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Uber announced new updates to their rating system to foster a more mutually respectful experience.
If and when you update your Uber app this week, you’ll suddenly be privy to something previously only drivers could see. That is, your Uber rider rating. In an effort to increase accountability and improve the ride experience for driver and rider alike, Uber has changed two key aspects of their review system.
Before, you could access your rider rating by placing a request . While drivers could view rider ratings and use them to base pick-up decisions, most passengers were only really aware of their own standing as a matter of curiosity and or ego. With the update, passengers will be able to see their rating constantly and receive updates after each ride – much the way drivers do. Uber hopes this feature will make people more cognizant of how they act as riders. After all, many Uber riders forget – or are totally unaware – that drivers can and do rate them too. The goal is a mutually respectful ride-share experience.
Another rating change pertains to UberPOOL. Uber found that drivers were getting docked for bad POOL experiences that had to do with other POOL riders or with POOL routes – an arrangement for which you sign up as a POOL rider in the first place. Now, if you want to rate a POOL ride less than five stars, you will have to provide a reason. If the reason does not involve the driver, then their rating will not be affected.
While this is likely welcome news to drivers, it only really pertains to the riders who actually still use the Uber app. In January, the company experienced an exodus of users who were not only deleting the app but closing their accounts in light of a string of bad press including but not limited to Uber CEO Travis Kalanick’s presence on a presidential consulting committee, the widespread belief that Uber scabbed for a taxi strike protesting the Muslim travel ban, and reminders that Uber historically treats drivers poorly.
As recently as Monday, Wired reported that Uber had been using application program interfaces to access iPhone device information and serial numbers even after users had deleted the app.
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It should be said that many drivers continue to work for Uber, even as riders wane, as it keeps their opportunities the most open. So, it makes sense that the company would be heading in a driver-friendly direction. Here’s hoping this help keeps the rides respectful.
