What, Uber charges disabled people fees for taking a while to get into their ride? Doesn't seem fair, says Uncle Sam
(2021/11/12)
- Reference: 1636671642
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2021/11/11/uber_slapped_with_a_federal/
- Source link:
The US government sued Uber this week, claiming the ride-hailing app giant unfairly charges disabled riders waiting fees if they need extra time to get into vehicles.
A surcharge is added on top of a ride fare if a passenger takes longer than two minutes to enter a vehicle after it arrives. Uber added wait time fees in some US cities in 2016 before expanding the policy across the country.
These fees, however, discriminate against people with mobility or visibility issues, federal prosecutors [1]argue . In one example in the government's lawsuit
[3]
The passenger noticed she was charged extra wait time fees. When she moved to Kentucky to take part in a clinical study and rehabilitation program me at a university, she took about ten Uber trips a week to get from her apartment to the facility and back. Those surcharges quickly racked up.
[4]
[5]
Although Uber has waived the fee for disabled riders in some cases if they complain, the surcharge is automatically added and drivers cannot control this. By doing so, the company has violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), prosecutors alleged. ADA was passed as a civil rights law by Congress in 1990.
“In violation of the ADA, Uber has failed to (1) ensure adequate vehicle boarding time for passengers with disabilities; (2) ensure equitable fares for passengers with disabilities; and (3) make reasonable modifications to its policies and practices of imposing wait time fees as applied to passengers who, because of disability, require more time to board the vehicle,” the paperwork stated.
[6]140,000-plus drivers sent $60m in compensation checks after Amazon 'stole their tips'
[7]Imagine a world in which Uber's hot new business is lending money
[8]DoorDash, Grubhub, Uber Eats sue NYC for trying to permanently cap delivery fees
[9]Uber drivers can now unionise after ride biz recognises GMB, one of the UK's largest trade unions
The US Department of Justice wants Uber to scrap its wait time fees for disabled passengers, to comply with ADA, and wants the Silicon Valley giant to cough up damages to those who have forked out for surcharges, as well as handing over a fine.
“People with disabilities deserve equal access to all areas of community life, including the private transportation services provided by companies like Uber,” [10]said Kristen Clarke, Assistant Attorney at the Justice Dept's civil rights division.
[11]
“This lawsuit seeks to bring Uber into compliance with the mandate of the Americans with Disabilities Act while sending a powerful message that Uber cannot penalize passengers with disabilities simply because they need more time to get into a car. Uber and other companies that provide transportation services must ensure equal access for all people, including those with disabilities.”
An Uber spokesperson told The Register the average wait time fee charged to riders last year was “less than 60 cents” per trip, and said wheelchair-accessible trips on Uber and Uber Assist trips do not have any wait time fees by default. These services, however, are only available in “select markets.”
“Wait time fees are charged to all riders to compensate drivers after two minutes of waiting, but were never intended for riders who are ready at their designated pickup location but need more time to get into the car," the spokesperson said.
We had been in active discussions with the Dept of Justice about how to address any concerns or confusion before this surprising and disappointing lawsuit
"We recognize that many riders with disabilities depend on Uber for their transportation needs, which is why we had been in active discussions with the DOJ about how to address any concerns or confusion before this surprising and disappointing lawsuit.
“It has been our policy to refund wait time fees for disabled riders whenever they alerted us that they were charged. After a recent change last week, now any rider who certifies they are disabled will have fees automatically waived. We fundamentally disagree that our policies violate the ADA and will keep improving our products to support everyone’s ability to easily move around their communities.”
Over in Brit land
Meanwhile, across the pond in the UK, for the first time since 2017, Uber is increasing ride fares by 10 per cent supposedly in an attempt to woo more drivers to its platform by offering higher payouts, and to counter increasing demand for the service. Fees may go up as high as 25 per cent to airports during peak times, [12]according to the Evening Standard. The UK Supreme Court [13]ruled in February that UK Uber drivers should be classified as employees and not contractors. ®
Get our [14]Tech Resources
[1] https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-sues-uber-overcharging-people-disabilities
[2] https://www.ada.gov/uber_comp.pdf
[3] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/personaltech&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2YY31DeM7rNNQkIyafW-JfQAAANc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[4] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/personaltech&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44YY31DeM7rNNQkIyafW-JfQAAANc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[5] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/personaltech&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33YY31DeM7rNNQkIyafW-JfQAAANc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[6] https://www.theregister.com/2021/11/03/amazon_drivers_tips/
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2021/09/15/grab_q2_2021/
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2021/09/10/nyc_delivery_lawsuit/
[9] https://www.theregister.com/2021/05/28/uber_gmb_union/
[10] https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-sues-uber-overcharging-people-disabilities
[11] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/personaltech&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44YY31DeM7rNNQkIyafW-JfQAAANc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[12] https://www.standard.co.uk/business/uber-raise-london-prices-10-percent-tomorrow-airport-rides-25-percent-b965515.html
[13] https://www.theregister.com/2021/02/20/uk_court_uber/
[14] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
A surcharge is added on top of a ride fare if a passenger takes longer than two minutes to enter a vehicle after it arrives. Uber added wait time fees in some US cities in 2016 before expanding the policy across the country.
These fees, however, discriminate against people with mobility or visibility issues, federal prosecutors [1]argue . In one example in the government's lawsuit
[2]PDF
, the DoJ refers to “Passenger A,” who has spinal cord injuries and needs a wheelchair to get around. When her Uber arrived, her wheelchair needed to be folded away into the vehicle, and a nursing assistant helped her into the car. The whole process took about five minutes.[3]
The passenger noticed she was charged extra wait time fees. When she moved to Kentucky to take part in a clinical study and rehabilitation program me at a university, she took about ten Uber trips a week to get from her apartment to the facility and back. Those surcharges quickly racked up.
[4]
[5]
Although Uber has waived the fee for disabled riders in some cases if they complain, the surcharge is automatically added and drivers cannot control this. By doing so, the company has violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), prosecutors alleged. ADA was passed as a civil rights law by Congress in 1990.
“In violation of the ADA, Uber has failed to (1) ensure adequate vehicle boarding time for passengers with disabilities; (2) ensure equitable fares for passengers with disabilities; and (3) make reasonable modifications to its policies and practices of imposing wait time fees as applied to passengers who, because of disability, require more time to board the vehicle,” the paperwork stated.
[6]140,000-plus drivers sent $60m in compensation checks after Amazon 'stole their tips'
[7]Imagine a world in which Uber's hot new business is lending money
[8]DoorDash, Grubhub, Uber Eats sue NYC for trying to permanently cap delivery fees
[9]Uber drivers can now unionise after ride biz recognises GMB, one of the UK's largest trade unions
The US Department of Justice wants Uber to scrap its wait time fees for disabled passengers, to comply with ADA, and wants the Silicon Valley giant to cough up damages to those who have forked out for surcharges, as well as handing over a fine.
“People with disabilities deserve equal access to all areas of community life, including the private transportation services provided by companies like Uber,” [10]said Kristen Clarke, Assistant Attorney at the Justice Dept's civil rights division.
[11]
“This lawsuit seeks to bring Uber into compliance with the mandate of the Americans with Disabilities Act while sending a powerful message that Uber cannot penalize passengers with disabilities simply because they need more time to get into a car. Uber and other companies that provide transportation services must ensure equal access for all people, including those with disabilities.”
An Uber spokesperson told The Register the average wait time fee charged to riders last year was “less than 60 cents” per trip, and said wheelchair-accessible trips on Uber and Uber Assist trips do not have any wait time fees by default. These services, however, are only available in “select markets.”
“Wait time fees are charged to all riders to compensate drivers after two minutes of waiting, but were never intended for riders who are ready at their designated pickup location but need more time to get into the car," the spokesperson said.
We had been in active discussions with the Dept of Justice about how to address any concerns or confusion before this surprising and disappointing lawsuit
"We recognize that many riders with disabilities depend on Uber for their transportation needs, which is why we had been in active discussions with the DOJ about how to address any concerns or confusion before this surprising and disappointing lawsuit.
“It has been our policy to refund wait time fees for disabled riders whenever they alerted us that they were charged. After a recent change last week, now any rider who certifies they are disabled will have fees automatically waived. We fundamentally disagree that our policies violate the ADA and will keep improving our products to support everyone’s ability to easily move around their communities.”
Over in Brit land
Meanwhile, across the pond in the UK, for the first time since 2017, Uber is increasing ride fares by 10 per cent supposedly in an attempt to woo more drivers to its platform by offering higher payouts, and to counter increasing demand for the service. Fees may go up as high as 25 per cent to airports during peak times, [12]according to the Evening Standard. The UK Supreme Court [13]ruled in February that UK Uber drivers should be classified as employees and not contractors. ®
Get our [14]Tech Resources
[1] https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-sues-uber-overcharging-people-disabilities
[2] https://www.ada.gov/uber_comp.pdf
[3] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/personaltech&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2YY31DeM7rNNQkIyafW-JfQAAANc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[4] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/personaltech&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44YY31DeM7rNNQkIyafW-JfQAAANc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[5] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/personaltech&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33YY31DeM7rNNQkIyafW-JfQAAANc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[6] https://www.theregister.com/2021/11/03/amazon_drivers_tips/
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2021/09/15/grab_q2_2021/
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2021/09/10/nyc_delivery_lawsuit/
[9] https://www.theregister.com/2021/05/28/uber_gmb_union/
[10] https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-sues-uber-overcharging-people-disabilities
[11] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/personaltech&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44YY31DeM7rNNQkIyafW-JfQAAANc&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[12] https://www.standard.co.uk/business/uber-raise-london-prices-10-percent-tomorrow-airport-rides-25-percent-b965515.html
[13] https://www.theregister.com/2021/02/20/uk_court_uber/
[14] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
eldakka
This is a deliberate tactic by Uber.
I mean, how hard would it be to add a 'disabled passenger' button on the drivers app that a driver can just press when they realise it's a disabled passenger, thus waiving the waiting fee?
A Non e-mouse
They're following the budget airline model where what you think is included in the price (e.g. time to get into the vehicle) is actually an optional extra. Uber will be charging for carrying luggage in the boot/trunk next.
Yet Another Anonymous coward
The business model is not to give the driver any autonomy
They could simply add a disabled field to the account signup - with a sufficently involved process to ensure nobody ever manages it.
RTFA
A Non e-mouse
The UK Supreme Court ruled in February that UK Uber drivers should be classified as employees and not contractors
No. The Supremem Court ruled that the drivers who brought the case should be classed as employees. This had zero impact on any other Uber drivers (or any other gig-economy workers)
Yeah that's not cool
Henry Wertz 1
Yeah that's not cool. You would hope it would have not had to come to a lawsuit, that they should have distinguished from the start between people screwing around and not getting in the car (... or actively saying "Hey could you wait 5 or 10 minutes") and people having trouble getting into the car. I'd hope if someone had that much trouble that it takes over 2 minutes to get in the car that the driver would offer to help, but I do realize maybe they won't.
See no Uber, hear no Uber, speak no Uber
See title