Beware: surge pricing on Uber can rise to absurd levels during peaks of extreme demand. One young man found out the hard way.
Horror Story: 23X Surge Pricing On Uber
Matt Bennett, a teenage plumbing apprentice, was returning from his neighborhood pub in Nottingham, England. He wisely chose to take Uber instead of drive himself. The fare between the pub and his house is normally £4-7.
When he woke up the next morning, though, he found a receipt in his email inbox…for £111. Yes, his ride home surged 23x the normal level, the equivalent of $143.
What could possibly have caused such surge pricing? At the time, a 10:00pm curfew was in place in England. With all bars and restaurants closing at the same time, a sudden surge in demand was to be expected. 23x normal levels? Perhaps unreasonable, but not totally out of the realm of possibility.
Bennett deputed the fare in his app then called up Uber to complain. Uber was unsympathetic, noting the curfew that led to the surge in pricing. Bennett insisted that he was not made aware of the surge pricing or that his fare could possibility have approached anything close to that level.
I tend to think Bennett may have been a bit tipsy and failed to notice the surge pricing or saw it, assumed it would not be that bad, and accepted it. Nevertheless, his misfortunate serves as a great reminder to us to study closely the proposed pricing before accepting a ride.
CONCLUSION
After The Sun reached out to Uber, Uber refunded the kid his full fare. Uber noted:
“We are always happy to review a trip if there are concerns about the route taken, and provide a fare adjustment where appropriate.
“In this case, we apologize that we did not meet our usual high standards of customer care, and the customer has been refunded.”
I do not think that was necessary at all. Surge pricing does indeed mean surge pricing…even if the fare jumps to 23x the normal level. But do check your app before you hit confirm…lest you too wind up with an unexpectedly high bill.
Do you have an Uber surge pricing horror story?
Matthew, I understand your point, and I understand that my opinion will be met with very harsh criticism, I’m fully aware of that. In this case, no laws were broken, and you’re right, he wasn’t entitled to a refund. But I am extremely saddened by this story.
I think that Uber did the right thing to refund this ride (although he wasn’t entitled to it) but they said it perfectly: this doesn’t meet the high levels of customer care that they expect from their platform. Such abuse (and I really do believe that this is abuse) should never be tolerated, and I believe that the fact that laws against this sort of willful blackmail should be put in place. No, being tipsy isn’t an excuse. No, Uber does show you the price before you take a ride. In this case, Uber didn’t violate their agreement. I would have nothing to say to this…if the ride was like $25 or $30 (although I believe that’s obscene).
During this crisis, I’ve come to understand that Uber doesn’t have my back. I am still a diamond member (for 11 more days) but I stopped using the rideshare component of the platform entirely, instead choosing to focus exclusively on Lyft, for reasons that are similar to this. No, they didn’t do anything “wrong,” but that’s such a sad statement that essentially, they give themselves permission to abuse people the way this kid was abused. There are good people at Uber, including the one who reviewed this fare, but there are also real crooks, and it’s just so sad that he was put in this position. Although I won’t go this far myself, I would be sympathetic to an argument in favor of this behavior qualifying as trauma, with this kid being the victim, if he wasn’t refunded. That’s how horrible I think this is.
I know I’m rambling about this, the truth is that I’m at a loss for appropriate words to describe how deplorable and pathetic this story is. Matthew, while you are technically correct, your message was wholly wrong, and I don’t make a statement like this publicly lightly. We need to stand up against this abuse and disregard for human dignity. And no, I’m not angry, I’m just very sad.
What about the poor driver who got nothing? Doesn’t that bloke need a few quid in his pocket as well?
@Mitch: You’re right. I can’t argue with that. But what you might not know is that the main reason he gets nothing is because Uber takes all his money for themselves. This isn’t about the driver. This is about Uber. The driver did nothing wrong. Uber was in the wrong here.
Source, or just conjecture? I have uber driver friends who have noted several fares where uber takes a loss (i.e. driver is paid more than customer pays).
You are aware of how unethical uber is and how they routinely rip off drivers yet you continue to use them. Lyft is no different. They engage in the same unscrupulous practices against drivers abd riders. People will overlook anything as ling it’s convenient or cheap but eventually you get burned. Next time use a properly licensed and vetted taxi. Responsible consumerism!
I believe driver got paid full. This demurrage goes from Uber’s pocket.
Yeah, $3,80 for the driver……
F*** UbER their customer service is not just bad, it doesn’t exist. I have emailed called texted and get no replay. F*** UBER.
UBER is stealing from riders. They have taken advantage of me twice over charging and they have made it difficult to contact them by phone and there is no option within their app to make a complaint regarding the excessive, hiked up fare.
If there is a contact number for UBER please post it for all to see.
I took some time to think about my post earlier. Some of you might think my language too tough, I think it not tough enough. Matthew, until today, you have never, ever, written a post that I feel so strongly the opposite of your intended message. This article almost made me wonder if I was reading the right blog.
I’m really not interested in name calling. I’m not interested in getting angry or lashing out. But I regret the post I just made, not because I disagree with it (to the contrary I believe it completely) but because it doesn’t do justice to how heartbreaking this story really is. Please enlighten me as to why you don’t think this is abuse. Please enlighten me as to why you don’t think that this is potentially traumatic. Please enlighten me as to why you don’t think that this blackmail should be illegal. These are very strong questions, but they don’t even do justice to how I feel about this. I’m heartbroken.
Alan, if an algorithm “taking advantage” of a drunk man causes you this much distress, perhaps you should move to a strict Arab country where alcohol is prohibited. I’d hate to see your reaction to men and women regretting poor decisions made under the influence.
Responsibility. Take some.
@JMM: This is not sexual assault, buddy. Sexual assault directly hurts the victim of the assault. Surging an Uber ride by 23X so the customer can get home really is abusive.
Let’s say that he couldn’t afford that. He budgeted $10 to get home, and let’s say that it was surged to $50, then he can afford that. But if it’s surged to $230, he might not be able to. Now, they’re encouraging him to drive home, which is really unsafe. People won’t budget $220 for a $10 experience. Moving to an Arab country would do nothing to solve that problem, the only way that I could solve it is to fight for this sort of pro abuse behavior to stop.
I see the point you’re trying to make about this, but it’s wrong. They aren’t taking advantage of a drunk man, they are putting him in a truly dangerous position. That’s wrong and should be illegal.
@JNM: It is not appropriate to compare physical or sexual assault to the choice to drive or not to drive with $143 of not-budgeted money on the line. One situation hurts the person who was taken advantage of by a dominant, and in this case drunk, party. That type of situation should be punished, because it’s clearly against the law, but morally, is even worse. Being drunk doesn’t qualify as an acceptable excuse to hurt someone.
But taking an Uber ride is a responsible action. He is doing the responsible thing by not taking his car, so Uber is acting like a victim to charge him this kind of money when they’re really not a victim of anything. They’re abusing him, manipulating him into taking his money for the atrocious crime of being responsible.
@JNM: I hope that I didn’t push a personal button with you. Your response suggests that I might have, and if anything was done to you, it wasn’t your fault and I’m really sorry. But I also won’t accept the proposition that what was done to you is the same as what this guy did, because all this guy did was act responsibly and get abused in the process.
Alan, from a full time Uber driver,(diamond), you are absolutely wrong,and so is everyone that says to take a “taxi”. If the “kid” doesnt have enough money to get home, then he shouldnt be out drinking with his buddies first of all, second of all, the difference between an uber and a taxi, is that we will be there for you in less than 5 minutes if we are not already around the corner, a taxi will keep you waiting two hours until they finish taking everyone else, and even then at a possible higher rate. Uber provides convinience, fast, reliable, and he was lucky not to throw up because he would have been charged an additional $250. As another person .entioned, its an algorithm, and you are not the only one out there trying to get home in the cold. No one is more special than anyone else, so you dont get special pricing. We are out there dealing with dumb ass people, drunk tryina pick fights. If he would have gone home in his carthat night he would have killed someone or himself, i think thats worth £111. It is not an abuse, we have to make money, and we are not a damn charity, we use our personal vehicles which take alot of wear and tear with each mile put in it, not counting the gas which we have to pag ourselves too. Dont be so damn selfish, take a taxi next time and see if uber is not a better option.
Yea mr Uber driver you are right you are not a charity. But a 23x fare hike is highway robbery, and you are taking advantage. Just like when you cancel a ride because you don’t like the fare or where it’s going, but the customer gets charged $5 to cancel when you screw around at a gas station or whatever you’re doing. You show up in a pot smoked filled car, or smoke between fares. There are great drivers out there and some really really bad ones. 23x the fare is like charging $25 for a bag of ice after a hurricane, and it should be illegal.
Buddy, relax. Loads of alternatives exisit, as you say. Your level of outrage/sadness/faux concern is disproportionate in the extreme and makes your point seem bonkers (even though it has some merit). But you got the attention you seek, congrats.
What’s the alternative here? Should the gov establish a committee for rideshare pricing and determine what is allowed and what is not on each route? Mandate a max price per ride? A simple formula that everyone can understand, like distance + time? A centralized system to benefit the people/community, not a corporation? If only something like that existed……
Maybe I’ll invent the concept. Might call it a taxi service! What do you think?
I wonder if the poor driver got fleeced because this drunk (typical of a Brit, or maybe he was Irish) can’t read his phone with his beer goggles on.
Still, he probably made a wise move even if the trip was only a few kilometers. Drunk walking is more dangerous than drunk driving, on a per-mile basis.
https://www.alcohol.org/guides/walking-drunk/
The Uber app notifies you of the pricing options before you book a ride. If it was 111 pounds, then he was informed of that prior to booking. If he was too drunk to even read, well too bad. Uber SHOULD NOT have refunded him. He’s a adult and being irresponsible or stupid comes with consequences.
Is that fare outrageous? Absolutely. But he did not have to book it. Could have explored other options. No, TFB for him. Pay up and learn your lesson not to behave like a dumbass – and then whine about it like a little girl.
And the BEST OF ALL?
DRIVER made $3,80
…….
OK, Uber gave him his money back. Now ban him so some other poor driver out late at night, trying to make a few pounds, does not end up, working for nothing. Would the drunk expect the same thing on New Year’s Eve?
I’m the most popular Uber driver in my town tulsa oklahoma, I say that cause I literally am, my car is the most lit up with multicolored lights video game system, music, candy, everyone sees me, and asks for me,and surge pricing has never gone that far up maybe a 5x but surge pricing is necessary, for the hassle an Uber driver has to go through during the bar rush taking ppl home I’ve been through some crazy stuff life threatening stuff, legal issues with riders, and that’s just in my car…..dealing with pedestrians outside my car that get in the way crossing the street illegally when they think they have the right of way when they don’t, and they’re drunk…..ppl in onnl those darn scooters going all sorts of illegal ways through traffic up one way streets, drunk drivers passing by it can get hectic, especially on 2nd and elgin in downtown where all the bars are…..it’s like a borde of zombies walking around and riding scooters and cars wiping corners in the wrong direction on one way streets, so surge is necessary when I could be at home at 1 am to 4 am asleep or playing video games and I have a second job, yes Uber doesn’t care about drivers or riders, but lyft doesn’t surge anywhere near as much as Uber…..yes lyft is prob better in certain ways for not surging etc….lyft is the more laid back app, but that also means the drivers make less and some of the riders are cheap, cheaper service cheaper riders “sometimes” what I mean is since they know most of the time lyft is cheaper I’ve noticed more ppl tend to not tip especially the ones that live in lower income areas, u have to drive a heck of a lot more on Lyft even on xl to make money cause the incentives are way less, I love the surges I remember driving this group of ppl from downtown to up in the woods of claremore over 30 mins away the music was blaring the lights were flashing the surge was I don’t remember but I got 125 dollars after the ride was over I got around 90 something off the app and 25 from them in cash tip, I make the money they spend worth while in my car with the entertainment, I believe the rider got to keep his money and uber took a loss, cause they can’t go back and say hey a dude complained and it went to the news now we gotta take your money back, that could be a legal issue cause the driver coulda took that money to pay a bill then Uber puts his account in the negative on the Uber app then he’d have to work just to give Uber there money back.. I’ve seen it happen one time a lady lied on an Uber eats order saying she never got her food…. Uber took money out of my driver account and I went into the negative before I was able to cash out to my bank account, I took over the investigation cause they wouldn’t do it I went to the hotel and got witnesses to talk to Uber on the phone saying they saw me giving the food….Uber kept saying we’re investigating it
…lol how are the able to investigate a 7 dollar order at a hotel when they live across the country in there office or the phillipines, and don’t even have the number to call
So the reason for surge pricing is to make sure that there are cars available when you want one. So if you are willing to pay thru the nose for a ride, you will get one. If you don’t like the pricing then you can wait it out. Before DiDi had surge pricing in China, I have waited almost 2 hours waiting for a car due to rain and high demand.
Uber used to be a great company and fair. But lately it just sucks. I was recently in Santa Barbara and less than a 1.25 mile ride was $68. Normally it is a $12 ride. Just seems crazy that 15 minutes later it would go down to normal levels.
Also, a few weeks ago I scheduled an airport pick up at 5 AM with Uber. I scheduled it 3 days ahead of time. I mistakenly assumed that if you scheduled it days ahead of time they would arrange someone and you wouldn’t get surge pricing. How WRONG I was. I wake up to see the fair surge from the normal $50 to $187! And still no drivers in sight with only 15 minutes to pick up. I had to end up driving to the airport myself because of this. You can NOT trust Uber these days.
You are aware of how unethical uber is and how they routinely rip off drivers yet you continue to use them. Lyft is no different. They engage in the same unscrupulous practices against drivers abd riders. People will overlook anything as ling it’s convenient or cheap but eventually you get burned. Next time use a properly licensed and vetted taxi. Responsible consumerism!
I’ll be voting for Prop 22 tomorrow in CA!
@Matthew, you do realize that Uber and Lyft spent millions on “Yes on 22,” right? They’re not doing it out of the goodness of their hearts or to protect drivers…
As for the surge pricing, there should be some kind of limit to prevent price-gouging. Aren’t there laws that protect consumers? IIRC, sellers were crucified (rightfully) for selling toilet paper, sanitizer, disinfectants, etc. at insanely high prices earlier this year. Something similar should exist for taxis and rideshares.
I do. But I don’t want my fares to double.
You must be a uber suck [redacted by admin] gee would you like to pay $65 a mile duh of course not
Trust me the driver does not get it as uber is supposed to take 20 to 30% but it ends up they take up majority and peanuts for the driver thats why the driver is not aware of how much is charged by uber in the past yes drivers knew and since this new guy took the company over we are seeing the results drivers cant log in unless they accept their terms and conditions Uber is making left right and center drivers who worked fre hours made good money now with this new owner drivers are working double the hours doing double the fares and still not making what they used to make its sad to see the drivers suffer ….
It shoul’nt be called Uber the name is Mafia taxi. They do the samething thing which ever country they operate.
Even with a surge pricing, we cannot get a car during inclement weathere here in NYC. So I don’t understand why this is newsworthy. It’s just another young lad drunk dialing for a car service.
I do not think the refund was warranted at all.