Be Excellent To Each Other

Anyone used this? After all the news of go slow taxi strikes yesterday I installed it on my Iphone

Not impressed as it wouldn't let me add any payment information during the account set up, tried Pay Pal, and 2 cards.

Doubt I would use if in London though, I don't go that often and if I need a taxi its only for short trips and its just easier to flag a black cab down.

There are some out of order situations with black cabs at places like Heathrow where the minimum fairs are £50 or so and they won't take people to a hotel on the outskirts of the airport.

I used it in London - was very good. Not sure I agree with the tax/licensing situation, though.

I haven't used it yet, but after the taxi strike I installed it too! I'm not sure the taxi drivers thought their actions through that well
Payment setup worked for me, but I suspect they were a little busy yesterday, so could have been a glitch. I think Grim... had payment problems before though?

If you want £10 credit, then feel free to put in my promo code "6yt1x"

Just tried again and it all worked so must have been down to all the people signing up, bet they love the black cab drivers can't buy that sort of publicity!

Also can confirm that the £10 credit code works- Thanks!

All I know about this is that it's pissing taxi drivers off.

How does the app work and what does it do that I can't do without the app?

You basically say where you are and where you want to go, using GPS, then choose your type of vehicle. It then shows you which ones are in the area and then provides you with a quote. You say 'yes please' and it sends a driver immediately with an ETA.

You can't do anything without the app. That's kind of how it works.

I love Uber to bits - black cabs are basically dead to me now (even though Uber has now started allowing you to choose them, too, Hailo-like).

I assume this service is mostly in London? My wife has to go out next weekend for a meal, I live well outside of London but all our local cabs are on the same sort of meters so expensive.

Was hoping with the £10 credit she could use this and share with a friend in case the driver is a serial killer

It shows no available cabs around my area though when I'm at home

Rip-off taxis can no longer maintain their monopoly. Boo-hoo-hoo. They can strike all they like, it'll just make everyone install the app and they'll be dead in the water. They've had it easy for too long. Adapt or die.

Now if only there was an alternative for the tube...

As far as I've ever been able to tell, walking is quicker than the tube. It's like some time portal.

They never had a monopoly. The only thing black cabs could do that minicabs couldn't was pick up someone with their arm stuck out. You could always call a minicab, which is exactly what you're doing with Uber - it's just a really nice convenient way to do it.

Don't disturb a good rant with the truth.

The issue seems to be that Uber taxis are not currently subject to the same regulation/laws that regular taxis are.

As far as I can tell, the laws are only around the use of meters and some vague talk of "extra training" for dealing with being hailed from the street. As a customer, I don't see why I should give a shit about the former; as someone who drives some times, I have no idea what the latter could even involve. I'm not one of these hipster "all industry disruption by tech guys is automatically good" Silicon Valley types but so far the cabbies aren't winning me over.

If anyone can point to legislative differences that might make me less safe when being a passenger in an Uber than when I am in a minican or a taxi, then I'll pay attention. But I don't believe that exists.

They say they check black cab drivers, this would only show somebody with a conviction for sex pest type activity's not somebody who might be inclined to do them. Not sure minicab drivers are checked or Uber drivers, my sister in law said she wouldn't get in one on her own.


Also don't forget the "Knowledge" the black cab drivers spend 3 or 4 years often on benefits learning maps and streets in London

This is supposed to separate them from the rest in that they know the best routes, best for who is not clear!

Last time I got in a black cab with my brother, we asked to be taken to a small hotel in Soho, he took us to the wrong place and we had a 5 mins walk from there, knowledge my arse.

I was under the impression that there were differences between Uber and minicabs in terms of checking/regulation or something, and possibly in payment/taxes.

But this could be misinformation/hearsay.

Drivers have to show they have been through all the checks tobe an Uber driver. It is just the same as a licensed minicab checks.

It's even better still, it's like hailing a cab while it's still 3 streets away as you can essentially 'see' it on the app.

It's a monopoly in being hailed in the street - no question. Your alternative as a punter would be to call an individual taxi firm. Your experience is limited by how large and responsive that individual fleet is.

Unless I'm wrong here Uber spans multiple firms, with many more vehicles. So many that it's a good 97% as handy as hailing down a black cab. So, the removal of that monopoly with the cunning use of technology. Hailing with a hand out, hailing by tapping a button on a phone.

Used Uber last night; worked a treat.

I was playing with this to see how much a taxi would cost from work to LHR

When I entered the pickup and drop off (via Iphone) it booked the cab which I then had to quickly cancel.

I was wanting to see if the cost was any cheaper that the company we use as work, I thought Uber displayed the price so you could agree it first?

Also it would appear that Uber cabs are not always the cheapest!!

http://valleywag.gawker.com/the-weekend ... 1484140137

I had this problem too. I wanted to book it for a later time, but booked it there and then. I guess it makes sense as it will pick you a cab that is in you area at that specific time, but I didn't think it would just book it immediately with no warning!

I did find a quote button on the app, the prices are around twice as much as our "executive" car service which are always nice Mercs with bottles of free water.

Luxe.

(Joke with an audience of one there, I suspect)

Taxi related:

I want to complain or take revenge on a taxi, for it ripped off my folks the other night. They ordered the cab from the hotel bar to take us literally a few hundred feet. They wouldn't have needed one but for the fact that they are old and my Dad's knees aren't up to even a five minute walk. We ordered it for a quarter to seven, but it arrived about twenty minutes early. We told the guy it was early, and he waited.

Eventually we got the cab, though it didn't fit us all in, so my bro-in-law and I walked. We beat the cab there, it was so close.

Anyway, they meet us there, and there seems to be some confusion, but by the time I get there (other side of the road) it's all sorted and he's driven off. I get the license plate just in case.

So, it turns out that this arse has charged my Dad 35 quid! 35 quid for a five minute ride! WTF?!

To be honest, I'm amazed he paid it as he would normally flip out at such things, but I guess that's getting old for you.

I was fuming, but let it slide as we were about to have a lovely meal and there was nothing we could do about it at the time.

They (my folks) spoke to the hotel when they got back and were told there was nothing they could do about it (hmmmmm).

So, I do have the license plate, and was wondering if that would allow me to find who to complain to about this horrific thievery gouging assholeishness.

The Uber cars have free water in too, so I suspect they might be the same ones.

Email tph.comms@tfl.gov.uk

It wasn't wasted though.

I had a row with our account (black cab) cab company yesterday after they turned up at 4:45 for a 5pm booking, and there were 15 minutes of standing charges on the clock when we got in the cab.

They really don't do themselves any favours in their competition with Uber.

you saw the war neelie smit kroes, our european commissioner is fighting for this in brussels? http://ec.europa.eu/commission_2010-201 ... your-anger really outspoken

Yay! Brussels! Supporter of the free market.

I don't really hold much faith with 'small matter' referenda, but uber and cab regulation in London is one where I see merit in one.

I've found the black cabs the safest taxi service when compared to the minicab.

In mini cabs:
Offered sex with a male driver
Offered drugs
Ripped off for short journeys
Late arrival
Extra long routes

I've never had a problem with the black cabs other than the cost. However my selection of late night mini cabs could also not be official cabs.

That's a feature, not a bug.

Thanks!

No, thankyou!

An uber driver explains how easy it is to bypass the companies lax background checks. Worrying.

Valid concerns (particularly calling out some misstatements by uber) but also as the comments say, the dodgiest as fuck uber cab is still arguably more traceable than the most legit minicab that you pick up in London should something go awry

This is starting to sound like a great company:

http://t.co/ggiFdGMYyr

Not Uber, but will question the 'Black Cab benefit' that Hailo provides going forward (and black cabs in general)

Booked a cab home with the wife and boy on saturday, picked us up on time, then proceeded to drive in the wrong direction. After continuing to constantly drive the wrong way I challenged him that he had no idea where we were going, and despite claiming to indeed know, couldn't describe the route we woudl take. With £14 on the clock, told him I'd had enough, and told him to pull over as we were getting out. He did so, I opened the door, and he then floored it, ostensibly to park in a 'safer place'.

For that £14, we'd acheived half a mile, in the opposite direction to where we were going. 30 seconds after he drove away got an email confirming that £15 had been taken off the card.

Logged a complaint with Hailo (this was about 9:30 on Saturday night) and finally got a response yesterday evening saying that they'd struck him off their list. I assume therefore that there were multiple complaints, as they've also escalated it with TFL. We'd suggested in our complaint that there was a strong likelihood that he'd borrowed the cab and wasn't licensed too.

To be fair, as bad as that story is, anecdote != data. You'd be much more likely to have an experience like that with Uber than Hailo, due to the different screening processes to become a driver.

I'm not convinced it's especially bad - if it were a normal black cab there was little Riles could do unless he noted down the number, and even then his £15 would probably be gone.

He got his money back and the driver was removed from Uber's books, and in less than a week.

Do Hailo even screen the drivers?

In a black cab, I'd not have handed money over - with Hailo they could auto withdraw it on the account after I had left the cab.

It is a black cab experience, and not a Hailo specific experience, and yes, Hailo can escalate it without me having to note the number and report through TFL. I'm not sure whether Hailo screen drivers - it would seem kind of pointless with the level of TFL checking that goes on.

However, I would venture that Hailo does potentially facilitate shennanigans that I hadn't considered a risk - an potentially unlicensed black cab driver needs to drive around with his light on to pick up fares, whereas a Hailo blackcab can park up and accept the requests - thus removing the negotiation and discourse (and, while I don't have the stats, I'll bet that TFL/DA POLICE don't pull over occupied cabs to check the driver as frequently as unoccupied cabs).

Uber respond here with some interesting accusations:

Uber are defiantly shaking up the world of taxis up city by city.

There business model is not that hard to copy though, I would think once the dust has settled there will be a few company's doing the same thing sharing the market

It's clearly not an invaluable service. It very much has a fixed value, and passengers have decided that they don't value it highly enough to pay the higher fares.

Uber loses its licence in London (appeals a-go-go).
Might read the ruling in depth. I'm kind of torn: love the idea of the app, but if they are seriously breaching the regulations, then yes they should lose it.

Not going to please millions of people who can't get a ride, however.

21 Days left to appeal and they can still operate during this time, BBC doesn't have any info as to why at this point.

Appeals process most likely.

Not fit and proper due to concerns for passenger safety. According to Radio 6 just now