A reader shared a frustrating and expensive experience at Chicago O’Hare that highlights what may be the latest Uber scam, and why one simple setting can save you a lot of money and aggravation.
The Latest Uber Scam And How A PIN Can Stop It
The incident happened during a late-night pickup at Chicago O’Hare. The reader requested an Uber, waited at the designated pickup area, and received a notification that the driver had arrived. But the driver never showed up. While the reader was still looking for the car, the trip suddenly started.
Confused, the reader messaged the driver, who responded about ten minutes later claiming he had picked up the wrong passenger. He said he would come back. Instead, the driver ended the trip, the reader was charged $23, and the driver disappeared. Uber’s system showed the ride ending on the side of a highway, even though the reader never entered the vehicle. After five hours, Uber support still had not responded.
This is not a simple mistake. It appears to be a deliberate tactic (and looking online, not so uncommon…). By starting the trip without the correct passenger and then ending it elsewhere, the driver triggers a fare while avoiding providing any actual service. The burden then shifts to the rider to dispute the charge and wait for support to intervene.
The vulnerability here is that Uber allows a driver to start a trip once they believe the passenger is onboard. In crowded pickup zones like major airports, it is easy for a driver to claim confusion, pick up the wrong person, or simply start the trip without anyone in the car.
Once the trip has officially begun, the clock is running. If the driver ends it shortly afterward, the rider may still be charged a base fare or minimum trip amount. At that point, resolution depends entirely on Uber support, which is often slow, automated, or unresponsive, especially during overnight hours.
The Simple Fix: Turn On Ride PIN Verification
There is a straightforward way to protect yourself. Uber allows riders to require a four-digit PIN before a driver can start the trip. When this feature is enabled, the driver must enter the PIN shown in your app before the ride can begin. No PIN, no trip.
This setting is especially useful in busy pickup areas like airports, concerts, or nightlife districts where drivers can plausibly claim confusion. It removes ambiguity and prevents a driver from starting a ride unless you are physically present.
To enable it, open the Uber app, go to Settings, select Safety, and turn on Ride PIN. You can choose to require it for all rides or only for nighttime trips.
CONCLUSION
This O’Hare incident is a good reminder that not every Uber issue is an innocent mistake. Whether driven by carelessness or intent, riders are increasingly exposed to charges for trips that never happened. Requiring a PIN is a small inconvenience that can prevent a much bigger headache.
If you frequently use Uber at airports or late at night, turning on PIN verification is one of the easiest ways to make sure your ride does not start without you, and that you are not left disputing charges while standing curbside with no driver in sight.
images: Uber
Very helpful. Thanks Matthew!
Great tip. The most concerning thing is how Uber has absolutely no customer service left whatsoever. They simply will not respond to any tickets or submissions. And there is not even a number to call. Perhaps exactly why so many drivers do this now as they know they can get away with it.
+1, this is a very helpful article. I love it when you share useful tips.
“Learning never exhausts the mind.” – Leonardo da Vinci –
Unfortunately sophisticated drivers know they can use the last 4 digits of your phone number associated with your uber account. Within the US it is not a problem , however in Mexico for example, the uber driver can see your number, and can start the ride without it.
Don’t have that on my App, must be for USA customers with a US credit card only….. ?? I’m on an Australian card
Maybe? That’s odd.
I’m in AU and added it after reading this tip. Go to Settings/Safety/verify your ride.
What a baseless poorly written article. The wrong passenger gets into an uber sometimes.
Driver : Doug ?
Passenger : yes hello
Driver gets message from actual passenger saying I don’t see you.
Driver : This isn’t your uber. Your name is Doug right ?
Wrong passemger : no I’m not Doug
Driver : you told me you were. Get out of my car I’m not your uber.
Your friend will get their $23 refunded. Poor journalism Matthew the logic just wasn’t there on this one.
You not knowing that a scam exists doesn’t make reporting about it poor journalism. Sometimes drivers actually drive right past and mark a rider picked up without stopping at all, and without anyone getting in the car. It’s a known problem (so it sounds like the only missing logic here is your own).
That one is at least preventable by using the PIN as mentioned – Uber also isn’t helpful with dropoff behavior that is probably a different scam or at best incorrect billing. When my driver forgot or “forgot” to mark me as dropped off, they rejected several requests to not be charged for the extra hour or so he kept driving around until he stopped at a liquor store in a far-off corner of a completely different quadrant of DC. They would have had location data to show that my phone and I stopped moving after reaching the restaurant where I was correctly dropped off, but they kept dismissing my attempts to not be charged for services neither requested nor received, claiming I had already received too many refunds (where the only time they had ever previously reversed charges was from a non-pickup when my location data would have clearly shown I wasn’t in the car). Eventually I got them to back down, but they were incredibly nasty about it and dragged it out for so long that I am guessing they get to keep money from a decent percentage of passengers giving up.
What a baseless poorly written comment.
I am the one this occurred with. It is now 27 hours later and no response from Uber. In this day and age to not have a number or any instant support is outrageous. I have submitted three tickets. Not one has recieved a reply.
As to your scenario. Sure, that’s fine. Accidents do happen. However, that is not what happened. In actuality I showed this to a really pro Uber black driver today who drove me back to ORD and he pointed something out, “He actually went to the upper level Premier check in. It states that’s where he did the pick up according to the app. There is no pickup there. it’s only allowed on the LL Door 1D and all you can select. In fact, it’s illegal to pick up at departures and he was experienced and knew that. He just went there to show he was ‘there” but really was not. He then started the ride and left with no passenger.” He also mentioned this is becoming a common scam with drivers.
Finally, it was a big deal for me. It cost me an additional 35 minutes to get another car as traffic was insane and cars were short. My time is important. Especially when this was needless, callous, and clearly a scam. Further, it was a great learning experience in discovering the use of the four digit code and I am glad Matthew shared it. As you can see from the comments everyone but you is also glad to know this tip to avoid these things in the future.
Lyft also has the same feature. Conversely, the driver can also request a pin to make sure they game the correct passenger.
I’ve used the four-digit code for a while now and have never had any issues like this with Uber. It should come standard, not just an opt-in.
Hi Uber driver here, if you have the pin turned on we are able to bypass it with an option “rider can’t find pin”. Best thing is to always check the license plate and make sure driver looks like their photo. Also if we try starting a ride not at the picku0 location it won’t start and will tell us to continue to pickup location. Idk where you got this info but it’s all wrong.
The 4 digit code is good. It really takes a clueless person to get into the wrong uber these days. That passenger stole your Uber and your beef should be with them. Your next uber driver that agreed with you just wanted a tip. Just chargeback your credit card. Uber takes 60% of the fare from drivers now as they are a large corporation today. Imagine their customer service. Keep us posted when you hear back. It will be a cut and paste response with a $10 credit deposited into your account