What Uber is, and the Uber driver's work flow....
Put simply, Uber is a company that provides a service where drivers (who act like taxi cab drivers) and people looking for rides connect with each other via a mobile app platform. To become an Uber driver, you must be 21 years of age or older, have at least 3 years of driving experience, have a smart phone, a valid driver's license, have proof of in-state insurance in your name, have an in-state car registration, pass a background check with a social security number, have a car that's newer than 10 years old, have a clean driving record, and pass a background check. As a driver, once you download the Uber mobile app and go online, you wait until your phone chimes informing you that someone is looking for a ride. You can either accept or decline, and once you accept, the app shows you where to go (like a GPS guiding you), and how long it will take to get to your rider (passenger) location. Once you've arrived, your passenger gets notified that you've arrived. Once your passenger gets into your car, you start the trip with a swipe of a finger on your phone and once you arrive where the passenger wants to go, you end the trip with a similar swipe and bid farewell. Uber calculates the wage based on the distance and time of the journey and automatically shares the passenger. Uber takes its cut and gives the Uber driver the rest and no physical cash is exchanged between Uber driver and passenger. The passenger then rates the driver, if they choose, on a scale of 1 star to 5 stars, with 1 star being a very poor car ride. But what some people don't know is that.....Uber drivers also rate their passengers ....below are tips and suggestions on how to be a good passenger...how quickly you get a Uber ride may depend on your rating
Below are tips for Uber Riders (Passengers)
1. Don't forget to leave the Uber driver a TIP
We are all accustomed to leaving a waitress or bartender or pizza delivery guy, a tip. It's societal norm. As a matter of fact, we even tip the taxi cab driver. So why don't people tip Uber drivers? For one thing, Uber makes it confusing....Uber deliberately avoids a tip feature in their app and doesn't let riders know that tip is NOT included, Uber does this because it doesn't want its customers to think about money during the ride. So most people don't tip, and sometimes they don't because they think its included in the fare when it is not. So now that you know, you can toss your Uber driver a few bucks if your journey went smooth. Keep in mind, that Uber drivers don't earn much, not to mention, they get taxed heavily on their earnings, lack the protection and benefits of typical "employees" because they are "independent contractors" and see higher than average wear and tear on their vehicles, and don't really get compensated by Uber for gas or car maintenance.....so seeing that your Uber trip is cheaper than taking a taxi, it wouldn't hurt to give your Uber driver a few bucks here and there.
2. Be on time for your ride when your driver shows up
If you are more than a few minutes late for your ride, let your driver know, as there is a feature in the mobile app that masks your phone number through an uber number, to call or text the Uber driver and vice versa. If you are indeed, more than 3 or 4 minutes late, your Uber driver is entitled to cancel the ride, so please be respectful of your Uber driver's time. Gas isn't cheap either and having your car on for five minutes each time between rides can add up at the fuel pump.
3. Don't put in a pickup location where its tough for the Uber driver to find you, park his/her car, or where it's illegal or dangerous to wait for you
Don't put in a location such as, between 500 - 7500 Bumble-Fuck Blvd (referencing the number here guys) What, what is that? What is 500 - 7500? That can be any building, house, apartment or barn shack on that particular road. Also, if your pickup location is a on busy one way street with no parking available, you need to let your Uber driver know where the best spot in the immediate vicinity is for you to be picked up at. If you know your spot is difficult to find, you want to text your Uber driver non-GPS-able information about your pickup location, for instance "Hey, the location says 750 West 1546 North Street, and there are three buildings that say 750. I'm in the second one diagonally across from the McDonalds." This way, your Uber driver doesn't have to waste time trying to find you.
4. If you have more than 4 people with you, you should give both Uber and your driver a head's up notice
Even though all of you are going to one location, you need to give a head's up notice so your Uber driver can check to see if the ride is even feasible or clear space in his/her car for you. Nothing is worse than seeing "Mike" needs a ride notification only for the Uber driver to find out upon arrival that its not only "Mike" that needs a ride its also his friends "Larry, Jerry, Terry, and Scott". This isn't a clown car
5. Get off your phone: don't talk super loud on your phone, or play music so loud on your phone
Your conversation can be distracting to the Uber driver, and as far as music is concerned, if its really loud, it can be heard through your headphones. Not to mention, your Uber driver might need to ask you something about your dropoff location, and you can't hear because you're too busy jamming out to Sam Smith's lame ass 'Writing's on the Wall' James Bond song.
6. Don't touch anything in the car that isn't yours, and be respectful
Don't grab stuff from the back seat and play with it, don't touch the car stereo, or place your feet on the car seats because it's just plain rude.
Below, are two videos of passengers attacking Uber drivers....this footage maybe disturbing, viewer discretion advised.
7. Get in the back seat and put your seat belt on
Some Uber passengers think its normal to get in the front seat, really? Does your Uber driver know you like that? Get in the back-seat, and also, put your seat belt for obvious safety reasons. Not to mention, Uber advises its riders to always get in the back-seat.
8. Don't be a back-seat driver
If you know a short-cut or a better, faster, or easy route, by all means let your Uber driver know and help guide him/her to your destination. But if you are telling your Uber driver how to drive, that can be very annoying, not to mention extremely dangerous. The only exception to this is if your Uber driver is driving too fast or driving recklessly. But you shouldn't be nit-picking your Uber driver's driving habits.
9. Enter a drop off location before you trip begins and know where you are going
Although you have an option of putting in a drop off location after you get in the car right when the trip begins, you should know where you are going before you even put in an Uber ride request. You shouldn't be changing your mind during the trip on where you want to go or asking the Uber driver to make multiple stops because you need to pick up a slurpee or cigarettes from 7-Eleven and what not. And no, your friends that get in the car with you (see tip 4) can't be dropped off at other locations. If they need a ride, they can put in a request in the app. Most likely the trip request will come in to the same driver (as your friends are the closest to the Uber driver as possible, being in the same car n' all, but in the event that it doesn't, your friend can enter the pick-up location as the same as your drop off location, and hop out and hop in the next Uber driver's car, this isn't really rocket-science)
10. Stop slamming the fucking door when you get out of the car
Maybe you don't know you are doing it, or maybe you don't give a fuck because its not your car, but slamming a car door is equivalent to having a room door slammed shut in your face. It's rude, causes unnecessary wear and tear on the car door and tells the Uber driver that you're either a tactless moronic r-tard, or you lack so much fine-motor cooridination, you can't detect how carelessly you're closing a fucking car door.
11. If you feel like throwing up, let your Uber driver know before you get in the car
So the driver can grab something from a neighboring stores like plastic bags or wait for you to puke in the tavern's bathroom. You don't want to be stumbling into your Uber driver's car and then vomit all inside your Uber driver's car.
12. If everything about the trip was fine, DON'T GIVE LESS THAN A 5 STAR RATING
You high expectations having motherfucker. Why did you give your Uber driver 4 stars or less? Was it not a strech hummer limo like you were expecting? Was the driver not wearing a tuxedo and white gloves? Did the car seats not have a massage feature? If you want all that, make an Uber luxury request, or find a limo service that caters to your needs. But if the trip began and ended on time, the car was clean, and the Uber driver was friendly, you really shouldn't be giving anything less than 5 stars, in other words, if the trip wasn't like this..........
.....remember, your Uber driver's livelihood depends on that rating scale (Uber drivers can be banned from Uber based on their ratings) and keep in mind that even though it's an anonymous rating, your Uber driver is rating you too....and also knows where you live :)
What Girls & Guys Said
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Lol the main reason I wouldn't become an Uber driver is the fear that some drunk passengers will vomit in my car.
I've only used Uber once and didn't know I was supposed to tip, and I felt really bad about it later lol. I was about to get in the back seat but he invited me up front, which was weird but whatever!