Uber

So my boyfriend and I take über every weekend (almost) to go out to Bellevue or Seattle from the south end. So we see at the very least 2 drivers a weekend for a round trip. Last weekend’s drivers — both of them — is what compelled me to write this review. Both of the drivers were courteous and drove relatively safely, one more than the other. One was very familiar with the area and didn’t need directions & just quietly set up his phone. The other (as most of them) need an exact address to a well known restaurant or club in downtown but also actual directions because the phone navi isn’t always accurate or has reception. That’s all ok, no big deal. After all über is not an executive luxury car service with great customer service but basically a cheaper option than a cab driven by some random Joe Schmoe. Buuut gets you from point a to point b. However, the part that’s a HUGE problem for me is how badly these über drivers cars reek of disgusting SMOKE. Especially when you’re a non smoker going someplace like dinner or a birthday and you’ve dressed up and you don’t want to smell like a walking ashtray!!! I can’t even describe how awful BOTH of the cars these past weekend smelled. Usually it’s only every few times this has happened, but last weekend both über cars were just downright dinghy with smoke and the stink had penetrated so deep into the seats of the car that after getting out my clothes, hair — everything smelled disgusting!!! Not to mention difficulty breathing the entire 45 minute drive there and the hour drive back. That is enough to deter me from using über in the future unless it’s just unavoidable. It would’ve been a one star review. It the second star is there because the driver on the way back was very nice.

Über is awesome! Signed up for my first ride. Don’t have smart phone, used someone else’s. Ended up that I requested a ride I didn’t need. Got a cancellation email that I was charged $ 5. Emailed UBER, got a response immediately with a refund. Had other questions, and received responses immediately, like within 2 minutes. Finally requested the ride I wanted and the car showed up within minutes and I was at my destination in 8 minutes. First ride was free. It was a great experience!

I’ve ridden with Über a dozen times. It rarly goes as smoothly as they claim.
Drivers will come to the wrong address, even when you manually enters the address instead of using the highly inaccurate map pin system they want you to use.
They will charge you for rides that never happened. This problem really boned me. I got charged $ 35 for a ride that never happened. It had been well over a week since I used über and never had a ride charge that much when all a sudden I notice my account is down. The reason I noticed is I had a bill to pay and I was below the amount the bill was in my account, despite having just deposited that exact amount into it.
Über has no contact number, their contact number is an automated message that tells you to email them. Their email has yet to respond and is not quick or timely. I’ve called my bank to dispute the charge and they require forms to be mailed before they can refund me.
Because Über wants to be ‘cool’ and digital I’m getting charged late fees on bills, as far as I’m concerned Über is responsible for that fee.
I asked them, again via email, to delete my account which they have yet to respond to, so this could all happen again. My only choice is to get a new debit number and have to change that in all my other online dealings so I don’t get Ubered again.

Yesterday was my first time using the Über app. I had to take a friend to the emergency room and since we were not sure whether it was a blood clot which it was :(or just a pulled muscle we opted against calling 911.
I tried calling different cab companies but their prices were astronomical and some of the dispatchers did not sound very competent. I downloaded the Über app and ordered a ride. Within 3 minutes, Yayah was at our doorstep. He was courteous, professional and a safe driver. His car was clean. Not a fancy car or anything but definitely a well maintained vehicle.
The ride was more than affordable, billing to the cc was painless and accurate and I was more than happy to tip him even though I was told I did not have to.
This was our first time using this service and we were a bit hesitant but I am glad we did. I will definitely use it again next time I need a ride. I also hope that now that we have used Über, I can request the same driver again if he is on duty that day.

I use Über a lot in San Francisco, CA. When I saw they had Über in Seattle, I thought, perfect! We can go out drinking without worrying about finding a cab! The roommate and I were staying at the Hampton in Lower Queen Anne, so we took Über a couple times back and forth from Belltown and Downtown.
Trips:
*Hotel to Buckley’s in Belltown: $ 5.50
*Hotel to Pike Place: $ 6.77
*Top pot doughnuts in Denny triangle to Hotel: $ 11.01 with x1.9 surge pricing
I don’t know how much it cost to take a cab to these places, but the Über fares seemed fair and reasonable. Well, minus the surge pricing. I wonder if it would have been cheaper to take a cab instead of agreeing to the surge pricing. All our drivers were nice and the cars comfortable and clean.
One thing I wish they had in Seattle is Über pool. I’m so used to taking Über pool in SF. But our rides were fairly cheap, so even if it saved a couple bucks, I guess I would have just done UberX anyways. It was just weird not to see it as an option as I wasn’t sure how much our first ride would cost. I guess it makes sense since Seattle is a lot bigger.
Great alternative to a cab. And very convenient as all the info is saved to the app. You don’t need to carry cash. Also there’s no tipping, so the ride price is all you pay.

Über taxi contacted me by text and said they were coming to my home. I did not order taxi for today I ordered yesterday and was told by text they had no cars. The driver contacted me by text and by phone and started screaming at me that I did order taxi today I told him to give me my his. Very sad customer skills identification number so I could complain and he hung up

Finally! A great car service in the Seattle area! I am so relieved and grateful for Über.
The drivers that I have experienced thus far are really friendly and professional. The cars are clean. The drivers have all showed up right on time, with great attitudes. An Über driver had driven me to a Murder Mystery Party on the opposite side of the city recently, and he wanted to drive me back home again after the party was over. I’ve had several regular taxi service drivers ask me to call them again, but I never have. But I called this driver when the party was over, and he drove me home. On our way back to my house, he asked me all about how the party went. He called me a friend, and I felt like he was one. Very happy with this car service, will be continuing to use them, and highly recommend them. 5 stars.

Yeah, OK Über, when I can get a ride somewhere faster than I can walk maybe I’ll give you a call back. And charging 25% more during peak times when you can walk faster than a car moves is a complete rip off.

We got a ride from a guy named Joseph (Toyota Prius), later to find out he lied about an ‘incident’ that required his car to get cleaned, charging us an additional $ 50! I’m currently waiting to see if Über Support will clear this situation up because if they don’t, we will never use them again-​which will be unfortunate, as they have been our ‘go to’ transportation for a while. This is only my second review, but I felt the need to spread the word, I’m so angry. I don’t have a problem taking responsibility if I have made a mess of someones property, but when someone outright lies about it-​that is just wrong!

I can’t say enough about Über. Über in almost every city is as good as it gets. No smelly cabs. No body odor. No rude driver yapping on his cell phone. No trying to get more money by taking the long way around. After living in NYC for 7 – 8 years, I hate taxi drivers — out of 10 drivers you get maybe 2 good ones AT BEST (my own experience).
The drivers here in Seattle were promt, polite, clean cars, no BS. There’s a reason taxi companies hate Über and let’s just say it’s not because they’re embarassed about bad service because we all know for the most part they could care less about service.

I used UberX for the first time, traveling from SeaTac Airport Arrivals to home.
The Good
The driver picked me up quickly, the car was clean, the ride was pleasant, he followed the most efficient and quickest route, and drove safely. I gave him a cash tip and gave him a 5-​star review.
The Bad
Über charged my credit card a second time for an additional $ 1.50 with a comment that the driver stated there was «a problem» and that they hoped I would understand (no more detail than that). I didn’t understand so I contacted Über support twice asking to explain what the problem was. Both times they simply reiterated what the note said without providing an explanation of what problem they thought I should be paying for. Frustrated, I called my credit card company and contested the charge.
I know it was only $ 1.50 but they can’t just go about charging my credit card without my approval or giving me a valid explanation. It’s a scam as far as I’m concerned. I’m a reasonable person and if they would have told me what the «problem» was, I probably would have let it go. This experience really left a bad impression on me. I am not using Über again.

What a joke! These guys are becoming just as bad as the taxi industry they set out to disrupt!
I was an early adopter when these guys first started in the Bay several years back and absolutely LOVED the service. Since then, I’ve gone on to use their service in close to a dozen cities, taking roughly 500 Über trips and spending over $ 10k in the process.
The problem is, they’ve really run into some growing pains. In their effort to grow the business, they’ve let every Tom, Dick and Harry get behind a wheel to represent their brand and over the past year+, the quality of the service has really gone downhill in a hurry. Nowadays, I can’t go more then 2 or 3 rides without there being some kind of problem (e.g., driver went to wrong location and calls and asks me to walk several blocks to find them, drivers dropping me off at the wrong location despite having me inputted the correct address into their app, etc.).
The most recent mishap was in the form of a driver deliberately driving the exact wrong direction (read: heading south when my destination is north) which was clearly captured on my post trip route map collected on their website.
Despite the clear «evidence» in the picture (literally, you see the starting point, you see a route going in one direction then approx 1 mile in, turning around on the EXACT SAME ROAD to head in the EXACT OPPOSITE direction — this time going the correct way), Paul from their Seattle Support Team insists there was no wrong doing, instead saying…
«He may have deviated from the regular route to avoid issues such as traffic or accidents in order to avoid any inconvenience.»
Really? Last time I checked, you wouldn’t try to avoid traffic or an accident by heading a mile in the wrong direction only to turn a U-​y and head back the exact same way we just came.

[10/​09/​15] Let’s make this simple.
I’m giving Über some Unilocal love. From low-​cost to premium — in minutes. Payment is automatic through the app and fares are usually cheaper than a taxi.
The driver was nice and interesting to talk to. These are the things I want and expect in a car service. Their service is impeccable, timely, and affordable, and convenient. The best car service I’ve ever had in my life. They have such clean and comfortable cars with amazing and friendly drivers. I never had to feel like I’m on a six flag ride unlike the yellow cabs. You don’t need cash when you ride with Über. Once you arrive at your destination, your fare is automatically charged to your credit card on file — there’s no need to tip.
Overall this is by far one of the best car service experiences I have ever had. I fully recommend Über Transportation! :)

Goodbye Über — you’ve wasted my time and your drivers are rude!
On 3 occasions I called Über well in advance. Only too have the driver cancel my ride, forcing me to pay for a MUCH more expensive ride to avoid missing my flight.
Über drivers compete to be the first one to take your request regardless of proximity of pickup.
My Über driver was 20 miles away… even after he made me late and canceled on me, he kept taking my request for a new driver, so that I could not get a new driver. I called the driver and asked him to stop accepting my request for a new driver, he replied, «no, you wasted my time.»

My Über (private taxi service) account was hacked and charges were made to my credit card. They do not have a phone support line. In fact NO CENTRAL CONTACT NUMBER AT ALL.
Well…in compromised situations like this — Über reccommends everyone to TWEET to them for the quickest response. LOL! #Über #Fail
I’m sorry but I can’t take TWITTER seriously when my CREDIT CARDS AND PRIVACY IS BEING VIOLATED.
I will play the waiting game until someone from Ubers Twitter retweet me… Lol seriously it sounds like a joke. I’m bleeding fraud money here.

We used Über almost exclusively during our trip to Seattle. We’ve had great experiences with Über in other cities and our experience with Über in Seattle was no exception. I just love the convenience. Here’s a list of reasons why I’m a big fan of Über. All of these points apply in Seattle.
1. There’s no need to stand on the side of the street, look for, and hail a cab.
2. There’s no cash, cards, paper receipts, or tips to deal with.
3. All the Über cars I’ve been in have been clean. Not old, worn, smelly, and/​or sketchy like cabs I’ve been in.
4. All the Über drivers have been friendly and personable. Not surly.
5. The Über app will show you your route live so you know if the driver is staying on the correct route or not. I’ve had cabbies go off-​course in an attempt to get more money.
Everything is handled over the app.
Once during our trip, I considered using Lyft, just to try it out. However, when I couldn’t easily get a fare estimate from our starting point to our destination using the Lyft app, I gave up and used Über instead. Before booking rides on Über, I often would request fare estimates. The fare estimates were fairly accurate.
For example, I requested a fare estimate from downtown Seattle to our rental house in Ballard. The route was 6 – 7 miles (17 – 18 minutes) and the app gave me a fare estimate of $ 13 – 17. The actual fare ended up being $ 15.18.
In the above example, the driver got to our location at the corner of 1^st Ave and Pine St in less than 5 minutes on a Friday night. I think in every instance during our trip, drivers got to us in 5 minutes or less. Maybe 10 minutes max. They were fast, even when picking up in Ballard.
A trip to the airport from our house in Ballard to Seattle-​Tacoma International Airport (19.1 miles, about 30 – 35 minutes) cost $ 41.34. I don’t know how much a cab ride would have been, but I thought the all-​in Über price was quite reasonable compared to the $ 50+ cab rides I’ve taken to and from the airport in other big cities.
If you’re traveling in a group, the Über app makes it easy to split fares. Just tap «Fare Split» and send notifications to the folks you want to split the bill with. Note there is a $ 0.25 fare split fee per person and your friends must accept your fare split request before the ride is over for the fare split feature to actually work. You cannot fare split after the ride is over.
We mainly used uberX and uberXL during our trip, but there was one night where a black SUV and a black Lincoln Town Car with drivers in dress shirts and ties picked us up for dinner. I didn’t book that specific Über reservation, but I suspect it was uberBlack (which costs more than uberX and uberXL). That ride felt more luxurious, formal, and professional.
Each time you book an Über, a photo of your driver pops up on the screen in addition to the make, model, and license plate of their car so you know what/​who to look out for. Thanks to Shane (Hyundai Tuscon), Hagos (Honda Pilot), and Arron for being among the Über drivers who transported us around Seattle.
After your ride, you can rate your driver and (I believe) your driver can rate you. You are also emailed a receipt for your ride. The receipts are great because they provide clear and concise information. Each receipt shows a map of your route, total miles and trip time, plus an itemized breakdown of your costs. You won’t get that from a taxi.

I use Über at least four times a week. (Excessive, I know). I have had all kinds of experiences ranging from: outstanding to poor service, drivers that are experts and some that are amateurs, friendly drivers and not so friendly drivers. This review is based solely on my experience yesterday. Friday July 24^th was Über’s Ice Cream event. You could ping a driver and for $ 25 they would bring many different varieties of ice cream (four local and one Ben and Jerry’s) and a swag bag. I decided to receive my ice cream while I was working. Little did I know the WHOLE ice cream truck would show up! My co-​worker and I flipped out! Our week at work has been so intense and we have been feeling so burnt out that this was truly a stress reliving, fun event. Obviously I know this is total marketing and what not, but damn if it wasn’t so much fun. We took pictures, chose our ice cream and got a cool bag filled with sunglasses, stickers and tattoos. Shout out to Über for making me feel like a kid again, even if it was just for 5 minutes while I was at work.
I will continue to use their services and I commend them on such awesome events and I truly look forward to more in the future.

After the death cab ride I had coming in from the airport my first night here, über you remind me why I love you.
I learned from my lovely driver why I couldn’t request an über from Sea-​Tac after my flight the other day. Turns out, you can. The side note is that you have to choose Über black or SUV since they are commercially licensed. So are cab drivers, technically, but evidently the agency they report to is a lot sketchier and they don’t seem to care much. Über drivers get business based on the reviews from their customers so they don’t speed ridiculously/​curse/​have the heat on when it’s 80 degrees out like my previous cab.
Regardless-it’s worth it in my opinion to shell out the money for über black, I even chose to do so from my hotel TO the airport, and in that case I could have chosen a regular UberX since they can drop off at the airport, just not pick up. Apparently the law (only in Seattle) says this is how it has to be. Good to know if I’m ever back in town, but the extra $ 8 was worth the black SUV and a safe ride.

I used Über during the holidays to get a ride from Westlake Center to Downtown Kirkland. The ride was at midnight so the bus was not a good option. The cost was $ 25.00, $ 20 of that was free for my first time ride (If you need a coupon similar to this, private message me). Even if I had paid $ 25, it was a fair price. I had a ride within 5 mins and the app showed me a picture of the driver and his license plate number for safety.
The drive was polite, efficient and took the best route available.
For anyone complaining about the cost, remember to use the fare estimate option available. If you are complaining about surge pricing, remember you accepted this price and agreed to pay the cost before you took the ride. If surge pricing is in place, I do strongly encourage you to vote with your dollars and use Lyft, a taxi or Aces town car service instead.
I would have taken the Über directly from the airport; however, the Port Authority restricts what cars can pick up at the airport (anyone can drop off). A trick is to take a hotel shuttle (any of the many available) and catch the Über from there or take light rail to a transit hub like Westlake.
Thanks Über for a safe ride, fare estimates and a new option when you do not want to drive or pay high airport pricing charges.

So I don’t drive by choice, I usually walk or bus but there are times when I’m intoxicated or days when I just don’t want to walk so I use über. I use über a lot. How great would it be if all über drivers were great???
That sadly is not the case. Here I will shortly document the absolutely terrible situations I have been stuck in:
1. Contacted an Über from the Mercer Island Park and Ride, said he would be there in 5 minutes, took him 15 minutes. His car was disgusting. Dropped me off at the wrong bus station. I wrote about the experience and I got $ 5 credit. Okay, thanks.
2. I ordered an Über to get to a party at a certain time. The Über could not find my house and the über driver would call then abruptly hang up and this happened for a good 15 min so I finally said screw it and walked.
3. An Über picked me up in front of Pearl in Bellevue last weekend and took me to Beacon Hill. He fiest called me to ask me where I was going to make sure the drive was worth it. The driver was making me feel extremely uncomfortable, making comments about how people of his race date people of mine. Then he asked why I was going to a house so late at night and if the house had champagne waiting. Then he made me rate him right outside the house, I just wanted to leave so I rated him and got out but I kept on thinking during the ride, «am I going to end in am ditch somewhere?»
4. Another time I had a ride from my house to this same house on Beacon Hill and the driver took a super long route on purpose. I notified Über when I rated the driver and they recalculated the trip.
Where are the honest über drivers? How are they selected? How can they drive strangers when they are making uncomfortable comments? UBER, DO BETTER.