[rant]I've been Ubergouged...

[Sac Arrow]

Seriously.

I'm Ubering to a location downtown 26 miles away. I wouldn't normally Uber there but it's a long story so we will leave it at that. The quoted fare was about $26 dollars, about a dollar a mile. Going rate. Fine. Good. Great. And unlike the previous Uber experience downtown, Sardeep did not try to actively kill me by displaying Nascar driving skills that the last guy frankly did not possess. Great.

Let's back up to about ten minutes before Sardeep showed up. I hadn't Ubered in a while, and consequently the card on file had expired. Sweat. Okay, no big deal. Let's just update the card information. Like you can on... oh, pretty much every other e-commerce site. Oh, you can't edit it. Interesting. Well let's just set it up as a new card. I punch in all the information, click 'save' and...

Error: The card number is already on file.

Oh boy. I wish I would have sorted this out before I needed to go. I'm on a time table here. Let's see, more options. Paypal. What is my password? That isn't going to work. Ultimately, I used my ATM card. That worked. But Uber, just so you know, you shafted me out of 3% back. This is a bad start.

Come time to go back.

It's downtown. Uber drivers are crawling the streets and alleys like ants through a dirty kitchen. Plug in the destination, 26 miles back from where I started, and... WTF... They are all like $71, $73, $72... SAY WHAT??????????

I'm stuck. Well, I'm not truly stuck. I could call a cab instead. Or maybe create an account with Lyft but I don't have time for that. And I really don't have time to wait around for a cab. Cabs do not crawl around town in nearly the same density as ride share drivers. So, what the hell, I guess I'm just eating an additional $45 dollars (which happens to be about my usual afternoon bar tab with tip, including meal) plus the 3% cash back. And it's not Deepak's fault. Or maybe it is. I don't know. So, I research it after I get back home.

"Surge pricing takes effect when a lot of people in the same area are requesting rides at the same time. This means that rides will be more expensive. Adjusting the price attracts more drivers to an area so everyone can get a ride.

In-app messaging noting higher than normal pricing willl help you know when Surge pricing is in effect.

You can wait a few minutes while more drivers get on the road, or you can pay a little extra to get a car right when you need it."

Wow. The whole reason for Ubering in the first place is to make an otherwise unaffordable cab ride affordable. I could scream and yell and rant about it on the Internet (well, okay, I guess I am doing that one) but the truth of the matter is, I can count the number of Uber rides I've taken in last four years since signing up on one hand.

 

[Timbeck2]

Did you give a negative tip?

 

[RudyP]

Wow. The whole reason for Ubering in the first place is to make an otherwise unaffordable cab ride affordable. I could scream and yell and rant about it on the Internet (well, okay, I guess I am doing that one) but the truth of the matter is, I can count the number of Uber rides I've taken in last four years since signing up on one hand.

Interesting. For me, Uber is about convenience, not affordability. I actually really LIKE surge pricing because it means that I can almost always find a ride even during super busy times because they price out the competition. I have very unfond memories of trying to find a cab on freezing evenings in NYC (pre-Uber) when everyone is looking for a cab and it sucks...

Other than that, solid rant!!

 

[steingar]

A Sac post not about junk food. A first. Damn mutant.

 

[denverpilot]

LOL. In the next episode Sac orders a rental car for the entire day delivered and picked up by Enterprise for less than the cost of an Uber ride during peak times. Ha.

 

[RudyP]

LOL. In the next episode Sac orders a rental car for the entire day delivered and picked up by Enterprise for less than the cost of an Uber ride during peak times. Ha.

Not super helpful for getting home from the bar...

 

[Sac Arrow]

LOL. In the next episode Sac orders a rental car for the entire day delivered and picked up by Enterprise for less than the cost of an Uber ride during peak times. Ha.

I've done that!

Not super helpful for getting home from the bar...

Um, about that...

 

[Sac Arrow]

A Sac post not about junk food. A first. Damn mutant.

So, if McDonald's offered a baked portabella mushroom in red wine reduction sauce, would it then be junk food?

 

[Everskyward]

LOL. In the next episode Sac orders a rental car for the entire day delivered and picked up by Enterprise for less than the cost of an Uber ride during peak times. Ha.

Except his saving would be eaten up by parking costs...

 

[steingar]

So, if McDonald's offered a baked portabella mushroom in red wine reduction sauce, would it then be junk food?

It probably would because McDonalds would figure out a way to make a portabella burger unhealthy. As it is Impossible Burgers are junk food. I like them just fine too. Then again, I'm not a damn mutant.

 

[asicer]

Except his saving would be eaten up by parking costs...

Need a self-driving rental car (I wonder if the contract will allow you to conscript one of those to Uber?)

 

[GaryM]

So, if McDonald's offered a baked portabella mushroom in red wine reduction sauce, would it then be junk food?

We can defer that discussion until after McDonald's offers a baked portabella mushroom in red wine reduction sauce (the McFungus?).

 

[flyingcheesehead]

This is simple supply and demand. Demand increases, they increase the price, which lowers demand and increases supply.

 

[Larry in TN]

When I've run into surge pricing, I wait a couple of minutes and try again. I don't think it's ever taken more than 10 minutes to get a non-surge rate.

 

[wsuffa]

LOL. In the next episode Sac orders a rental car for the entire day delivered and picked up by Enterprise for less than the cost of an Uber ride during peak times. Ha.

I have gotten a rental car from the local office to drive myself to the (commercial) airport and another to drive myself home. Our corporate rate was so good that it was significantly cheaper than paying for parking at the airport, and a whole lot cheaper than a cab/Uber/Lyft. 10 day vacation at the $12/day airport economy lot charge was far more expensive than 2 days of corporate rate rental car.

 

[Bill]

How else is Serge to pay for his borscht and vodka?

 

[Van Johnston]

https://www.npr.org/sections/money/...ing-192-for-a-5-mile-car-ride-may-be-rational

“Here's the scenario: A man and his wife are desperate to get to the hospital because she is about to deliver a baby. It's a hot summer day. It's rush hour. They flag down a private car and ask, "How much?" To their surprise the driver wants to charge them four times the normal price of a cab.

So, is this a story about a cabbie taking advantage of a vulnerable couple or is it simply good economics?

Today, we are talking about a company that charges people in desperate situations more for a ride, and we'll consider the argument that it might actually be better for everyone.”

 

[Country Flier]

Interesting Uber observation from the weekend:

So this past weekend, my SO and I flew to Ft Worth/Dallas. We have electric scooters for getting around town, but the trip from airport to hotel was a bit far and with luggage also difficult, so we decided to Uber. My SO brings up the Uber app on her phone, plugs in the hotel address for a destination, and tries to arrange a ride with it showing an initial price for the ride of about $15. After the app churns for 30 seconds with an hourglass showing, she gets a message about surge pricing and it says the ride will be $50, then asking if she will accept...now this is where it gets interesting: I pull out my phone because I also have the Lyft app, but accidentally due to habit hit the Uber app instead. Just for the heck of it, I put in the hotel address, and BAM, it arranges a ride for us for $15 dollars! No surge pricing.
I thought it was a fluke, until 2 days later when she tries to arrange a ride back to the airport. Again the app churns for 30 seconds and tells her the ride will be $50 due to surge pricing, but when I arrange it on my phone, it's $15 again! I guess my phone has "the touch".

 

[Lindberg]

I'm Uber Platinum, hoping for Diamond someday. I've never used it because I thought it was cheaper than a cab. I take it because cabs suck. The last time I was in NYC, my phone died so I couldn't call an Uber, and I walked 30 blocks in the drizzling rain with no umbrella because I refuse to get into a cab.

Surge pricing makes perfect sense. There are more passengers than drivers at the current rate, so increase the rate and more drivers will decide to go out. The alternative is what you see in places like NYC where empty cabs clog up everything when there's a lull. And those drivers still expect to get paid for the time they're driving around empty, so it's built into the fares already.

 

[Bill]

Interesting Uber observation from the weekend:

So this past weekend, my SO and I flew to Ft Worth/Dallas. We have electric scooters for getting around town, but the trip from airport to hotel was a bit far and with luggage also difficult, so we decided to Uber. My SO brings up the Uber app on her phone, plugs in the hotel address for a destination, and tries to arrange a ride with it showing an initial price for the ride of about $15. After the app churns for 30 seconds with an hourglass showing, she gets a message about surge pricing and it says the ride will be $50, then asking if she will accept...now this is where it gets interesting: I pull out my phone because I also have the Lyft app, but accidentally due to habit hit the Uber app instead. Just for the heck of it, I put in the hotel address, and BAM, it arranges a ride for us for $15 dollars! No surge pricing.
I thought it was a fluke, until 2 days later when she tries to arrange a ride back to the airport. Again the app churns for 30 seconds and tells her the ride will be $50 due to surge pricing, but when I arrange it on my phone, it's $15 again! I guess my phone has "the touch".

Makes me wonder if they keep track of who says "yes" to surge pricing, and then push surge pricing upon those people, knowing they'll pay the rate. It would suck if they do the "different prices for different people", but the airlines do it so why not ride apps?

 

[Groundpounder]

Definitely a first world problem.

 

[Country Flier]

Makes me wonder if they keep track of who says "yes" to surge pricing, and then push surge pricing upon those people, knowing they'll pay the rate. It would suck if they do the "different prices for different people", but the airlines do it so why not ride apps?

I wondered that too...I also thought it was weird that it would give you a price, pause, then say surge pricing was in effect with a new price. Like the phone calculates the rate, then when looking for drivers it decides to put in the surge pricing. I forgot to mention that the first time I was immediately selecting the Uber xl, while she was selecting the Uber basic, and we at first thought that was the reason for the different prices, but the second time she immediately selected the Uber xl and still got the surge price.

 

[nauga]

It would suck if they do the "different prices for different people", but the airlines do it so why not ride apps?

People seem to expect it when buying cars or homes, some even think it helps them get a better deal. The consumer doesn't always win in a free market economy.

Nauga,
and what the market will bear

 

[Ghery]

We used Uber a few times one day earlier this month because the car needed fixing and Hertz wanted over $600 for 2 days rental in the Phoenix area. $600? I wanted to rent it for a couple days, not buy it! Uber was convenient, not as cheap as driving ourselves, but it worked. No surge pricing for our rides.

 

[DaleB]

I wouldn't normally Uber there but it's a long story so we will leave it at that.

The real question is, do you report that DUI on your next medical application, or wait for the Feds to figure it out and come after you?

 

[flhrci]

We can defer that discussion until after McDonald's offers a baked portabella mushroom in red wine reduction sauce (the McFungus?).

McShroom?

 

[Salty]

LOL. In the next episode Sac orders a rental car for the entire day delivered and picked up by Enterprise for less than the cost of an Uber ride during peak times. Ha.

Last time I went to the Keys I was only there for a few hours, but I had to go about 40 miles, so I rented at the airport and saved well over $100 compared to Uber. I think it cost me about $35 for the rental with no reservation.

 

[Sac Arrow]

I had a project in Barstow once. The local Enterprise outfit would drop off a car at the airport and leave the keys at the desk. I would fly in, grab the keys, do my meeting, drop the keys back off at the desk and fly home. I'm not sure what the cost was, but I didn't really care because I was expensing it anyway. But Uber wasn't a thing back then. Now I would probably just Uber it. Well, not right now, I'm not quite over being unexpectedly price gouged yet.

 

[Sac Arrow]

The real question is, do you report that DUI on your next medical application, or wait for the Feds to figure it out and come after you?

Not that you're entirely on the wrong track, but the situation was a little more convoluted than that.

 

[DaleB]

Not that you're entirely on the wrong track, but the situation was a little more convoluted than that.

Yeah... it usually is.

 

[Sluggo63]

I'm Uber Platinum, hoping for Diamond someday. I've never used it because I thought it was cheaper than a cab. I take it because cabs suck. The last time I was in NYC, my phone died so I couldn't call an Uber, and I walked 30 blocks in the drizzling rain with no umbrella because I refuse to get into a cab.

Surge pricing makes perfect sense. There are more passengers than drivers at the current rate, so increase the rate and more drivers will decide to go out. The alternative is what you see in places like NYC where empty cabs clog up everything when there's a lull. And those drivers still expect to get paid for the time they're driving around empty, so it's built into the fares already.

I'm the exact opposite. I will avoid Uber/Lyft like the plague if I can get a cab. I am hypocritical, because I will use ride shares if I have to, but for scheduled rides ahead of time I'd rather book with a car company.

 

[DaleB]

I'm the exact opposite. I will avoid Uber/Lyft like the plague if I can get a cab. I am hypocritical, because I will use ride shares if I have to, but for scheduled rides ahead of time I'd rather book with a car company.

I don't use cabs any more. The first time I tried Uber, my cab from the airport to the hotel was typical -- clapped out POS taxi that I suspect wouldn't pass any inspection, whether safety or emissions. Driver managed to keep it more or less under some semblance of control while talking loudly, nonstop, in Hindi on his cell phone the ENTIRE trip, with Bollywood hits blaring loudly on the radio. I wasn't sure he understood the destination I gave him until we got there, since he gave no indication of hearing me either time I old him. Cost me $25. And like I said, this is typical of my taxi experiences. Some are better than others, but none are good.

The trip back to the airport from the hotel was a quiet, calm, enjoyable ride in a clean, stable, late model vehicle using Uber. The driver asked if there was anything I preferred on the radio, but what he had on was fine. And quiet. It cost me about half the cab fare.

I haven't used a taxi since.

 

[Shepherd]

Who are you, and what did you do with the real Sac?

 

[Tarheelpilot]

Not that you're entirely on the wrong track, but the situation was a little more convoluted than that.

What was her name?

 

[luvflyin]

I'm the exact opposite. I will avoid Uber/Lyft like the plague if I can get a cab. I am hypocritical, because I will use ride shares if I have to, but for scheduled rides ahead of time I'd rather book with a car company.

You can 'book' ahead with Uber. I've done it and it worked. Night before for an o'dark thirty flight the next morning.

 

[ColoPilot]

I'm Uber Platinum, hoping for Diamond someday.

What does Uber Platinum or Diamond get you? Upgrades? Cheaper fares?

 

[EdFred]

What does Uber Platinum or Diamond get you? Upgrades? Cheaper fares?

more surge pricing.

 

[Lindberg]

What does Uber Platinum or Diamond get you? Upgrades? Cheaper fares?

Better support; free cancellations; priority rides; high-rated drivers

 

[Sac Arrow]

What was her name?

If I told you, I'd have to...

Worry about getting killed.

 

[Sluggo63]

You can 'book' ahead with Uber. I've done it and it worked. Night before for an o'dark thirty flight the next morning.

No you can’t. You’re not “booking” anything. You can tell Uber you want a ride to the airport at 4am, and when the time comes they’ll start looking for a driver. Then when they can’t find one, at 4:15am you get a pop-up that says “there are no drivers available” and to try again later. Then you’re left scrambling at 4:20am to go wake your wife up and tell her that she has to now drive you to the airport because Uber doesn’t really “book” anything. Ask me how I know. Twice (fool me twice...). Never again.