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Driving for Lyft/Uber


darksabre

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i have been dreading that situation for awhile now. I've had older men pass out in my back seat but I really am not looking forward to the day where a drunk and disoriented younger woman passes out in my car and pepper sprays me when I wake her up and she doesn't remember calling an uber

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i have been dreading that situation for awhile now. I've had older men pass out in my back seat but I really am not looking forward to the day where a drunk and disoriented younger woman passes out in my car and pepper sprays me when I wake her up and she doesn't remember calling an uber

I figured it was 50/50 the bf came out swinging. He seemed to have little care for the well being of his woman which probably saved me a black eye. Her friend should have came with us. It would have cost, as the bar was 20+ miles from where she lived but they just put their friend in the hands of a Stanger with an angry aggressive doosh waiting with open fists... Er... Arms.

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My Uber driver tonight was Ed ###### Kilgore!  I know he's just a local personality but it was really neat to talk with him about his career and stuff.

 

He looked in the mirror and said I wouldn't remember him.  Explained my age (I still have a beautiful babyface despite some grey on the sides) and yep.

 

He also autographed a nice note for my dad.

No way!!! I use to see him out at the Stumble Inn a bar. Didn't his career go down the tubes?

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I figured it was 50/50 the bf came out swinging. He seemed to have little care for the well being of his woman which probably saved me a black eye. Her friend should have came with us. It would have cost, as the bar was 20+ miles from where she lived but they just put their friend in the hands of a Stanger with an angry aggressive doosh waiting with open fists... Er... Arms.

That's a tough one to be in. My worst two riders were a 50ish man who his friends forced into my car. I got him home and woke him up to get out. He got pretty aggressive "who the hell are you" "bring me back to The bar" yada yada. I thought he might swing on me but sober and 25 I would've been able to handle a buckled old man.

 

The other one was this past Saturday, very drunk woman 40ish called me to a notorious college bar with a 3x surge at last call and wanted to go 20ish miles to the meth/Heroin suburb of KC. She saw my NY license plates and kept screaming at me to go back to NY, and telling me I was wasting my life in the Midwest. This went on for the first 15 mins or so...Good times. I ended up telling her that she doesn't know me and what brought me here so she shouldn't judge my decisions. Just like I wasn't judging her haggard A$$ for getting blitzkrieged at a bar 20 years too young for her.

 

Not my best customer service moment but that's one of the pluses of working for yourself right?

Edited by Stuvning
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Keep the signs, Ink. I believe I posted in another thread, but I have a tipping conversation with every Uber driver I meet. Because I’m a business man and a human being, the business model, expectation and behavior interests me. I Uber twice a month, or so.

 

From what I’ve learned, twenty to thirty percent of passengers tip the driver. I’m told they KNOW I’m going to tip the moment they see me. I am of a certain age and wear a sport coat and tie.

 

The skinny, as told to me more than once:

 

Business people in suits and ties tip. They’re tipping all day long.

The middle aged and the elderly tip. They grew up with it.

(I’m both of the above).

Younger people rarely tip. “The APP is the experience and the cost.”

The intoxicated don’t tip at all or tip wildly. Go figure. Buzzed beats plastered.

 

Lately, I’ve noticed signs in the cars much like those you posted. I believe tipping is gracious and civil. A reminder can’t hurt and offends only those looking to be offended.

 

Be safe. I’d be interested in your thought.

 

Unexpected and fascinating development ... I CARE about my rating!

Edited by neo
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One normally doesn't tip the owner of a business.

If I was getting 100% of the fare I'd agree. Here is the breakdown for normal pricing.

 

 

0.77 standard fee

0.67 per mile

0.15 per minute

 

So a 5 mile ride that takes 10 minutes, nets me $5.57. Since most rides take 10 minutes to get there plus another 5 miles to get to the customer, that's 20 minutes of my time for less than 5 bucks after gas and that's not including vehicle depreciation, wear and tear, etc. So, under normal pricing, drivers are getting $15 an hour or less.

 

Like I said, under normal pricing. Yesterday, most of my trips were surge pricing, where the demand severely out numbers supply, so in order to attract drivers Uber ups the cost for the rider, rewarding the drivers. I was getting and extra $5-10 every trip yesterday so I was making around $30/hour.

 

I almost always only drive during peak times 9pm - 2am weekends to maximize my chances of surging. Even doing so only nets me about 40% of my rides as surge pricing rides. No one is getting rich driving for Uber so throw a buck or two at your driver. We need it.

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If I was getting 100% of the fare I'd agree. Here is the breakdown for normal pricing.

 

 

0.77 standard fee

0.67 per mile

0.15 per minute

 

So a 5 mile ride that takes 10 minutes, nets me $5.57. Since most rides take 10 minutes to get there plus another 5 miles to get to the customer, that's 20 minutes of my time for less than 5 bucks after gas and that's not including vehicle depreciation, wear and tear, etc. So, under normal pricing, drivers are getting $15 an hour or less.

 

Like I said, under normal pricing. Yesterday, most of my trips were surge pricing, where the demand severely out numbers supply, so in order to attract drivers Uber ups the cost for the rider, rewarding the drivers. I was getting and extra $5-10 every trip yesterday so I was making around $30/hour.

 

I almost always only drive during peak times 9pm - 2am weekends to maximize my chances of surging. Even doing so only nets me about 40% of my rides as surge pricing rides. No one is getting rich driving for Uber so throw a buck or two at your driver. We need it.

Sorry, I'm not tipping anyone who's making 15-30 bucks an hour. Especially someone who is voluntarily assuming the risks and entering into some form of self-employment. I'll reserve tipping for those who need tips just to get to minimum wage.

 

Where does it end? Tip anyone who performs a service for you and doesn't make a lot of money? The guy who pumps your gas? What about the cashier at the store? Commuter airline pilots don't make much. Maybe they should put out a jar.

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Sorry, I'm not tipping anyone who's making 15-30 bucks an hour. Especially someone who is voluntarily assuming the risks and entering into some form of self-employment. I'll reserve tipping for those who need tips just to get to minimum wage.

 

Where does it end? Tip anyone who performs a service for you and doesn't make a lot of money? The guy who pumps your gas? What about the cashier at the store? Commuter airline pilots don't make much. Maybe they should put out a jar.

Live life how you like. I provide water, snacks and phone chargers for my riders. If they feel comfortable not recognizing the effort I've put forth, that's on them. Nearly every rider I have tells me I'm the best driver they've ridden with. Most of the clientele doesn't tip either. So you csn take satisfaction in that.

Sorry, I'm not tipping anyone who's making 15-30 bucks an hour. Especially someone who is voluntarily assuming the risks and entering into some form of self-employment. I'll reserve tipping for those who need tips just to get to minimum wage.

 

Where does it end? Tip anyone who performs a service for you and doesn't make a lot of money? The guy who pumps your gas? What about the cashier at the store? Commuter airline pilots don't make much. Maybe they should put out a jar.

Am I the only one who always tips the gas station attendant?
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If I was getting 100% of the fare I'd agree. Here is the breakdown for normal pricing.

 

 

0.77 standard fee

0.67 per mile

0.15 per minute

 

So a 5 mile ride that takes 10 minutes, nets me $5.57. Since most rides take 10 minutes to get there plus another 5 miles to get to the customer, that's 20 minutes of my time for less than 5 bucks after gas and that's not including vehicle depreciation, wear and tear, etc. So, under normal pricing, drivers are getting $15 an hour or less.

 

Like I said, under normal pricing. Yesterday, most of my trips were surge pricing, where the demand severely out numbers supply, so in order to attract drivers Uber ups the cost for the rider, rewarding the drivers. I was getting and extra $5-10 every trip yesterday so I was making around $30/hour.

 

I almost always only drive during peak times 9pm - 2am weekends to maximize my chances of surging. Even doing so only nets me about 40% of my rides as surge pricing rides. No one is getting rich driving for Uber so throw a buck or two at your driver. We need it.

Average profit for a Lyft/uber driver is $3.37 an hour after all expenses are accounted for according to this MIT study...

 

Be better flipping burgers somewhere they start out at like $11 an hour now

 

https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.usatoday.com/amp/389230002

Edited by matter2003
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Average profit for a Lyft/uber driver is $3.37 an hour after all expenses are accounted for according to this MIT study...

 

Be better flipping burgers somewhere they start out at like $11 an hour now

 

https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.usatoday.com/amp/389230002

 

I'll have to read it out of curiosity to see how they came at that number. If they say, "Uber driver works for 8 hours and nets this much", I feel like that's different if there are 4 hours of downtime that could be spent reading Chaucer or educational books or something.

Edited by MattiPaj
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If I make the mistake of going to a full service pump, I always tip. Unless I'm in Jersey or at an Indian gas station .

Likewise w/ the caveat. The Indian gas stations around here force you to use the attendant as well. Tend to only fill up there if the tank is down to fumes.

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Tipping almost ensures better service. Starting a tab at the bar? Pay for the first round in cash and tip the bartender immediately. Your glass won't sit empty for long. Going out gambling? Throw the dice crew a toke bet right beside your first bet. They'll make sure you never forget your odds. Go out of your way for people and they'll go out of their way for you. Tip your driver and you'll get a better passenger rating. Better rating for you, better odds of being picked up faster. I don't like waiting for service, so I tip.

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Tipping almost ensures better service. Starting a tab at the bar? Pay for the first round in cash and tip the bartender immediately. Your glass won't sit empty for long. Going out gambling? Throw the dice crew a toke bet right beside your first bet. They'll make sure you never forget your odds. Go out of your way for people and they'll go out of their way for you. Tip your driver and you'll get a better passenger rating. Better rating for you, better odds of being picked up faster. I don't like waiting for service, so I tip.

 

To Insure Prompt Service.

 

Good call. I'm going to tip my Uber driver if I ever use one.

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