Some pax I know would give me 5 stars, but not everyone rates. Should I ask these guys at the end to please rate me? I wouldn't need to mention "5 stars".


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## Agent99 (Nov 4, 2015)

Charlie Schwartz said:


> 51 trips, rating 4.26
> 
> Some pax I know would give me 5 stars, but not everyone rates. Should I ask these guys at the end to please rate me? I wouldn't need to mention "5 stars".


4.26 is well below the level Uber uses for deactivating drivers. You need to take a hard look at what is causing you to have a steadily declining rating after 51 rides. Unless you have already decided you don't care about getting deactivated, you need to take immediate action by taking seriously the advice available to you here and elsewhere in the forum.

What is strange about your car? Is it clean on the inside and clean smelling? Riders will rate you poorly if it smells like cigarettes. Can you find an area to drive where you're less likely to make driving mistakes? Have you switched to using Google Maps? Are you accepting all requests or are you declining requests with low ratings (4.4 or below)? People with lower ratings are known to give bad ratings. You need to be more selective until you get your rating up over 4.50. You are going to be deactivated eventually if you don't make a big effort to change things. You will get a warning email probably very soon.


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## elelegido (Sep 24, 2014)

Charlie Schwartz said:


> And Uber had sent me an email that being under 4.5 at 50 trips can get me deactivated


No pressure, then 

Tell them to sit & spin.


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## EX_ (Jan 31, 2016)

Charlie Schwartz said:


> 51 trips, rating 4.26
> 
> Some pax I know would give me 5 stars, but not everyone rates. Should I ask these guys at the end to please rate me? I wouldn't need to mention "5 stars".


If the worst happens, just make another account because Uber doesn't care...or look for a better sidegig. whatever ¯\_(ツ)_/¯


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## Agent99 (Nov 4, 2015)

Is making another account going to work? Does anyone know? You can change your email address and phone number but you cannot change your Social Security Number.


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## EX_ (Jan 31, 2016)

I think Uber is something of a social joke, so your guess is as good as mine.


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## steveK2016 (Jul 31, 2016)

I doubt making a new account will work.

This is a terrible position to be in, I feel bad for you OP. I think ratings that can get you deactivated, basically a 4 or lower, should require a comment to explain why the ride deserved that rating. For all we know, the OP is just getting back to back 4 stars and the rider wasn't necessarily dissatisfied with the experience, they just don't know that a 4 is (an 80% mind you...) is technically a failing grade. To be deactivated at 4.6 (a 92%!) would be humorous if it weren't messing with someone's ability to earn money.

I get 99% 5 stars. Almost every weekend, there's always that one guy that doesn't give a 5 star. I don't know why that is. Yet even though, say this weekend, I got 22 5 star ratings and 1 1 star rating. I know exactly where that 1 star rating came from. It was these two punk kids that were clearing about to do a drug deal. When they got out of the car at the apartment complex which was their destination, they asked me to wait. I didn't. I got a 1 star. My rating had gone up to 4.92 just prior to that... after an average of 22 5 stars the previous weekend (almost 50 straight 5 star ratings between the 2 weekends).... to drop back to 4.91 from ONE bad rating. Yet it takes nearly 50 good ratings for it to move the needle up?

Their rating algorithm is a joke, haha


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## Shangsta (Aug 15, 2016)

EX_ said:


> If the worst happens, just make another account because Uber doesn't care...or look for a better sidegig. whatever ¯\_(ツ)_/¯


Uh no, they make money forcing deactivated drivers to take a class. You cant just make a new account since your account is tied to your SSN


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## Charlie Schwartz (Aug 17, 2016)

Agent99 said:


> 4.26 is well below the level Uber uses for deactivating drivers. You need to take a hard look at what is causing you to have a steadily declining rating after 51 rides. Unless you have already decided you don't care about getting deactivated, you need to take immediate action by taking seriously the advice available to you here and elsewhere in the forum.
> 
> What is strange about your car? Is it clean on the inside and clean smelling? Riders will rate you poorly if it smells like cigarettes. Can you find an area to drive where you're less likely to make driving mistakes? Have you switched to using Google Maps? Are you accepting all requests or are you declining requests with low ratings (4.4 or below)? People with lower ratings are known to give bad ratings. You need to be more selective until you get your rating up over 4.50. You are going to be deactivated eventually if you don't make a big effort to change things. You will get a warning email probably very soon.


Despite I'm improving my driving, navigation, service, and just about everything else, my ratings are still going down... I think this time mainly because a possible 1-star rating from a bad pax. ping came b4 i dropped off the previous pax, i was driving and didnt have time to check rating (similar prob when im on highway en route to hotter locations). other than that, i continue to make navigation mistakes. im new to driving, as mentioned, and i dont see how i can control where i drive. i can control point A, but i cant control point B (and controlling point A will drastically cut my income. which, here in nyc, means operating at a loss).

im also not quite sure how enterprising to be in my driving. im normally a very cautious driver but at the beginning of my ubering i learned that caution is not appreciated. at the same time, i suspect that since then ive gotten hit (ratings-wise) for going too fast or driving too aggressively.

i can try to not accept pings while in motion. ill probably fail to make the new driver incentives as a result. whatever.


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## Charlie Schwartz (Aug 17, 2016)

Agent99 said:


> You will get a warning email probably very soon.


as mentioned, i already got one ("important information on the uber rating system"). do you mean a more direct one?


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## Agent99 (Nov 4, 2015)

Charlie Schwartz said:


> as mentioned, i already got one ("important information on the uber rating system"). do you mean a more direct one?


The Uber system will kick out warning emails and texts, probably more than one, before deactivating you.


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## unPat (Jul 20, 2016)

Don't sweat over ratings . Try to do your best . If passenger smell fear they will rate you poorly.

1. Nice clean car inside out. Use some neutral air freshners. 
2. Be polite and greet passengers. 
3. Don't play your radio too loud and a/c at comfortable level.
4. Be accurate with GPS. Google maps is much easier and cleaner than waze.
5. Drive smooth and follow street laws. 
6. Give out some freebies like water and mints until your ratings go up. 
7. Don't talk too much. 
8. Don't ask for 5 stars. 
9. Dress and groom properly. 


If all else fails take passengers to Wendy's and pay for their food . 

Good luck you will make it.


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## Charlie Schwartz (Aug 17, 2016)

Agent99 said:


> My experience of the new driver signup bonuses is that you need to make a certain minimum number of trips within a certain amount of time, but there is no minimum acceptance rate. Is that different in your area? What are the terms of your signup bonus?


65 rides a week, 25 of during peak hours originating in manhattan below 110th street.


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## Agent99 (Nov 4, 2015)

Charlie Schwartz said:


> 65 rides a week, 25 of during peak hours originating in manhattan below 110th street.


I know I'm just repeating myself...you need to focus on what is going to raise your rating or soon you will be deactivated and the 65 ride a week bonus will not be available to you. Uber has already told you a 4.50 rating is needed and you're far below that. You have gotten some good advice in this thread that can help you do that.


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## Charlie Schwartz (Aug 17, 2016)

did a bit better with ratings so far today. Thank Gpd. Basically, besides from learning from experoence, I tried to be a bit friendlier. the problem is that driving in nyc is stressful and i get anxiety attacks, which makes it hard for me to keep up a conversation


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## Agent99 (Nov 4, 2015)

Charlie Schwartz said:


> did a bit better with ratings so far today. Thank Gpd. Basically, besides from learning from experoence, I tried to be a bit friendlier. the problem is that driving in nyc is stressful and i get anxiety attacks, which makes it hard for me to keep up a conversation


It sounds like you're really trying hard, and for that I give you credit.


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## GrinsNgiggles (Oct 11, 2016)

Charlie Schwartz said:


> And Uber had sent me an email that being under 4.5 at 50 trips can get me deactivated.
> 
> I'm learning, I'm learning... I'm new to the app, new to the business, new to the city, new and strange car, and I don't even have much driving experience. But I've learned so much over the past few days! I feel sure that even if Uber deactivates me, if they just give me one more week of experience I can start with Lyft and easily maintain a 4.6 rating.
> 
> Are they serious about this 50 trip thing? And is it really that hard to be reactivated once you're deactivated?


I'm really curious about you saying you're new to driving. You said you don't have much driving experience. Do you mean at all or just with uber? If it's at all That's probably exactly why your ratings are so low. New drivers aren't very good drivers for quite some time. If you have very little driving experience, thats impossible to hide. It's very dangerous to drive so nervously actually. How did you get approved by uber with little driving experience? I thought they had rules for that?


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## Kevin4163 (May 22, 2016)

You can still see a rider's rating after accepting the request.

After completing the trip you are currently on, click on the menu button in the upper left corner of the screen and you will be able to see the rider's rating. If it's too low, just cancel.

Keep in mind that some drivers will give pax a bad rating when they think a pax has/will give them a bad rating. So, a pax having a bad rating could be an indicator that they give bad ratings.


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## Shangsta (Aug 15, 2016)

Really need to work on the navigation errors. We all miss a turn here or there but if it is a continuous thing. You will get enough reports to get you deactivated. Learn your city, where major landmarks and places are. If you are a slave to the GPS it will trip you up when three lanes go three different directions and you misread them.


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## Smoothandle (Nov 1, 2016)

He's in NYC and new to driving, that's like playing a brand new video game on super hard with someone over his shoulder the whole time.


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## dnlbaboof (Nov 13, 2015)

Charlie Schwartz said:


> Despite I'm improving my driving, navigation, service, and just about everything else, my ratings are still going down... I think this time mainly because a possible 1-star rating from a bad pax. ping came b4 i dropped off the previous pax, i was driving and didnt have time to check rating (similar prob when im on highway en route to hotter locations). other than that, i continue to make navigation mistakes. im new to driving, as mentioned, and i dont see how i can control where i drive. i can control point A, but i cant control point B (and controlling point A will drastically cut my income. which, here in nyc, means operating at a loss).
> 
> im also not quite sure how enterprising to be in my driving. im normally a very cautious driver but at the beginning of my ubering i learned that caution is not appreciated. at the same time, i suspect that since then ive gotten hit (ratings-wise) for going too fast or driving too aggressively.
> 
> i can try to not accept pings while in motion. ill probably fail to make the new driver incentives as a result. whatever.


are you white? that helps


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## tohunt4me (Nov 23, 2015)

Charlie Schwartz said:


> And Uber had sent me an email that being under 4.5 at 50 trips can get me deactivated.
> 
> I'm learning, I'm learning... I'm new to the app, new to the business, new to the city, new and strange car, and I don't even have much driving experience. But I've learned so much over the past few days! I feel sure that even if Uber deactivates me, if they just give me one more week of experience I can start with Lyft and easily maintain a 4.6 rating.
> 
> Are they serious about this 50 trip thing? And is it really that hard to be reactivated once you're deactivated?


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## dnlbaboof (Nov 13, 2015)

Charlie Schwartz said:


> did a bit better with ratings so far today. Thank Gpd. Basically, besides from learning from experoence, I tried to be a bit friendlier. the problem is that driving in nyc is stressful and i get anxiety attacks, which makes it hard for me to keep up a conversation


just ditch nyc, drive in a cool prarie or a farmland with no traffic


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## mikejm (Jun 1, 2016)

It is a 5 star rating system. 4 is a good ride and you are over 4. 3 would be a medium ride. You are doing good. Keep up the good work and don't worry. Uber on!


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## Wardell Curry (Jul 9, 2016)

unPat said:


> Don't sweat over ratings . Try to do your best . If passenger smell fear they will rate you poorly.
> 
> 1. Nice clean car inside out. Use some neutral air freshners.
> 2. Be polite and greet passengers.
> ...


I'll be damned if I ever have to start buying pax food for better ratings.


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## Tedgey (Jan 29, 2016)

steveK2016 said:


> I doubt making a new account will work.
> 
> This is a terrible position to be in, I feel bad for you OP. I think ratings that can get you deactivated, basically a 4 or lower, should require a comment to explain why the ride deserved that rating. For all we know, the OP is just getting back to back 4 stars and the rider wasn't necessarily dissatisfied with the experience, they just don't know that a 4 is (an 80% mind you...) is technically a failing grade. To be deactivated at 4.6 (a 92%!) would be humorous if it weren't messing with someone's ability to earn money.
> 
> ...


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## Do tell (Nov 11, 2016)

If you really are in fear of being deactivated for low ratings.Just offer a bunch of friends and family members to ping you and pay them for minimum fare trips.You really need to get your rating above the threshold of deactivation and give yourself an extra cushion just in case.


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## Charlie Schwartz (Aug 17, 2016)

There is hope...







It might've just been a "thanksgiving effect". Some of it almost certainly was. But I think I may have gotten, just a little bit, the hang of things.

(Edit: Just realized this was a report on my second week (no thanksgiving), not my third. Makes no sense - no way it was that high. If it was, my ratings should be well above 4.5 by now)


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## Do tell (Nov 11, 2016)

Charlie Schwartz said:


> There is hope...
> View attachment 77834
> 
> It might've just been a "thanksgiving effect". Some of it almost certainly was. But I think I may have gotten, just a little bit, the hang of things.
> ...


It's good to hear things are getting better.Once you have over a hundred rides with a 4.8 rating or higher it'll be easier not to go low again.Uber uses your last 500 trips to average your rating.The more trips you do,the harder it is to go higher or lower.


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## Agent99 (Nov 4, 2015)

Charlie Schwartz said:


> There is hope...
> View attachment 77834
> 
> It might've just been a "thanksgiving effect". Some of it almost certainly was. But I think I may have gotten, just a little bit, the hang of things.
> ...


So what's your cumulative rating now?


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## Agent99 (Nov 4, 2015)

Charlie Schwartz said:


> There is hope...
> View attachment 77834
> 
> It might've just been a "thanksgiving effect". Some of it almost certainly was. But I think I may have gotten, just a little bit, the hang of things.
> ...


So what is the verdict? What is your rating now, and have you gotten any threatening deactivation emails from Uber?


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## Charlie Schwartz (Aug 17, 2016)

Not out of the woods yet. My rating seems to be hovering just below 4.4... which is better than it was 2 weeks ago. Got an email the first Wednesday morning after my second week that my account has been flagged and is at risk. The previous day I had seen my ratings jump from below 4.2 to above 4.3. Not sure what prompted the email.

I've been successful at turning down all riders below 4.4, no matter what. Still take pool but go offline. This, despite that ive never had a negative experience with pool.

And I always opt for safety over speed. If pax request a speedy ride then I have a little more fun, but otherwise i assume caution. And when I dont know the route, i dont drive in the fast lane.

Too much to say. Just gave a few pointers.


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## Agent99 (Nov 4, 2015)

Charlie Schwartz said:


> Not out of the woods yet. My rating seems to be hovering just below 4.4... which is better than it was 2 weeks ago. Got an email the first Wednesday morning after my second week that my account has been flagged and is at risk. The previous day I had seen my ratings jump from below 4.2 to above 4.3. Not sure what prompted the email.
> 
> I've been successful at turning down all riders below 4.4, no matter what. Still take pool but go offline. This, despite that ive never had a negative experience with pool.
> 
> ...


It looks like your rating is gradually edging up, going from a low of around 4.15 to nearly 4.40. To do that, your last 2-3 weeks probably were 4.60-4.70 and that raised up your lifetime average. If I'm correct, your lifetime rating should continue to improve. If Uber's algorithm works the way I think it does, you should be able to work your way out of the danger zone. You are showing steady, weekly improvement.


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## driverguy77 (Oct 14, 2015)

stephan said:


> Don't worry, I was at 4.14 just be cool,be nice with passengers, greet them,ask them how is their going. .ect after start your trip, I was sometimes rude with them lol ,don't talk too much, if they like to talk them talk, if not keep quit lol. If you get disactivated which I doubt, they will make you pay 50$ or 100$ to attend a class kinda like a training then they will reactivate your I know a guy he been disactivated, after a month they send him an email ok go back, uber need drivers since a lot quit and are quiting, so no worries man


What's your rating at now? Never been that low, but close.


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## Charlie Schwartz (Aug 17, 2016)

Latest update:









But still... (this morning)









Its possible that this week wasnt as good as last week? I dont really understand why theyre giving weekly repprts from two weeks ago.


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## driverguy77 (Oct 14, 2015)

I meant your total rating. But, we're in the same boat. My rating sucks. I think I know what it is, and I try my best to fix it, but I do miss turns/get confused sometimes.........or sometimes the road forks, GPS doesn't tell me


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## Charlie Schwartz (Aug 17, 2016)

Hmm... another thing I've found helpful is try to memorize the route in advance, this may sound obvious and if it is I apologize, but rather than just reacting to Maps announcing "keep left, then, keep right to keep left at the fork!" if you know which exit youre getting off at you can actually follow the signs. Personally, I usually start moving as soon as pax gets in, then use every red light to try and get a feel for the route.


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## driverguy77 (Oct 14, 2015)

Charlie Schwartz said:


> Hmm... another thing I've found helpful is try to memorize the route in advance, this may sound obvious and if it is I apologize, but rather than just reacting to Maps announcing "keep left, then, keep right to keep left at the fork!" if you know which exit youre getting off at you can actually follow the signs. Personally, I usually start moving as soon as pax gets in, then use every red light to try and get a feel for the route.


But, you never know the route you must take before you pick up the Pax.


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## Charlie Schwartz (Aug 17, 2016)

First time since original post!


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## Terrychris (Dec 4, 2016)

Why dont you switch over to Taxi Driving for a few weeks to get road experience and knowledge then go back to Uber ?

Do you have a Taxi licence too ?


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## Sueron (Sep 16, 2016)

7X7 Uber course is $19.00. Took me 12 minutes to watch all videos and pass the Micky mouse test.

https://virtual.7x7experience.com/Classes/Signup


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## Agent99 (Nov 4, 2015)

Charlie Schwartz said:


> First time since original post!
> 
> View attachment 80202


You show a 4.43 rating overall and this should eventually level out at around 4.65, if the last two weeks are any indication.


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## Gibman73 (May 20, 2016)

It is true to be extra mindful early on with doing pool trips. Wrong turns happen , they happen to all of us, but when you take a wrong turn with 3 separate pool riders in your car...well. UBER has also made rating much less in the riders face on the rider app so I'm pretty sure the number of rated trips, and the number of 5* rated trips is dropping across all drivers. The problem is that the number of complaints is staying consistent.


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## michael7227 (Oct 29, 2016)

Your rating says to me that you are not adding a little extra to the ride. Like conversation, directions around the city etc. It's tough enough to navigate and give useful NYC info and I was born/raised here. However it sounds like you maybe aren't from here. That's a tough one to crack because only experience will help you.

Funny thing but driving in the day with traffic gives you time to figure out which way you are pointing/going and easier to see/get your orientation.

I pull away slowly to give the gps time to acclimate.

Keep any apps other than UBER and Google maps CLOSED. No phone calls or texting.

Read your passenger quickly and have three go to radio stations. Flip these on (low) when convo is missing/stale, turn it down if pax gets on the phone. 95.5 is the easiest station to flip to and get pax (especially women) comfortable. Convo is king and will earn you 5* and tips.

Oh, and keep your car clean as possible. I keep spray in the trunk which I concocted off of dollar store "febreeze" type solution and 50% water in a spray bottle. Spray it down after every 10 or so rides.

Keep some Ice breakers for when a lady asks her friends for some gum.

Provide charge cables and SELECTIVELY give out AUX cable. (only single females will get my Aux cable going forward, haha)

Good luck!


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## yojimboguy (Mar 2, 2016)

Charlie Schwartz said:


> 65 rides a week, 25 of during peak hours originating in manhattan below 110th street.


You have to complete 65 rides a week??!!

Here, I have to complete 1 ride ... per month.


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## yojimboguy (Mar 2, 2016)

OP, my best advice, you being new to the city and even to driving is, use the nav every time and do EXACTLY what it says.


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