Uber has become so popular that it’s used as a verb, but my latest experience with this car service has made me wonder if it’s safe. Chances are, you’ve used this ride-hailing app or Lyft, both of which have been around for many years. If you can’t use your car, you can order an Uber, which I use, on an app from your phone. Now, after years of using Uber with very few problems other than the occasionally not showing up as quickly as I would have liked, I had a bad experience that shook me to my core and has made me question why on earth I’ve been programmed into thinking it’s safe to get into a car with a stranger who knows where I live.
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If you live off the grid or drive around in some human-powered vehicle, in Fred Flintstone style, here’s an explanation from Wikipedia about what Uber is.
Uber is an American multinational transportation company that offers ride-hailing, courier services, food delivery, and freight transport. It is headquartered in San Francisco, California, and operates in approximately 70 countries and 10,500 cities worldwide. Uber is the largest ridesharing company worldwide, with over 150 million monthly active users and 6 million active drivers and couriers.
Uber drivers are background checked, but how stringent the check is needs to be clarified. Additionally, the 5-star rating system they use for passengers to rate drivers and vice versa may be part of the problem. We’ve all been conditioned to look at the number of 5-star ratings a driver has as some safety net. The problem is that in our woke world, Uber drivers also get to rate the passengers, so you have to be careful about everything you do. You must be friendly, even when you don’t like it.
However, Uber is exceptionally convenient. You order one from your phone, and it shows up moments later. My experience has been fine, like everything else in life, until it wasn’t.
I ordered an Uber, and the car arrived. The driver told me he was only getting paid fifteen dollars for the ride. It’s not enough. He demanded I pay him cash. I say no, I don’t have the money. Forget it. Let me out. He says, no, it’s OK, and starts driving. He then starts in again and says It’s just not enough money, and I can Venmo or Zelle it to him. “I’ll cancel the ride. It’s a good deal for both of us. “I’m doing you a favor, honey,” I said. I’ll give you an excellent tip. Just get me to my destination. He then says no, it’s not enough money. I hand him a twenty. He says, “See. That wasn’t so bad, honey.” He keeps driving, and I’m pretty scared.
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I get to my destination. I get out, shaken up but OK. I go on the app. I don’t leave a tip. Why would I? This guy shook me down for a twenty. I then looked at the app for a complaint section. Canceling the ride and paying outside of Uber must happen often because they have a section devoted to it, including a note stating this isn’t their standard practice. It has a section where you can type the details of your incident. I made the complaint, knowing the driver was probably going to know who did it and potentially try to murder me, but I haven’t heard a word back from Uber.
That’s a problem.
That night at dinner, I tell my friends the story. One said that an Uber driver stopped the car ten minutes into the ride and demanded a hundred dollars to continue. The other one tells me that a driver asked her friend if she was a Jew and told her he doesn’t drive Jews. The woman was scared to death. In these instances, no one complained. They feared they would be targeted because they were picked up at home. That’s something else people don’t think about. You’re having a stranger pick you up at home; if you upset the wrong person, they could return to your house. That’s scary.
In a Daily Mail article dated May 14.2024, a young woman described her experience of her Uber driver allegedly pleasuring himself while driving. The woman was terrified and thought she was going to be raped. When she reached her destination, the driver turned around and said, “Thank you so much,” which creeped her out. Terrifying.
I’ve decided to tell our dear readers about this as a warning and a call to action. These ride services aren’t as safe as everyone thinks, and we must demand more than simple background checks. The solution may not be easy, but step one is to make everyone aware and encourage anyone with a problem to issue a complaint immediately without fear. We also need to know how drivers are being vetted and insist they do a better job. It may cost the service or the customer more money, but if we don’t do something, the next Lifetime movie you may be watching could be “She Thought It Was Just a Ride, An Uber Murder.”
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