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Verbal abuse for paying in cards: Consumer Affairs to take action against Uber

21 Feb 2021

  • CAA encourages complaints to be made to them

  American ride-hailing app Uber is expected to face regulatory action locally from the Consumer Affairs Authority (CAA), the apex government organisation that protects consumers, as many drivers in the platform verbally abuse passengers who choose card payments to settle the ride fare, The Sunday Morning Business learns. CAA Chairman Maj. Gen. (Retd.) D.M.S. Dissanayaka stated that such abuse should not be tolerated and that the CAA will look into these issues and take stern actions against the company. “Passengers who face such abuse should complain to the CAA rather than complaining on social media. Then we will take necessary action against the company,” Maj. Gen. Dissanayake told The Sunday Morning Business. Taking onto social media, passengers have been complaining over verbal abuse by Uber drivers for reasons such as passengers choosing to pay for the ride in credit/debit cards and using promo codes for discounts. Such complaints have been on the rise in the past year and the gravity of these complaints has been exaggerated by the fact that Uber does not have a customer representative office in Sri Lanka, according to these posts. In fact, at one point last year, a passenger who was on a ride in Uber had been physically abused and as a result, the passenger was hospitalized in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU).  When asked a few drivers in the platform the reason why many drivers increasingly refuse card payments, several drivers, who wished to remain anonymous, noted that when passengers pay the fare for the ride in debit/credit card, the money goes into the Uber account, where Uber deducts dues and a commission from that amount and takes a couple of days to realise the fare back to the driver. However, when we questioned officials attached to Uber on the delay in remitting payments to the driver and whether they have taken any action to prevent such verbal abuse from happening in the future, an official of Uber stated: “Uber continues to remain committed to safety. By leveraging our technology and global expertise, we have striven to provide the safest possible rides to drivers and riders. Riders can easily access Uber’s Safety Toolkit which includes a Safety Centre, Share My Trip option, and 119 assistance. The 24x7 Safety Helpline is in addition to the existing in-app SOS button in the Safety Toolkit. Based on feedback from drivers, we introduced an on-demand cash-out feature last year. This makes payments seamless and helps eligible drivers cash out their earnings any day of the week after they’ve earned a minimum amount of Rs. 100.” Meanwhile, during an interview with The Sunday Morning Business last month, Uber Sri Lanka Head Subodh Sangwan, responding to the question whether Uber is planning to establish a customer representative office in Sri Lanka, stated that they already have a locally based safety team for urgent, non-emergency issues in Sri Lanka. “Riders can easily reach out to the team by clicking on the shield icon representing the ‘Safety Toolkit’ and accessing the on-trip 24x7 ‘Safety Helpline’. This could include issues such as reporting a dispute, fare review, or a breakdown while on a trip and up to one hour post the trip. Among a variety of other safety and feedback features available on the app, customers can easily access Uber’s Safety Toolkit which includes a Safety Centre, Share My Trip option, and 119 assistance. The Safety Helpline is in addition to the existing in-app SOS button found in the Safety Toolkit,” he added. Uber entered the Sri Lankan market in 2016. Uber, which marks its fifth anniversary in Sri Lanka this year, has served 1.8 million riders, completed more than 53 million trips, and created livelihood opportunities for 110,000 drivers.


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