Costly $1,100 New Year's Uber bill partially refunded
- Thread starter canada-man
- Start date
"They just jack it up whenever they want!"
Um, that's not at all how it works. It's an algorithm: the rate goes up when demand exceeds supply. There isn't some mastermind arbitrarily jacking rates here and there.
No one has the right to be shocked by their bill. Not only does Uber generate a price estimate for the rider, they also make you manually type in the rate so that you acknowledge what you're doing. There is always the option of waiting for prices to decline or taking a god damn taxi like before Uber existed! Morons!
The idiot with the $1,100+ bill is lucky he got half back. Uber takes 20-25% of the total rate, so they actually lost hundreds on that deal.
I also find it funny that the representative of the Vancouver Taxi Association is criticizing Uber's surge pricing, when if anything it drives consumers back to taxis. Personally, I'd prefer the option of taking an overpriced, but generally friendlier/cleaner, ride rather than try repeatedly to get a taxi on a busy night.
Um, that's not at all how it works. It's an algorithm: the rate goes up when demand exceeds supply. There isn't some mastermind arbitrarily jacking rates here and there.
No one has the right to be shocked by their bill. Not only does Uber generate a price estimate for the rider, they also make you manually type in the rate so that you acknowledge what you're doing. There is always the option of waiting for prices to decline or taking a god damn taxi like before Uber existed! Morons!
The idiot with the $1,100+ bill is lucky he got half back. Uber takes 20-25% of the total rate, so they actually lost hundreds on that deal.
I also find it funny that the representative of the Vancouver Taxi Association is criticizing Uber's surge pricing, when if anything it drives consumers back to taxis. Personally, I'd prefer the option of taking an overpriced, but generally friendlier/cleaner, ride rather than try repeatedly to get a taxi on a busy night.
I don't think their algorithm is very good. Once I was in a somewhat remote area and summoned Uber. The driver drive around in circles unable to figure out how to get to my street, and eventually I cancelled the order, then summoned again, hoping to get a driver who could actually find me. On the second request I got notified of surge pricing. This was at a time when the roads were empty and few were on the streets.
I believe what happened was this: me summoning a car twice within ten minutes with only one nearby led Uber to apply surge pricing, thinking supply exceeded demand when in fact I may have been the only customer trying to summon the only car.
I can't prove that, but I also can't imagine there was a surge. In the end I just flagged an empty cab that soon happened by and never paid their surge price.
So while I'm sure there is an algorithm, I suspect it is a pretty stupid algorithm and winds up charging prices none would consider fair.
What it should do is let you opt for a lower price in exchange for a longer wait in those circumstances, being preempted by people paying the surge price until you can get a driver. Or let you enter a bid, making it a market, rather than a stupid algorithm.
Ideally it would let you see recent wait times and choose whether or not to pay a premium to get the next car.
I believe what happened was this: me summoning a car twice within ten minutes with only one nearby led Uber to apply surge pricing, thinking supply exceeded demand when in fact I may have been the only customer trying to summon the only car.
I can't prove that, but I also can't imagine there was a surge. In the end I just flagged an empty cab that soon happened by and never paid their surge price.
So while I'm sure there is an algorithm, I suspect it is a pretty stupid algorithm and winds up charging prices none would consider fair.
What it should do is let you opt for a lower price in exchange for a longer wait in those circumstances, being preempted by people paying the surge price until you can get a driver. Or let you enter a bid, making it a market, rather than a stupid algorithm.
Ideally it would let you see recent wait times and choose whether or not to pay a premium to get the next car.
I would say your theory is probably correct, though I'm not sure there's anything wrong with that. The option is there to contact the driver to give him more specific directions. The problem in your case was Uber's piss-poor navigation.
Also, LOL @ your bidding idea. But I don't think we should rehash our opinions on free market economics! :biggrin1:
If there's already an outcry about surge pricing, imagine the outcry when Uber seemingly catered to whomever dropped the biggest bills! At least the current method is dependent on demand and proximity, rather than who has the biggest wallet.
You already can wait for lower rates...you get quoted a rate and you can accept and take the ride, or you can decline to wait it out (or take a competing service). You can even get notified when rates go down. So your idea wouldn't really have much impact, but would necessitate Uber revamping their programming.
I wish they'd just sort out their navigation.
Here is the problem with their algorithm as opposed to a bidding system: even people with fat wallets don't always want to pay the premium.
Last time I got surged prices I was drinking at a friend's place. I would have been happy to wait an hour for a car, I'd just have another one until it came. Just needed a way home.
In another situation if I'd been trying to get to the airport to catch a flight I would happily pay a premium to make sure I got there on time.
In other words, the time vs cost tradeoff I'm willing to make depends on factors Uber's algorithm can't know.
So the app should send drivers to the highest paying customer who is waiting for a ride.
Suggest the premium price that will guarantee me the next car, but give me the option of entering a lower bid and then just waiting until the higher paying customers have been cleared and a car can get me. Maybe show me how many higher paying customers are ahead of me in line and let me decide if I want to up my bid.
9 times out of 10 I will likely wait my turn in line, just have another drink or whatever, since the app conveniently tells me when my ride has arrived I can continue my activities until it gets there.
But the few times I really am in a hurry then sure I will pay the premium to make sure I'm on time.
Last time I got surged prices I was drinking at a friend's place. I would have been happy to wait an hour for a car, I'd just have another one until it came. Just needed a way home.
In another situation if I'd been trying to get to the airport to catch a flight I would happily pay a premium to make sure I got there on time.
In other words, the time vs cost tradeoff I'm willing to make depends on factors Uber's algorithm can't know.
So the app should send drivers to the highest paying customer who is waiting for a ride.
Suggest the premium price that will guarantee me the next car, but give me the option of entering a lower bid and then just waiting until the higher paying customers have been cleared and a car can get me. Maybe show me how many higher paying customers are ahead of me in line and let me decide if I want to up my bid.
9 times out of 10 I will likely wait my turn in line, just have another drink or whatever, since the app conveniently tells me when my ride has arrived I can continue my activities until it gets there.
But the few times I really am in a hurry then sure I will pay the premium to make sure I'm on time.
If that is the case, just wait 30 minutes and try reordering (maybe surge went down). I don't see the issue here, people have the ability to pay for the service if they choose, if they don't like the surge don't use it. Simple.
It's like anything else, nobody is holding a gun to anyones head saying they must pay the surge.
In your suggested scenario to "improve" the uber system it benefits the customer while in the current scenario uber wins and makes more profit because the customer has less information to make an informed decision. It would be nice to have this information at hand, but on the other hand it will make it that much easier then just to flag down the cab or change your pattern and hurt ubers profits. Big events such as the new years, games and concerts are a perfect example when uber makes a killing. Maybe they know to wait for a specific time and turn their uber on to have a affect on the surge pricing thus maximize their profits for the night.
The OPs story is a perfect example of how we do it to our self and that's why it really hurts. How many of us complain about regulations, taxi's, the government and here comes the private industry with superficial bling to blind us and pull the carpet under our eyes when we least expect it. Yes fuck the cops, get rid of the prisons, the government sucks, regulations fuck that too as it is created to control and imprison us and those cabies are all EE smelly pigs. Fuck them all I just want that bling bling yo, where my bitches at!
I don't think so. There will always be drivers willing to make a few bucks to do this part time, and there will always be customer willing to take it due to convenience or many other factors. Uber has huge volumes worldwide, they don't really care to take care on their customers best interest. They are more geared towards making it attractive to be an uber driver, maybe an uber grocery deliverers, or uber couriers. Its a different business model vs. your conventional business model. People will always need riders and cabs, this will never go away. People need uber, not uber needs people mentality, even though people make them profits. They are trying to become ubiquitous in this type of people and packages delivery sector. I think of them as quite brilliant actually, taking the principles of least resistance like water and capitalizing on this untapped potential.
