An Uber driver in Florida was caught trying to scam a rider, then feigned innocence when confronted over it. It’s another example of the strange incentives at play for Uber drivers not to do their job.
Rider Catches Uber Driver In Scam, Confronts Him
I’ve writen before about he “driver doesn’t move” scam. You order a ride and the driver confirms. But the driver doesn’t move. You have a pick-up time of, say, six minutes, but six minutes go by and the driver still has not moved an inch. They don’t respond to messages or calls either. Sometimes the driver starts moving, but in the wong direction.
At this point, it is too late to cancel the ride. If you do cancel the ride at this point, you’re hit with a $5.00 cancellation fee (that goes, at least in part, to the driver).
And that is the point. With this scam, you can make money without ever moving. No gas. No wear and tear on the car. No having to drive even.
> Read More: The Uber “Driver Doesn’t Move” Scam Is Pathetic
As stupid as this seems for a few bucks, it appears that Uber algorithm has not caught onto this pernicious practice and it is still being used to defraud riders. View From The Wing flags a story in Florida in which a man became so annoyed over this trick that he drove to the driver’s location and confronted him (as displayed in the app)…he was just sitting in his car, chilling on Facebook with his headphones on.
The startled driver feigned innocence, adding that he would cancel the ride. He should be terminated from the platform…
The State Of Uber + Lyft In 2025
I thought about ditching Uber and Lyft after facing similar issues myself last year, but use the ridesharing app for my frequent trips to both Pennsylvania and Illinois as the best alternative to driving. Frankly, I’ve found both Lyft and Uber to work well (even though I get sick these days when trying to open my laptop during the ride). One thing that amazes me is how vastly the two apps can vary in price on the same route at the same time, especially when leaving airports.
Last time, Lyft was half the price of Uber. Sometimes Uber is cheaper. I realize surge pricing is somewhat a product of supply and demand (sometimes artificially induced), but it pays to check both apps.
Thankfully, beyond drivers who are a bit too talkative, it has been a smooth year of travel via ridesharing both in the USA and abroad.
CONCLUSION
A persistent Uber scam, nicely highlighted by the embedded video above, persists in 2025. I wish Uber would do more to crack down on drivers like these. In the meantime, kudos to this rider for holding his slimy driver accountable.
> Read More: I Used To Get So Much Done In Ubers. Now I Just Try Not To Puke.
image: Uber
Uber has gotten bad enough that I pick a cab from airports rather than dealing with the wait, finding the airport pickup area, connecting with the driver, and scams. The CEO that is running the show has done a rather impressive job of making things worse for both customers and drivers.
Same, especially in Vegas. With the set pricing by zone to the strip it’s much cheaper in many cases and far less hassle. The days of being tunneled or taken the long way are over and the taxi industry seems to be thriving.
The “Wong” way? Was this in SE Asia?
Or heading to pickup Stanford Wong, the famous Blackjack player?
No, just pernicious anti-Asian race baiting ! … Surprised it hasn’t generated a barage of comments yet !
….. LOL…
I had this happen in London, but after I ordered it, I realized I was leaving very early. I just let it play out. The driver waited 25 minutes and then finally gave up and canceled.
At this stage in my life I am done with dealing with these type of people and fortunate enough I can afford paying for something better. It has been a few years now that I only order Uber/Lyft Black. Yes, there might be bad apples on those as well but the rate is much lower. You mostly likely will get a nice and clean car with a more professional driver. Yes, it is way more expensive but as I said at this stage of my life I rather pay for quality and convenience than be cheap and annoyed. Also, in my experience, Uber/Lyft Black drivers do that as their job vs an old grandpa or a teenager that does for fun. If driving is your job, you tend to do it better and more professionally. Also, the most important thing for me and my family is safety. Why would I have me, wife and kids being driven by an unprofessional driver that has no clue about what he/she is doing sometimes speeding cutting corners, etc… The chances that will happen with a more professional driver is way smaller.
In the cities we frequent, I agree with you. We always use Uber Black now and never have a problem. We played the game Matthew reports too often.
This is an interesting observation, Santastico. I generally use the cheap Uber/Lyft service, and in my home city (Austin), and most cities across the South, the drivers are all almost universally recent immigrants. I don’t say this as anything other than an observation. Few speak English, and they all seem to drive full-time. I think this leads to fairly reliable and safe rides, because as you said, when it’s their job, they do it better.
Here is what I have learned from taking several Uber Black rides and talking to drivers. First, Uber Black drivers must be professional drivers and carry all permits to operate a commercial livery vehicle. Second, to qualify as a Uber Black, you have to drive more expensive cars no more than 5 years old and be covered by a commercial auto insurance policy which is way more expensive than a regular insurance any person can get. Last, Uber Black drivers have to have very high rates otherwise they cannot drive. Thus, all those things makes me way more comfortable to be in a Uber Black vs an X. Uber X drivers are the typical people that are bored at home and decide to make some money on the side. They have their personal insurance and drive their personal cars so the standards are way different.
If only this article were true, it might make for a captivating story. But Uber and Lyft fixed this loophole years ago.
Passengers can cancel within the first 2 minutes for free or select “driver not approaching” as the reason. Drivers only receive a cancellation fee if those 2 minutes pass and they’re heading toward the pickup point — and some even move in the opposite direction to avoid triggering it.
And let’s be honest: anyone who does get charged can easily dispute it through the app and usually get an instant credit. The idea that this “scam” is still happening is outdated at best. This article might be from a decade ago.
Why do drivers pull these tricks?
I confronted a driver in this fashion in Mombasa, Kenya once. Like this driver, he was just relaxing in his car. When I got his attention, he offered to take me to my destination for like 3X the charge. Obviously, I said “no” and reported him. I don’t suspect he’s still an Uber driver. Uber was actually fairly reliable in Kenya, so this was odd.
When I travel for work I usually take a “ride share” to ohare since im not paying and I can relax instead of fight traffic. Uber is now a last resort. Curb app for cabs is first choice. Gets me a car that’s at least somewhat maintained and a driver that doesnt make wrong turns. Ive been in too many ubers that have major mechanical problems
You aren’t wrong Billy……this time.
I can’t wait till tobotaxis and waymo replace all these low IQ third worlders. With automation and other improvements I’m slowly getting to the point where I have to interact with his kind of scum less and less.
Unfortunately the Waymo vehicles are easy targets for another kind of “scum” as seen in LA.
I had an Uber driver in Athens Greece who kept driving around trying to find me. I was on a well marked street and described how I was dressed. He drove by me a couple of times and I tried waving him down. Eventually, he found me. When I got to my hotel, he tried to shake me down for cash rather than charging via my Uber account. I had already moved my cash out of my wallet and into a front pants pocket. I was out of the car and the concierge happened to be at the front door. The driver got out of the car and came around to me, again demanding cash. The concierge noted to him, in Greek, the UBER windshield plaque and that he witnessed the shake down. The driver drove off screaming something in Greek. I thanked the concierge (the hotel also happened to be our crew hotel so he knew who I was) and gave him a tip). I went to my room and immediately filed a complaint with UBER. I also included the driver’s name and license tag in a photo I took as he drove off. UBER canned him, at least according to them.