This Woman Refused To Give An Uber Driver Her Number, This Is How He Got Back At Her
Oct. 8 2018, Updated 10:38 p.m. ET
There are two types of cab drivers: those who talk to you from the moment you get into the car and those who don't say a word, even if you strike up a conversation with them.
I'm the kind of person who doesn't really mind talking to a cabbie. I'd imagine that passing the time while driving around all day can be a challenge. And if you're transporting humans to different for hours on end, I'd like to think that you generally like people.
That being said, I totally get people who would prefer that their cab driver stay completely silent, because almost every single one of us has had a strange interaction with a driver who's been a total weirdo.
Women, especially, attract some creepy Uber drivers who definitely violate the user agreement, like this lady who accidentally left her wallet in a guy's car.
From the looks of their exchange, it seems like she got her wallet back, but this dude was expecting much more, especially because he was a "nice guy."
Sadly, the internet's filled with examples of creepy texts from Uber drivers, which is troubling to say the least, but there are some drivers who still manage to harass and annoy women who want nothing to do with them romantically even when they don't get a hold of their phone numbers.
Reddit user pennyandthejets shared her story of taking an Uber one night and how her driver reacted when she refused to give him her digits.
Last night I got an Uber home from the bar I was at with my boyfriend and friends. I was alone, and the driver seemed nice. We talked about bars we like, our jobs, and where we are from. Then he asked for my number so we could hang out. I didn’t give it to him.
Today, I got a message saying I had been reported for inappropriate behavior. I reported the incident to Uber because I felt it was extremely unprofessional and it made me feel unsafe. Has this happened to anyone else??
There's no shame in asking somebody out. Sure, it doesn't feel good to be "rejected," but when they're not interested, you accept it and move on. That's life.
But if you're driving someone around, it's probably best to not make them feel awkward, because they're probably just being nice as a courtesy. Then to go and "report" that rider for inappropriate behavior because they're not into you is just messed up.
Other redditors are reporting that their Uber drivers have gone so far as stalking them after casual conversations during their rides.
I once had my Uber driver stalk me. I was alone in the car just striking up friendly conversation, and he was from the town that I worked in. When he said he was from here, I just nonchalantly said oh yeah I work at ‘work place’ there!
The next few weeks were awful. He showed up at my work...kept calling our phone. He stopped after about a month but still. I had our security guy walk me to my car every night cause he was so creepy.
- v_jax
The pre-emptive "report for inappropriate behavior revenge" is a common motif amongst salty drivers, it seems like.
This happened to my wife. She took an Uber one night so she could go drink with her friends. When she got home she told me that her driver had been flirting with her the whole drive home, and when she got home he had asked her if he could give her his phone number. She told him she was married, and he left.
We both agreed that she is so awesome that people are going to want to flirt with her occasionally. We both had a good laugh and went to bed.
The next morning she noticed that she had an alert from Uber informing her that her driver had reported her for vehicle damage and inappropriate behavior. She was suspended from using Uber Black. We filed a report right back. Uber got with her that same day, took her statement, apologized and we never heard anything else about it.
They reinstated her ability to use Black again.
I have NO idea what resolution came from this, if anything actually happened to that driver or not. I just thought I'd let you know that you are not alone, this has happened to other women too.
Some of the stories are really, really scary.
I took a lyft alone to the airport at 2am. He asked me if I wanted to take a nap. After chatting me up for a while and texting someone he said he needed to pick up something but it would be quick. He pulled off the interstate and asked me how old I was. I told him 30 and he feverishly texted. He pulled the lyft sign out of his dash. Another man was in the parking lot. He walked by. “Don’t worry, I’m not robbing you, my friend.” He then got back on the interstate and we didn’t speak the rest of the way.
Yeah, I reported it and not a damn thing happened. Never take a ride alone from a stranger at night. Thank the Lord I was too old.
- Wensdae
It's not just Uber and Lyft drivers who are engaging in creepiness, either, there are stories of regular old taxi service employees going above and beyond in the creeper department to harass female passengers.
I had a similar experience, in that they were highly inappropriate, however this was with a local taxi firm in my home town. I had booked my taxi on my online app on my phone, and the driver can see my number to communicate with me, if he needs to for whatever reason. This has never been something that concerned me.
However, one night a friend and I got a taxi back from a bar, as usual I had booked it on my phone. Anyway, the taxi driver was being a little creepy, but we just ignored him and made minimal conversation, however, he was getting worse and worse, and making really inappropriate comments. We were both pretty glad to get out of the taxi and go home. The following day, I got a text off a number I didn't have saved in my phone, basically saying he was the taxi driver from last night, and thought I was very attractive and wanted to go for a drink with me. Within about 5 minutes he had text again, and again after that, being generally very creepy. I put a complaint in instantly as taking my number of his booking app and putting it into his own personal phone was at the very least at breech of data protection, not to mention extremely creepy. It was not a pleasant experience and made me feel very anxious about getting taxis alone for a while.
It turns out drivers supposedly "report" riders as a form of petty revenge for just about anything - like not being able to find a passenger in a timely manner.
UGH ugh ugh. I'm so sorry he did that. I've never experienced that personally, but this past week I think an Uber driver reported my fiancé for canceling a ride. We waited like 10 minutes for him at the airport and could see on the map the whole time that he was just sitting there, not moving anywhere. My fiancé canceled the ride and paid the fee but requested it back, and lo and behold - the next day he gets an email saying he was reported by a driver for a "disturbing encounter" and if it happens again he'll be banned from the app. He responded to the report, so hopefully they'll fix it, but still really annoying.
Some Uber and Lyft drivers joined in on the conversation and offered some perspective into how the "reporting" system works for both drivers and passengers.
I am not 100% sure but i would bet if you complain about any Uber driver they would never match your account up with that driver again. If you use a friend's phone number and a different credit card you may run the risk of getting that driver again. It sucks to get someone who comes on to you but the companies (UBER & LIFT) are getting better at screening drivers and twerking software to avoid conflicts. Sometimes people complain because they get a shit ride or are just having a bad day and the driver is not to blame but the creepers always show repeating patterns over time so lodge a complaint just so Uber can flag names and behavior. I am sure some passengers hit on drivers too so reporting people who behave oddly (or creepy) is a way to protect both passengers and drivers.
As a noncreepy (female) Uber driver (and rider), thanks for taking the time to report it! I don’t think they do anything on the first flag (unless there was a legal issue like an assault or rape), but they do ban drivers for repeated issues. Reporting bad drivers helps us good ones keep money in our pockets! Uber can be a really dope concept and experience if the rating/reporting system is used constantly.
It's been a little over a year since CEO Dara Khosrowshahi was put in charge of Uber, and a big part of his plan to improve the company is working on customer service related issues. Which hopefully means drivers get it through their heads that hitting on people and being generally creepy is not OK.
