Business Insider Article on The BBB F grade to UBER

Here we go just the beginning of the downward spiral for UBER.  We the former drivers and customers who have been abused by UBER could have foretold the barrage of complaints and for the most part how many people truly feel about UBER.  I said it once and I'll say it a million times no one can argue that the technology is good but UBER is not good for the hard working people who use their services or drive for them.  I believe that the Better Business Bureau also included the lack of response for complaints against UBER with the BBB.  Investors beware!

• Story By: businessinsider.com   Oct. 9, 2014, 5:06 PM

Complaints About Uber Surge Pricing Caused The Better Business Bureau To Give The Company An 'F'

• Maya Kosoff

• Oct. 9, 2014, 5:06 PM

·         On Thursday, Uber received an "F" grade from the Better Business Bureau, the New York Times reports. It's the lowest rating that the independent organization assigns to businesses.

·         Founded in 1912, the Better Business Bureau is the nonprofit responsible for serving as the intermediary between consumers and businesses, handling disputes and alerting the public to scams, among other things. 

·         Most of the complaints on Uber's Better Business Bureau page for the San Francisco Bay Area come from customers upset about the company's surge pricing practice. More than 90 customers, many of whom feel misled about Uber's surge pricing policy, have left comments on the website. Surge pricing occurs when there's a high demand for Uber cars — on holidays like New Year's Eve, during inclement weather, or weekend nights, for example.

·         There's been many stories of Uber customers upset when they receive the receipt for their Uber ride taken during surge pricing, even though the company warns users about this before you can even request a ride. From Uber's website:

·         With surge pricing, Uber rates increase to get more cars on the road and ensure reliability during the busiest times. When enough cars are on the road, prices go back down to normal levels. It’s important to know that you’ll always be notified in big, bold print if surge pricing is in effect. When rates are more than double, the surge confirmation screen also requires you to type in the specific surge multiplier to ensure you understand what rates to expect. 

·         This practice isn't exclusive to Uber; rival Lyft has its own equivalent of surge pricing called Prime Time, and as the New York Times rightly points out, Lyft has also received an “F” from the Better Business Bureau, though with far fewer complaints. And Uber's latest target, the taxi industry, doesn't have a great record either; according to the Bay Citizen, more than 1,700 passenger complaints were made about Bay Area taxis between July 1, 2011 and June 30, 2012.

·         Uber provided Business Insider with this statement: "Uber has revolutionized riders’ ability to provide feedback in cities like San Francisco where consumers filed nearly 2000 unanswered complaints against taxi in one year alone. Uber’s direct channel for two-way feedback is regularly reviewed and acted on to ensure a high-quality experience. The fact is that consumers in 220 cities around the world have made their opinion known by taking millions of rides with Uber."

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/uber-gets-an-f-from-better-business-bureau-2014-10#ixzz3GMhL4i3E

Do I have to tip my driver?

The statement below regarding tipping drivers was taken directly from the UBER website.  Uber does not treat all of it's drivers the same.  Taxi's and Black car drivers (Limo's) can be tipped directly through the UBER application but UBER X drivers are not expected to accept tips nor does the UBER application allow the option to tip drivers.  UBER encourages the passengers not to tip the drivers because "being Uber means there is no need to tip the drivers for any services."  I'm not exactly sure what the culture of tipping is in other countries but Americans in general have been accustomed to TIP for services such as drivers, doormen, waitstaff, bartenders, delivery persons, hotel maids, shoeshiners, guides and other service related personnel. TIP = "To Insure Performance."  

UBER drivers must ask themselves why does the company sell them so cheaply?  Why do they give away perks that are meant to motivate and insure performance? Perks that may help offset the loss of revenue to the drivers due to the deep Greedy UBER hand in the drivers pockets.  As a former UBER driver I could never understand why a passenger would not even wince as they tip cab drivers, doormen, and limousine drivers but would not even think twice as they receive a clean cheap ride from an UBER independent contractor (Driver) who is usually driving to help make ends meet.

Do I have to tip my driver?

Being Uber means there is no need to tip drivers with any of our services.
When using uberTAXI (requesting a ride from a cab via the Uber app, available in select cities), drivers will input the metered fare into the Uber driver application. In most cities—and all cities in the United States—a default 20% of the metered fare will be automatically added and paid to the driver as a gratuity. You can select the default percentage amount of the gratuity by signing into your account at uber.com then clicking the ‘Payment’ link at the top.

“Uber stands for a particularly extreme form of wage dumping, which refuses to allow for any minimum wage,”

For now a court in Germany has lifted the ban on UBER.  The following is an excerpt from an article in The New York Times (September 17, 2014). We hope that the politicians in the U.S.A. take lessons from Europe and elsewhere with respect to UBER.  UBER has deep pockets we all know and perhaps they are share some of this wealth with the rulers to be but I have faith that eventually the public will demand answers and clearly see the abuse.

The New York Times (September 17, 2014).

The German taxi association said Tuesday that it still believed that Uber was acting unlawfully and that it would appeal the decision in the coming month.

“Uber stands for a particularly extreme form of wage dumping, which refuses to allow for any minimum wage,” Dieter Schlenker, Taxi Deutschland’s chairman, said in a statement. “We hope that politicians will steer the taxi clearly into the future and won’t let the U.S.A. firms put any ideas in their heads.”

The comments follow vocal opposition to Uber from taxi associations across Europe, which accused the company of breaking local laws. Earlier this summer, more than 10,000 taxi drivers from London to Milan took to the streets to protest Uber, which has now expanded to more than 100 cities in 45 countries and is valued at more than $15 billion.

German taxi drivers voiced their dismay Tuesday that the court had lifted the nationwide ban despite continuing legal uncertainties over whether Uber could operate in Germany.

“We lose money every day,” said Michael Linke, 60, who has been a taxi driver in Frankfurt for more than 30 years. He and other drivers complain that their Uber competitors can offer cheaper prices because they are not saddled with the same operating costs, like taxi insurance and local licenses.

“The only reason people choose Uber over us is the money part,” Mr. Linke said. “If we could, we would love to be cheaper.”

Taxi associations and local authorities also have open legal cases against Uber in Berlin and Hamburg, though the company has won reprieves in those German cities until courts make a final ruling this year over whether Uber complies with local laws.

In the Frankfurt case, which centered on whether its business was anticompetitive, Uber faced fines in Germany of up to 250,000 euros, or about $330,000, or a jail term of up to six month for a local employee, if it violated the temporary injunction. Uber drivers, who are not employees, did not face direct penalties. Uber’s premium product, Uber Black, which uses luxury sedans with chauffeurs, was not affected by the ruling.

At the time, the company said that it would continue to operate in Germany. In the last two weeks, at least two UberPop drivers in Germany had been barred from using the service to pick up drivers, according to a company spokesman, who would not say whether the company had paid fines in those cases.

“The New York Times”

Mark Scott reported from London and Sarah Plass from Frankfurt.

A version of this article appears in print on September 17, 2014, on page B3 of the New York edition with the headline: German Court Lifts Ban on Uber Ride Service.

Uber ride-sharing company needs licence, City of Ottawa says

We would love to give credit to the author of this story but all we could find was that it was written By: CBCNEWS.CA (Cananda).

An the hits keep on coming!

 

Uber ride-sharing company needs licence, City of Ottawa says

CBC – Mon, 22 Sep, 2014

The ride-sharing service Uber needs to be licensed to run in the City of Ottawa, officials said on Monday after a meeting on how the popular transportation app might work in the capital region.

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LISTEN | City of Ottawa on what Uber needs to run in capital
Uber's business model has been to employ part-time drivers using their own vehicles to shuttle passengers around.
But it has modified that approach depending on the jurisdiction, and in Toronto and Montreal the service uses only licensed drivers and relies on traditional fare meters.
But they face stiff resistance from Ottawa's taxi companies.
"It's going to be a long battle of attrition with Uber and Uber is not going to win here," said taxi cab company Coventry Connections president Hanif Patni.
Susan Jones, who oversees the city's taxi licensing program, said she was glad to hear the company's pitch, but added it will need to be licensed.
Jones said Uber would have to comply with all the rules that apply to other cab companies and govern everything from driver training to vehicle inspections.
Since launching in 2010, San Francisco-based Uber has expanded to over 100 cities around the world, including Toronto, Montreal and Halifax.
Pushback from cab companies and regulators in Vancouver and Calgary forced Uber to abandon expansion plans there, and the service has been banned in New Orleans, Miami and Brussels, among other cities.
Frankfurt state court has also barred Uber from operating in Germany, though the company has vowed to appeal.

The quality of a company’s product in comparison to its great packaging.

No wonder why UBER is always hiring.  Last week a reporter on the radio was commenting on a Veteran’s employment fair and who was hiring. The reporter ended her comment by saying that UBER was present at the fair and hiring.  UBER is always hiring and they will continue to do so for the unforeseeable future because there are huge holes in UBER’s driver pool.  Once the drivers wise up to the sham that UBER has going they usually move on within the first couple of weeks of driving for UBER.  Attrition at UBER should not be a secret!  “New drivers beware.”

This weekend UBER was quite desperate in trying to entice drivers to hit the road and meet UBER’s passenger request.  Multiple text where sent out by UBER to the drivers this weekend telling them that the partners (drivers) saw huge demand (Surge X 4.5).  With UBER there is no consistency, not for the drivers or the passenger (only UBER Wins).  Passengers continue to get gauged (surge pricing X ?) as drivers choose to do anything but drive for UBER.  Regulations need to be put in place to prevent UBER from poaching the transportation systems of the world.  Drivers need to wise up and take a stance against “The Big Bad Wolf” and say no to UBER’s abuse.  As long as the drivers continue to sell themselves cheaply the company will continue its abusive practice.

The only hope that UBER has in order to continue its present policies is that new drivers by the tens of thousands come on board on a monthly bases to fill the void of yesterday’s drivers that can’t continue to afford UBER’s greed and pay the 25 to 30% right to drive for UBER.  Many drivers are not happy with the partner split with UBER but even more will be unhappy come tax day next year as they realize that they owe the IRS a minimum of an additional 28%.

(This is what it really looks like):  $100 – 25% (UBER: $25) =  $75 – 28% (IRS:$21) = (Driver makes:) $54.00 on average for every $100 in fares and many will make less.

Earlier today we replied to a tweet regarding the quality of a company’s product in comparison to its great packaging.  UBER is one of these companies that sells a good package but the product from a drivers stand point does not live up to their expectations.  The concept is outstanding, but as with many well intended concepts once the reality of the profit potential supersedes the benefits of the product the market from both (internal) the drivers and (external) the consumer begin to look at the cost of the opportunity.  UBER’s arrogance and greed is leaving them blind to the fact that people are the most important resource any company has.  If they don’t change their ways soon competition is entering the market and their policies may be more favorable to the resources UBER takes for granted.  I love competition it levels the playing field and provides choices for both the internal and external clients of the company.