r/uberdrivers Jun 17 '24

Welcome to r/uberdrivers - FAQ and Community Guide

69 Upvotes

Before asking a question, make sure to read this guide and use reddit search to see if your question was already asked. If you have anything you'd recommend to add to this guide leave a comment below.

What does Pax mean? Common terms on this sub explained

Pax: Short for Passenger.

Ping: The noise the app makes when drivers receive a pickup request.

Fare: The fee a rider is charged.

Fair: Fare, spelled wrong.

Surge: Uber occasionally up-charges riders during times of increased demand. The Surge is a multiplier of the base fare rate.

SRF: "Safe Rider Fee", now known as the "Booking Fee". This is the $1-3 fee that Uber adds to every fare to ccover insurance, app fees, etc.

What are the requirements to be an uber driver?

An in-state license is required. Have at least one year of licensed driving experience in the US (3 years if you are under 25 years old) Use an eligible 4-door vehicle

All vehicles being used for rides on the Uber app must meet the following minimum requirements:

  • Must have 4 doors and be able to transport a minimum of 4 passengers
  • Vehicle model must be 16years old or newer
  • Title cannot be salvaged, reconstructed, or rebuilt
  • Rental vehicles, except those from an approved Uber rental car partner are not permitted
  • Cannot have any cosmetic damage, missing pieces, or commercial branding

Should you choose to drive a vehicle you do not personally own, you must have permission from then vehicle owner and be listed as an insured driver on the vehicle’s insurance policy. Please note that Uber cannot allow a vehicle onto the platform if the driver’s name is not on the insurance document.

If your vehicle does not match the requirements above, you may still be able to use your vehicle for deliveries on the Uber app.

Is this fulltime job?

Driving with Uber offers a flexible earning opportunity. It's a great alternative to full-time driver jobs, part-time driver jobs, or other part-time gigs, temp jobs, or seasonal employment.

How do I do my first ride?

Download and install the driver app, and hit "Go Online". Once you get a request (a "ping"), you can hit 'Navigate' to be taken to the rider's pickup location. When you're sure you have arrived, flip back over to the Uber app and hit 'Arrived'. The passenger (PAX) will be notified of your arrival, though it's also nice to text them - to let them know what type of car you're in (though they see this on their app, not everyone looks) and to confirm that they're actually where their pin was placed. When they get in the car, hit 'Begin Trip'. If they haven't entered their destination, you can enter it - then hit 'Navigate' again and you will be routed there. At the end of the trip, hit 'End Trip', rate your passenger, and you'll be placed back online ready to pick up another PAX!

What are the safety features for uber drivers?

Emergency assistance button

You can use the in-app Emergency Button to call authorities to get help if you need it. The app displays your location and trip details, so you can quickly share them with emergency services.

24/7 incident support

Uber customer associates trained in incident response are available around the clock.

Follow My Ride

Friends and family can follow your route and will know as soon as you arrive.

2-way ratings

Your feedback matters. Low-rated trips are logged, and users may be removed to protect the Uber community.

Phone anonymization

If you need to contact your rider through the app, your phone number may stay private.

GPS tracking

All Uber trips are tracked from start to finish, so there’s a record of your trip if something happens.

RideCheck

Using sensors and GPS data, RideCheck can help detect if a trip goes unusually off-course or a possible crash has occurred. If the app alerts us to such events, we’ll check in on you and offer resources to get help.

Contact Safety Agent

You can connect with an ADT Safety Agent via phone call or text on every trip. Just tap the safety shield icon and select Contact safety agent.

Audio Recording

If you feel uncomfortable, you can record the audio of the trip within the app. Just tap the blue shield to open your Safety Toolkit and access the Record Audio option.

Emergency help if you need it

If you ever need urgent help when riding with the Uber app, you can contact 911 using the in-app Emergency Button in the Safety Toolkit.

The app will show your live location, vehicle information, and license plate number, which you can quickly share with the emergency dispatcher so they can send help faster. And in a growing number of US cities, this information is automatically provided to the dispatcher.

Does Uber help in event of an accident?

When you earn with a transportation network company (TNC), referred to here as ridesharing, many states require extra—and costly—insurance.

Uber maintains this insurance on your behalf. What’s covered depends on factors such as who was at fault; whether you were offline, online, en route, or on-trip; and your personal insurance policy.

Offline coverage:

Your personal auto insurance covers you while you’re offline. You must maintain personal automobile insurance at mandatory minimum limits and provide proof of your insurance to drive and deliver with a vehicle with Uber.

Coverage to repair your car when you’re en route to or on a trip is contingent on your personal insurance including comprehensive and collision coverage.

Coverage when online and available for a trip

Accidents happen. Suppose you’re at fault and another person gets hurt or their vehicle gets damaged. In that case, our third-party liability insurance covers the cost of injuries or damage in at least the following amounts:

-$50,000 per person and $100,000 per accident for injuries

-$25,000 in property damage per accident

Depending on the law of your state, Uber may maintain extra coverage for you and your riders, including one or more of the following:

Coverage for you and your riders for injuries in a hit-and-run or an accident caused by an uninsured or underinsured driver

Personal injury protection, including medical expenses and lost wages for you and your riders, no matter who’s at fault

Medical payments coverage for you and your riders, no matter who’s at fault.

Coverage when en route or on a trip

Uber maintains some of the most comprehensive insurance for ridesharing and deliveries, including:

-Insurance that covers at least $1,000,000 for property damage and injuries to riders and third parties involved in an accident where you’re at fault

Insurance that covers the cost to repair your car, up to the actual cash value, with a $2,500 deductible, contingent on your personal insurance including comprehensive and collision coverage. This extra insurance maintained by Uber protects your car, no matter who’s at fault, if you maintain comprehensive and collision coverage on your own vehicle.

In most US states, you can also purchase Optional Injury Protection to cover your additional medical expenses if you’re hurt in an accident. This insurance offering, pioneered by Uber, is designed specifically for drivers.

Depending on the law of your state, Uber may maintain extra coverage for you and your riders, including one or more of the following:

-Coverage for you and your riders for injuries in a hit-and-run or an accident caused by an uninsured or underinsured driver

Personal injury protection, including medical expenses and lost wages for you and your riders, no matter who’s at fault

Medical payments coverage for you and your riders, no matter who’s at fault

Is being an uber driver worth it?

Recent reports from Uber state that "the vast majority of drivers are satisfied" and that "as of last quarter, drivers in the US were making about $33 per utilized hour" before expenses.

Its for you to decide if its worth it for you personally, volume and earnings will vary greatly between markets. Drivers as independant contractors are also responsible for all expenses which have been rising fast when drivers pay has stayed stagnant.

There are many direct and hidden costs associated with being an uber driver. To start with, You are responsible for tracking your own miles, profits and losses, as well as expenses such as gas, repairs, washes, and so on.

In addition, no one but you is responsible for ensuring you are earning enough. You need to be aware at what rate you are making enough for it to be worth it.


r/uberdrivers 4h ago

Thanks, Uber. I finally got my first house…

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194 Upvotes

with a 100-year mortgage.


r/uberdrivers 1h ago

I offered $900 , would you do it for $900 at late night?

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Upvotes

I asked this rider as $900 (280 miles)

he told me that uber is charging $420. I said have luck.

ps. My offer was pretty decent. And uber matched us 5 times straight


r/uberdrivers 4h ago

Don't be fooled by Uber's Fare Breakdown

19 Upvotes

Just so we're all clear -- Uber thinks we're idiots and don't realize they are comparing apples (gross earnings) with oranges (net income after subtracting operational expenses).

Uber's Fare Breakdown

Here's what it should look like if we just compare apples to apples:

Actual Fare Breakdown Excluding Expenses

And here's what it should look like if we just compare oranges to oranges:

Actual Fare Breakdown Including Operational Expenses

(the numbers are mostly made up but used to illustrate the point)


r/uberdrivers 1h ago

Cancelled trip as customer was delayed, same trip offered to me at even lesser rate.

Upvotes

I accepted a trip around 30 min $18 . However the rider did not come for 4 minutes and came and placed a bag and went inside to fetch more. He took 3 more minutes, by thos time it was nearly pastb8 minutes me waiting.

I took off her bag from car, cancelled the ride and drive off.

As I was about to leave, samr ride popped up with even lesser money $15.50 . I declined it .


r/uberdrivers 4h ago

First time seeing this, is it new?

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11 Upvotes

Just wondering if this is new or just a rare occurrence because I have never seen it before. You pick up food for the rider, then pick up the passenger and take them.


r/uberdrivers 13h ago

Uber's so lowdown man.. I understand making money but you dont have to be a greedy nasty jerk while at it.

50 Upvotes

Yesterday Uber started randomly adding rides to me. A lot of them. I am not signed up for auto accept. So there was this ride that had been populating for some time. I kept rejecting it. It had a destination drop-off that was 37 miles out. The pay was around $20.00. No way im accepting that.

I kept declining the ride. I ended up accepting another ride. When I dropped off the rider I saw Uber had auto added a ride. I went to get the rider and the rider rushed to my car. He had been in the hot sun waiting for some time. As soon as I hit accept it showed his drop off was 37 miles out.

It was the same ride him had been declining all morning.

I had to cancel him and refuse to board him. I apologized to him.

And there was another ride. Destination 18 miles out. Paying $8.76.

Uber auto added that one too. I had to decline that one as well when the customer was rushing into the car.

And by the way Dallas temperatures were 107 degrees yesterday and these folk were hot. Tired.

Its so wrong to auto add rides that have such long distances and poor pay.


r/uberdrivers 9h ago

Uber, Lyft win court block on NYC law requiring notice before firing drivers

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15 Upvotes

r/uberdrivers 7h ago

I know she didn't do that......

11 Upvotes

So I drive part time to supplement my income and I often get airport trips right after work due to the proximity to the airport . So a few days ago I got a fare to the airport for a family and arrived at their home to pick them up. The mother was outside waiting when I arrived and preceded to get in the rear passenger seat. I was watching for the rest of the riders and out of my peripheral I saw the mom doing a quick line of a powdered substance off her wrist (IN MY VEHICLE!!!) before her family got in the car.. I was speechless and didn't want to cause a scene in front of her kids. She acted like nothing happened and she immediately perked up when the kids arrived. Literally speechless.... Please tell me I'm not the only one who has experienced this...


r/uberdrivers 14h ago

What are some small things that bother you that passengers do that they may not realize?

31 Upvotes

Hello drivers, just wondering, as the title says. I recently learned from this subreddit that it bothers some drivers if you talk on the phone, so I've stopped doing that. What else do you wish passengers knew was annoying?


r/uberdrivers 6h ago

Offers can't get any worse - 1% AR

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8 Upvotes

It is genuinely getting worse and worse with every week passing by, now literally I couldn't accept a single offer over 2 days of driving due to how horribly unfair and bad those pays are....

Ironically they even dare to speak publicly about their "fair" fare breakdowns... bruh, those empty talks don't even explain why they want us to work for $18/hr before taxes lol


r/uberdrivers 2h ago

Here’s two delivery offers Uber sent me today. I think it’s pretty obvious which one I accepted. 😅

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3 Upvotes

r/uberdrivers 6h ago

Fare Chart Breakdown

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5 Upvotes

So question - I don't drive for Uber a lot, sometimes PT in my free time. I drove 24hrs last week to try out some of the feature changes.

I got this message in my inbox today about 'fare breakdown transparency' - how do I get a "your earnings" portion around 65-70% like their graphic shows? 😅


r/uberdrivers 5h ago

I just don’t know how they even get away with this

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4 Upvotes

r/uberdrivers 14h ago

This is What Happens when Uber Gets Greedy.

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21 Upvotes

Drivers have to drive longer hours. That equal to means they have less time to take care of their necessities such as, SLEEP, Food, exercise. Uber needs to understand that, instead cheapskating of paying drivers. Its going to cost them money in the long run, when a passenger get hurt and file a lawsuit against them. PAY THE DRIVERS BETTER UBER!!!


r/uberdrivers 10h ago

How to block an uber driver from coming again.

7 Upvotes

I’m in egypt and i got into an uber comfort and we had very small convo. When the ride finished he asked for my number i told him i’m underage. He told me that it was fine and he doesn’t mind. I kept refusing and he kept insisting and so i gave him a false number. Can i guarantee that he doesn’t drive me again? i reposted safety issue and gave a 2 star review.


r/uberdrivers 4h ago

New scam - Uber App

3 Upvotes

So I dropped a passenger at SYD T1 and finished the trip. It was 9 am with the entire zone in purple. i.e. the peak surge. The surge amount will be shown after completion only as it’s an airport pickup.
After finishing the ride, checked the trip and it’s missing. Checked few times and gone into history. To not pay is the correct surge, Uber had moved that trip below the last trip showing start time as 8:33, last trip start was 8:35. The surge was reduced to orange and not even red rates.
I’ll try to raise a complaint though I don’t have much hope


r/uberdrivers 5h ago

If you drive in a small / medium town during the summer and there’s more than 4 drivers online, you may as well just go the fuck home.

3 Upvotes

I drive in a small college town and during the summer there are consistently 8-10 drivers including myself online at any given moment. Those days seem to be when it’s the absolute slowest for me, because there’s too many fucking drivers for this area and not enough people requesting rides.


r/uberdrivers 8h ago

Color but no bonus amount at airport now

4 Upvotes

Uber gets worse by the day. Now they show the airport purple, but do not show a surge amount. When you see this, if you are new, what it means is the offers are so low that nobody will accept the trips, so they are trying to get more people there to find the ants that will take the low fares. Unless it shows a real dollar surge, even if the offer says it's a surge, it's a normal offer minus about $3. We have tolls everywhere in my market that we have to pay to get back. If we didn't come back, there would never be enough drivers, so we have to take good fares. Don't be an ant.


r/uberdrivers 12h ago

World Cup Earnings were insane

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9 Upvotes

With World Cup being officially over I just want to say I hope we get another world cup in the US in my lifetime.

Not just for the money but the people, the different cultures, but still we as humans are much closer than we think.

But this is a Uber reddit and as such I will show my uber earnings which were insane.

Normally I average around 26/hr, but this world cup average was about 44/hr.

Location: Atlanta

Vehicle: 2015 Hyundai Sonata


r/uberdrivers 33m ago

Question for shoppers working in Thousand Oaks and Calabasas (Los Angeles)

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Upvotes

r/uberdrivers 12h ago

Adding stops for no additional pay

8 Upvotes

I know this may have been discussed before but I have to ask about what happened.

I am a new driver , yesterday I accepted a ride for a certain amount, soon as I matched I got a notification "Rider modified the trip"

I looked at the destination and the trip timeline briefly and I see no change, I look and I see no additional stops as well, but after I pick them up I see "heading to first stop"

I don't mind because it's a brief stop on the way, but why I got not even 1 cent increase in payment for having to change my course and delay anyway?

Is that even allowed or does Uber hide it until we accept?


r/uberdrivers 43m ago

There always that one rider

Upvotes

Had a great day made 209 plus 40 in cash tips in 5 hours still had one rider she was late stuck like poop and made a stop on the way then asked me to help her with her bags her boyfriend just dumped her now I see why and 0 tip


r/uberdrivers 46m ago

Now i have even more questions..

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Upvotes

so uber lost money last week on my trips? why do i not believe this?


r/uberdrivers 47m ago

Motorcycle rides?

Upvotes

Hi, I drive in Mexico, I drive a KIA Forte. Sometimes I get rides tagged as Motorcycle. Is it that the user requested a motorcycle since it's only 1 passenger and Uber sent or is it something else?