Do you want to go to the mall and don’t feel like going to the bus stop in this extreme heat? Not an issue anymore. Just book a cab from your home to the mall. Things have become easier nowadays. Also, life has become very busy now with the corporate world playing a major role in the cities.
Transport companies have helped us a lot. We are able to keep a strong pace with this speedy city life for these firms.
Talking of transport and cab, who has not heard about Uber? Uber is one of the most renowned and active transport organizations in the world. It runs very actively in more than 60 countries and over 600 cities globally.
The Way Uber has Changed the Lives of Many
Uber and similar firms have made major changes to the classic transport system. Earlier, people used to reserve a car for themselves individually or for their family. Reservation of a car cost too much money but firms like Uber offers rides in much less cost. It also offers rides in share which costs way less than before.
Previously, people had to wait a long time for cars to arrive but since Uber has come in this scenario, people don’t have to wait for long. You can even get a cashless ride with the help of credit cards or debit cards.
This article deals with one negative side of Uber riding. Well, this directly does not target the company directly but a particular section of drivers. We all know that even the best companies do not get away from the disadvantages. You will get to know about the driver’s identity fraud with the ways that has helped Uber to combat it.
List of Some Common Troubles Created by Uber Drivers
There are some drivers of Uber who create more than one Uber ID to get double benefits from the firm. They create a fake ID with totally different names and other information. Even the passengers have to go through a lot of trouble for these fraud drivers.
Let me list down the problems that they can create.
Unwanted Ride Cancellation
Uber keeps on changing its rate. If you book a ride for a certain price, the driver may cancel the ride by himself. So, if you book the ride again and the same driver is allocated to you, if the price gets increased at this time, then it will be beneficial for the driver.
Sometimes, you may do it not knowing the consequences. You are waiting outside the airport after booking the cab and the driver already said that he would be there in 5 minutes but does not arrive.
So, obviously, you will have to cancel the ride for a rebooking. Uber charges 5 USD for the cancellation of a ride. In that case, you need to pay for the ride along with an extra 5 USD.
Charging False Cleaning Fee
You are traveling in an Uber from one place to another with lots of things and you may drop a tissue. This is not something abnormal or wrong but the driver may take advantage of such a situation and charge extra money.
Paying for the damage that you cause to the car is mandatory. On the other hand, it is not at all logical to charge for cleanliness for a small thing like leaving a tissue paper or any old ticket. Drivers should present proper evidence to prove if the passengers are somehow responsible to make the cab unclean.
The extra money they are earning keep on adding on the total money they are earning respectively each day. If he earns more money, he gets more money at the end of the month.
Unwanted and Unnecessary Updates
Drivers can charge money for ill-behavior of the passengers. Suppose, you have booked an Uber prime with three of your friends. It is quite natural to laugh and be loud with your friends. The driver may get disturbed and charge extra money which gets deducted during your next ride.
Sometimes, traveling with more than four people in an UberX is advantageous for the drivers. They can upgrade the ride to UberXL mode for extra people. This might cost double the price.
Fraud Uber Drivers Are Not Very Uncommon Nowadays
As I have already mentioned above, driver identity fraud is quite common. Recently, in China, more than 400 drivers were detected with fraud IDs. Many Uber drivers have joined the company with a fake ID or a false driving license. Besides having an original and valid account in Uber, they join again with false identifications.
Multiple drivers with multiple fake accounts can be easily accessible to many company bonuses. Uber offers bonuses to every driver working for it. If one person works with two different ID, he is going to get the bonus twice at the same time.
Sometimes to get rid of rides, they take associates with them in the car who pretend to be the passengers but they do not ride anywhere.
Another illegal path they choose at times is using a totally different license. Many Uber drivers were caught with false Driver’s license carrying details of a completely different person.
The New Tool to Let Riders Check Driver Identity Fraud
To get rid of these kinds of driver identity frauds, Uber has launched a brand new feature. This feature plays its role by sending in-app reminders through the application itself. It also gives a push notification button to let us match the driver’s photo along with the license plate as well as the model of the car before you get into it for the ride.
Always keep a screenshot of the driver details along with his photo. If you get to see the same face with a different identity, immediately report to the company. The company will take legal actions against them.
Pavan Vaish is the Head of Central Operations, Uber-India, and South Asia. In a report, he made the following statement – “Our goal is to make checking your ride before you get in the car synonymous with using Uber, each and every time.” He also added, “This new feature of Uber app will remind people to complete these three process each time they are booking a ride using Uber.”
Additionally, ask the driver his name to confirm it with the information visible on the application. Match it with your Uber app.
As mentioned above, many drivers use licenses that belong to somebody else. By any chance, he can get a copy of your license too and if he is caught with it, you might be in trouble as well.
What if he uses your information in his fake license? If you find so, immediately contact your local law enforcement to report your identity theft and take legal actions against it.
Its Time to Wind-up
Most of the time, it has been found that it is the drivers who took an illegal path and the passengers had to pay for the consequences. The new feature Uber added in its app has made the company much more secure. It will be helpful to you in many aspects as well.
Fake Uber applications have also victimized many people. These fake applications are malware. When you will be opening the page, a login page will appear. You will put your login details including phone number and email ID. Thus, they get to know your private information just like a piece of cake. They may use your Uber account by using your private information.
Each and every driver has a rating and review for each of their rides. This also helps the passengers to choose their drivers wisely.
With this, it is time for us to lead up to the conclusion. I hope this gave you adequate awareness of the frauds that you may be a victim for. Comment below to let us know if you have ever fallen in a trap. Share this post as much as possible and alert people to beware of these fake identities.