Trouble Getting An Uber Ride? Drivers Might Think You're A Jerk
SAN FRANCISCO (KPIX 5) -- Uber customers can rate their drivers, but it turns out that drivers are also rating those customers, and that rating could get some riders blacklisted.
Emily Tarran relies on a 3 a.m. cup of coffee to get her going, and an Uber ride used to get her to work by 4 a.m., but that ride had become less reliable when drivers all but stopped picking her up.
The early morning news producer thought there was something wrong with her Uber app, but instead she found out that drivers thought there might be something wrong with her.
"I asked a driver what was going on, and he basically told me I had a really low Uber rating – under three out of five," Emily said.
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Like many passengers, Emily had no idea that drivers even rated riders, and decide who to pick up based on that score.
Uber says "feedback is a two-way street" meant to curb disrespectful, threatening, or unsafe behavior.
But, that feedback rating doesn't include any details – just a score. So, riders like Emily are left to guess why their rating is so low.
"He (the driver) asked me if I had done something to an Uber driver, if I had puked in an Uber, which I absolutely had not," Emily said.
She suspects her low rating is because she's not so perky on her early morning rides.
"I feel really judged that I was blacklisted for not being very friendly. I mean, it's not my true personality," Emily said.
So, Emily is determined to improve her score, being friendly to every Uber driver she meets, and asking for a five out of five.
To find out your score, riders can simply ask their driver, but Uber says it is working on a way to show the rider's rating in the next generation of its app.