Uber has an “enhanced technology solution” to tackle deliberate cancellation trick

Have you ever seen your Uber journey cancelled for seemingly no reason?

Apparently this is a trick that some Uber drivers are engaged in to boost their take, that has been confirmed by a number of drivers. A report in The Sydney Morning Herald claims that certain drivers have been known to ‘game the system’ by forcing passengers to cancel the trip, thus giving them a cancellation fee in the process.

Uber told the paper that it’s aware of the problem, but insists it represents a “minute portion of trips,” adding that there are legitimate reasons for cancellations such as road works that can make an accepted journey very difficult to complete. “In the same way that taxis have dedicated pick-up and drop-off spots, we are eager to work with cities to develop new, safe solutions to urban challenges around infrastructure for point to point transport providers including rideshare,” a spokesperson said.  

Nonetheless it has plans afoot to try and stamp out the problem of forced cancellations.

Related: Best Android apps

“We are continually working on technology solutions as well as education to inform driver partners and riders about safe pick-up zones and ways to reduce cancellations,” the spokesperson said.

“We have an in-app Help section where riders can report issues around cancellation fees and we follow up ith driver partners who regularly have cancelled trips. We are also working on an enhanced technology solution to further examine cancellations that will be rolled out in April.”

Related: Uber promo codes

It’s not clear what these technology solutions would be, given Uber already seems to pay close attention to drivers with higher than normal cancellation rates. You’ll just have to see if cancellations drop next month when the feature is due to appear.

Do you think you’ve been unfairly cancelled on by an Uber driver trying to game the system? Let us know on Twitter: @TrustedReviews.