Uber taxis 'up front fees'

UnsureAboutthis

Hello
We are going to the airprot tomorrow and Uber if summoned asap their cost is often lower than fixed price local cabs.

Our children have used Uber in the uk at times and when abroad and they say they've never been charged extra even when stuck in stationary traffic for 20 minutes on one occasion.

My question to Uber riders is, is the 'Up Front Fee' fixed and/or does it allow for reasonable (50 mile trip about hours delays) delays?

My dread is getting Uber and then on the motorway you get stuck/delayed for one/two hours and get a bill for a lot, lot more than the 'up front price.'

(I hope this forum is relevant for this topic as I felt it was the most appropriate one)

Aylesbury_Duck

What do their terms say?

Personally, I wouldn't be risking my holiday by leaving it to the last minute to try and book a taxi.  How much cheaper is it than pre-booking a local firm, and what's the difference in the context of the holiday/trip cost?

I know this is a money-saving site, but I take a similar view about people saving £20 on airport parking by handing over their car and keys to a stranger to park it in a field somewhere unspecified and miles from the airport.  

Jenni_D

Ditto re. parking ... I like to park my car and take my keys with me.

And I wouldn't be a Last-Minute Lucy re. taxis either - simply not worth the hassle and angst.

UnsureAboutthis

Jenni_D said:

Ditto re. parking ... I like to park my car and take my keys with me.

And I wouldn't be a Last-Minute Lucy re. taxis either - simply not worth the hassle and angst.

What?

Anyone with experience of being stuck in traffic with Uber and as per my first post in this thread?

WelshPaul

The upfront fee is fixed. Been using uber to taxi around for a couple of years. If you get stuck in a traffic jam, it doesn’t cost you any extra!

user1977

WelshPaul said:

The upfront fee is fixed. Been using uber to taxi around for a couple of years. If you get stuck in a traffic jam, it doesn’t cost you any extra!

Their website suggests otherwise (at least once you hit a certain threshold):

"Upfront pricing takes into account real time traffic and road closures at the time the trip is requested. However, we know there might be certain situations when you encounter significant unexpected traffic.

If the trip is at least 20% AND 10 minutes slower than initially estimated, the Upfront Pricing will not apply and the trip payment will revert back to actual time and distance travelled. As an example, this will occur if your trip took at least 35 minutes instead of 25 minutes due to excess traffic."

flaneurs_lobster

user1977 said: (or rather quoted Uber)

...and the trip payment will revert back to actual time and distance travelled.

Does anyone know what that actually means (in terms of how much/what rate) once the threshold is met?

soolin

We use Uber a fair bit, never paid more. On one notable occasion my OH had been discharged from a London hospital, was not allowed to travel home unless supervised and in a car , so I got an Uber. The 50 minute journey ended up taking almost 2 hours due to major road closures , the driver was absolutely wonderful. At one point we were sat going nowhere and he mentioned he lived about 5 minutes away and if it wasn’t for the fact that my OH was seriously Ill he would have taken us to his home for a cup of tea and waited for road to open, rather than spending an hour in a diversion. 

The cost was reasonable as well, if I had driven the cost of the congestion charge and parking would have been about half the fare, plus the convenience of sitting with my husband and not getting flustered by trying to drive, worrying about him in the back was worth it. 

Aylesbury_Duck

UnsureAboutthis said:

Jenni_D said:

Ditto re. parking ... I like to park my car and take my keys with me.

And I wouldn't be a Last-Minute Lucy re. taxis either - simply not worth the hassle and angst.

What?

Anyone with experience of being stuck in traffic with Uber and as per my first post in this thread?

Why don't you actually read the terms rather than relying on anecdotal evidence which might be shaky or have been subject to a driver's discretion?

Or actually ask Uber?

Grumpy_chap

user1977 said:

WelshPaul said:

The upfront fee is fixed. Been using uber to taxi around for a couple of years. If you get stuck in a traffic jam, it doesn’t cost you any extra!

Their website suggests otherwise (at least once you hit a certain threshold):

"Upfront pricing takes into account real time traffic and road closures at the time the trip is requested. However, we know there might be certain situations when you encounter significant unexpected traffic.

If the trip is at least 20% AND 10 minutes slower than initially estimated, the Upfront Pricing will not apply and the trip payment will revert back to actual time and distance travelled. As an example, this will occur if your trip took at least 35 minutes instead of 25 minutes due to excess traffic."

I have no experience of an Uber trip costing more than the advised price at the time of booking. 

Maybe it is because you only get a price at the time of booking with the dynamic pricing metrics in operation that the out-turn cost is rarely different.  I know, for a trip that's usually around £6 - £7, on Mother's Day we paid £14 to go and £18 to return.  The probability of further delay on a trip like that must be limited.

Obviously, for the OP, the trip is 50 miles, so an hour or more, and the possibility of an incident occurring must be higher.

Hoenir

UnsureAboutthis said:

My dread is getting Uber and then on the motorway you get stuck/delayed for one/two hours and get a bill for a lot, lot more than the 'up front price.'

That's always the risk when travelling that delays will occur. Only reasonable that a self employed person charges for their time. It's their living and how the pay their bills.