Woman Reveals Uber is Charging More Than the Initial Cost of Rides in the Name of Dynamic Pricing

People taking flights and cabs on a regular basis are no strangers to the concept of demand affecting ticket rates and surge pricing making rides more expensive. As the concept of dynamic pricing gains traction, customers have given mixed reactions to it in social media debates. A user (@dollfacemcgee) posted a video about how Uber charged her more and named the phenomenon "dynamic pricing." She started her video by warning the viewers and informing them that Uber might quote one price but charge a different one after the ride. She continued by sharing her experience when she decided to book an Uber for home and the ride was for $14.95. But just when she was about to pay, the app charged her $43 for the ride. She further explains, “On my bank statement, it says that they charged me $14.95, then they took it, gave it back, and then charged me the $43." 

She got baffled by the prices and contacted Uber who told them about the temporarily introduced concept of 'dynamic pricing'. She explains in her video, “Basically, the way it sounds, it sounds like they’re trying to get people to drive. Like, they’re trying to get Uber drivers to actually want to drive, so they up the price." She further adds, "They show you a price, but then they show the people who are going to drive a different price, and then they pay them that price out of your pocket." She ended the video, saying, “But the ride was supposed to be $14 and some change. You charged me $43 and so you gave me 10 bucks back. So, you still charged me $30 for a $14 ride." She was infuriated by the company's change of policy and further mentioned that she already uses Lyft for most rides. 

Reacting to the video, @sday0701gmailcomSuzanne commented, "Dynamic pricing is when they charge more because of demand. Wendy’s is gonna start doing also, kinda like airlines." @Daisy added, "Same thing happened to me. $15 ride turned to $40 because of traffic and the driver took an alternate route. I tried to dispute it; they wouldn't let me. I immediately canceled my account and switched." @Jon wrote, "Wendy’s just tried dynamic pricing and quickly realized it was a bad idea." 

@Nikkie commented, "This happened with my teenager. My kid has a teen account. I couldn’t take him to school one morning, the ride was $20.19 and they charged me $66. Card dispute." @aaaaaa.24 chimed in saying, "Happened to me the other day. Had about 12 charges from Uber starting from $1-$14. For Ubers, I never took. In total, about $150 taken out of my account." @Maya K commented, "Girl, I be checking my receipts from them 20 times because they be saying one thing and charging another. They charge me the price then be adding a couple dollars and cents later on!"

Some suggested that she should take action if Uber was at fault and has still not settled the amount.

You can follow Pepperoncini P (@dollfacemcgee) for more such videos.