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Uber has announced a few changes in its service in four US cities, where they will trial a new system that charges customers extra if they have the drivers wait for them.
Ordering an Uber in Dallas, New Jersey, New York, or Phoenix will mean that you will have to be there on time to meet your driver.
If they have to wait more than two minutes for you, you will be charged an undisclosed fee. Uber is likely to announce the fee within the app, as it might be different depending on surge rates and local pricing.
Furthermore, if you order an Uber in any of the four cities mentioned above, you only have two minutes to change your mind and cancel the fare while the driver is on their way to your location.
In other places, Uber lets users cancel a ride within five minutes of receiving confirmation that a driver is on the way to the specified location.
Uber’s blog post (and the closest thing to a press release) also mentions that the company will consider expanding the new rules if they find that the measures “improve the experience for riders and drivers.”
Naturally, it's hard to meet the requirements of both parties at the same time, as customers would want not to pay extra for drivers to wait longer than two minutes, while drivers would probably prefer not to waste time waiting for people.
Either way, Uber’s new rules might make them more money if users do not change their habits. After all, those two-minute rules did not come out of someone’s imagination, but from statistics. As companies have demonstrated time and time again, statistics are useful if you know how to interpret them for your benefit.
In the case of Uber, someone might have figured out a way to make more money with the same number of fares. It is unclear if the drivers will receive full or partial compensation for their wait times. The same goes for the cancelation fees. The two issues mentioned above are probably the things Uber wants to figure out before rolling the new rules worldwide.
Of course, we do understand that it is logical for the company to want to make more money, and that it's reasonable for drivers to meet their passengers on time, but in the real world, things do not always happen as expected.
If they have to wait more than two minutes for you, you will be charged an undisclosed fee. Uber is likely to announce the fee within the app, as it might be different depending on surge rates and local pricing.
Furthermore, if you order an Uber in any of the four cities mentioned above, you only have two minutes to change your mind and cancel the fare while the driver is on their way to your location.
In other places, Uber lets users cancel a ride within five minutes of receiving confirmation that a driver is on the way to the specified location.
Uber’s blog post (and the closest thing to a press release) also mentions that the company will consider expanding the new rules if they find that the measures “improve the experience for riders and drivers.”
Naturally, it's hard to meet the requirements of both parties at the same time, as customers would want not to pay extra for drivers to wait longer than two minutes, while drivers would probably prefer not to waste time waiting for people.
Either way, Uber’s new rules might make them more money if users do not change their habits. After all, those two-minute rules did not come out of someone’s imagination, but from statistics. As companies have demonstrated time and time again, statistics are useful if you know how to interpret them for your benefit.
In the case of Uber, someone might have figured out a way to make more money with the same number of fares. It is unclear if the drivers will receive full or partial compensation for their wait times. The same goes for the cancelation fees. The two issues mentioned above are probably the things Uber wants to figure out before rolling the new rules worldwide.
Of course, we do understand that it is logical for the company to want to make more money, and that it's reasonable for drivers to meet their passengers on time, but in the real world, things do not always happen as expected.
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