When a reader asked us to cover this, I knew this article would be fun to write—and there’d be no lack of content.
It’s impossible to write this article without feedback from you, the readers! We asked: “What do you HATE most about driving for Uber/Lyft?” on our Facebook Page (be sure to like our page!) and just let the hate roll in. If it’s one thing the internet is good for, it’s finding a common ground to hate things.
Below is a list of the reasons drivers gave for hating driving for Uber and Lyft, ranked in the order of most hated (based on the data collected on Facebook and Reddit, and ranked as objectively as possible by me).
Now obviously, it’s not all bad driving for Uber and Lyft, and Harry and the team here have made it pretty clear that we feel strongly that the positives outweigh the negatives, but sometimes it does feel good to vent, right? 🙂
1. Not being paid fairly
This one was brought up the most. Most drivers out there seem to feel like their pay is not up to par with the services they are providing and what they have to put up with on a daily basis.
A lot of the issues on this list boil down to the overarching issue of not being paid enough.
One reader on Facebook mentioned that Lyft’s lack of transparency on pricing is his biggest issue with the app company. And for Uber, it’s just the pricing in general.
Another said, “That Uber/Lyft take about 40%-60% of the fare (if you include booking fee, other fees).”
Curious about Uber’s take rate? We looked into it here: How Much is Uber Really Taking From Drivers?
2. Pay cuts
To go along with the poor pay are the seemingly constant pay cuts. Drivers all over the country have seen cuts to their rate cards.
It seems to happen every year, at least once a year, if not more.
3. Uber and Lyft
Another common response was the problem is the companies themselves. Some elaborated while others simply said “Uber” or “Lyft”.
One person on Reddit described Uber as the “overseer to control you.”
Another, in part, stated, “…knowing the company I’m associated with is as dirty as they come, using algorithms to jack prices by creating the illusion there is a driver shortage by making drivers drive further to reach the passenger.”
On Facebook, on responder said, in part, “…Uber not giving a s*** about people who make them money.”
Another replied, “The fact that they will over saturate the market with drivers, leaving us worried about how you’re going to pay off a $30,000 car in 2 years, when you have 6 years of car payments, because they don’t care for those who devoted themselves to them. They don’t care if their full-time drivers do well, they don’t care if you’re 1 of 20 other drivers in the same street, as long as they are making money.”
4. Broken destination filter
A common gripe is the destination filters and how they work—or more realistically, don’t work.
One commenter on Reddit stated, “Out of the 5x I’ve tried the filters, only ONE time it kind of worked – I still went 20 mins out of my way, but at least I was compensated since the customer took their sweet time to cancel the ride after the 2 mins.”
Another agreed and said, “I’ll filter it to my house, and they’ll give me a pickup right by my house 😑”
While the filters don’t seem to work for some, others want more filters!
One person said, “I hate limited destination filters. Today I set it to go home, it then made the drive “14” minutes (actually 30 minutes) to pick up pax to drive back 30 minutes to within a mile to where I just was… great. I called Uber to see if they could give me another destination filter, sure enough no one answered so I drove home 25 miles with it off.”
5. Not seeing destination info
On the other end of the destination spectrum, we have the issue that you cannot see the destination of your passenger until you pick them up. This is a hot topic among Uber and Lyft drivers.
On Reddit, one person stated, “If it would give info like Uber eats does, I’d be able to maximize profit! Even the info they give if you get to gold level is not nearly as useful as the one they give for Eats. And gold status is obviously not worth it anyway as then I’d have to accept most rides.”
In response to that, one person even said that if Uber actually paid fairly, they wouldn’t mind so much about not seeing the destination info.
6. Dealing with “support”
For starters, support can be difficult to reach, and then difficult to explain the situation to, and then they might just stop responding without fixing the issue.
One person even said, “Customer service was always bad, but it truly went downhill after the pandemic happened.”
On Facebook, a reader responded, “Dealing with the unhelpful email support team who only know how to copy/paste canned responses that do not resolve the issue. And phone support isn’t much better, especially when the issue still doesn’t get resolved.”
Need to get in touch with Uber? How to Contact Uber When You Need Help
Here’s how to contact Lyft: Best Ways to Contact Lyft Customer Service
7. Long pickups with no compensation
This has been more of a Lyft issue than Uber from what I’ve heard and experienced, but the lack of compensation for long pickups is a big issue for people. One reason drivers don’t like long pickups (aside from the pay) is they don’t know where their passenger is going, making it even less worthwhile to take the trip.
As one person said, “I went 10 mins to a pax that literally went across the street because it was raining.”
Another stated this: “Probably the single reason why I never turn the Lyft app on and only drove for Uber for the past year.”
In my personal experience, I’ve done a 30 minute pickup before to only drive the passenger about 7 minutes/3 miles to their home. It was a scheduled ride and it auto-queued for me while I was dropping someone off at the airport. I was able to contest it with Lyft and got $10 compensation, but to have to do that every time would be a pain, and likely Lyft would stop paying it out after a while.
8. Dealing with stupid people
This is an easy one. It can range anywhere from dealing with passengers who are in a bad mood or who are trying to work the system, to other drivers on the road cutting you off or just being plain stupid.
9. Non-tippers
This one kind of goes hand in hand with the “being treated like a chauffeur” one. It’s often the passengers that want/expect the most out of you that will not tip.
On Reddit, one responder said the reason they hate driving for Lyft is: “How little I get paid for people to act entitled to behave anyway they want in my car and then not tip.”
One phrase that has earned the hate of most drivers is “I’ll tip you on the app.” When that phrase is used by a passenger, it almost 100% means you will never see a tip from that passenger.
Should drivers tip fellow drivers? Yes! Drivers, You Should Tip Your Fellow Drivers!
10. Drunks
We’ve all been there. It’s a Friday night (or a Sunday around noon—thanks football) and you’ve got a drunk person in the car.
Drunks can range from being passed out, to being way too rambunctious, to throwing up all over your vehicle. There are occasionally good drunks that just make the drive entertaining for the next 15 minutes, but more often than not you get the idiots you don’t want to deal with who end up ruining your car in some way.
One of our respondents actually said the thing they like least about driving for Uber/Lyft is: “Drunks burping and farting in the car.”
Gross.
11. Pickup reassignments (mostly Lyft)
One person laid this one out on the Lyft Driver Reddit:
Auto add to que & Pick-up REASSIGNMENTS.
And here I thought I was an INDEPENDENT CONTRACTOR?
ME: Job Accepted – I agree to pick-up passenger ‘X’ at location ‘X’
LYFT: Great we have reassigned you to pickup passenger ‘Y’ at location ‘Y’
Say what? How is this even legal??
This is something I’ve dealt with too. I was literally 2 blocks away from my passenger when I was reassigned to a different passenger another 8 minutes in the opposite direction. I don’t see how this is beneficial for anyone.
12. Auto add to queue
This feature bugs me on a personal level. I’ve had passengers auto added to my queue on Lyft and after I complete a job, they just aren’t there.
Then 10 minutes later when I’m driving around looking for a better spot to sit and, wait! I notice that there’s a job in the queue and a passenger is waiting and wondering why I’m aimlessly driving away from them.
Other drivers disagree with the auto adding because they don’t get to check the ride to see if it’s one they would have accepted in the first place. It’s added without your permission.
13. Unfair deactivations
One of the Facebook respondents said, “GETTING DEACTIVATED FOR YEARLY BACKGROUND CHECK FOR NO REASON !!! BS!!!”
Here’s our advice on How to Fight an Unfair Deactivation from Uber or Lyft.
If it’s specific to your background check, listen to Harry’s podcast on Fighting False Background Checks for Uber and Lyft Drivers to learn how to combat that deactivation.
14. Lack of respect
Generally speaking, there is an inherent lack of respect toward Uber and Lyft drivers. This can come from the passengers, your peers or family members, or even the companies themselves.
As for the companies, they disrespect drivers on the part of wages as well as how they provide the information to drivers. One person on Reddit said, “12 mins to 20 mins pings away is a lack of respect. It must be ignored all the time no matter what.”
And as for the passengers, we hear situations like this: “Passengers being disrespectful with my car. Why would anyone think it’s ok to put chewed gum on the door?”
The passengers should treat our cars like they’d want their cars to be treated. They’re our everyday vehicles as well as what we use for work. Just stop.
15. App issues/glitches
Unfortunately, this one isn’t going to go away. With technology comes glitches and issues. Of course, how the companies handle the issues is of concern.
For instance, if the app is down, not allowing drivers to go online, that’s taking away from our ability to work and earn money.
But will there ever be compensation for something like that? No. Partially because there’s no way to prove that you were actually intending to go online, and there’s no way to show how much you may have earned during that time period.
16. Dealing with other drivers who break or bend the rules
If another driver doesn’t enforce the rule of “no children without car seats” it’s harder for the rest of us to enforce it.
It could be the passenger genuinely doesn’t believe they need a carseat because their previous 5 drivers never said a word about it. Granted, I would think a parent would worry about the safety of their child, especially in a stranger’s vehicle, but maybe that’s just me.
Wondering how to diffuse the ‘you need a car seat’ situation with passengers? Check out our article here: How to Handle Providing Car Seats for Children
17. Customers who cheat the system
This kind of goes along with the drivers who break or bend the rules. Some passengers try to squeeze too many people into a vehicle. And this is partially because other drivers may have allowed it.
There are also customers who cancel while en route. As one reader states “The fact that the customer is allowed to cancel the trip while in transit to cheat the driver – it’s wrong!”
18. Pedestrians and cyclists
“Pedestrians and cyclists in dark clothing with no reflectors/lights at night.”
I 100% agree that people should make it clear to drivers that they are there. It’s so dangerous in unlit or poorly lit areas where pedestrians just decide to cross the road in front of you and you didn’t even know they were there to begin with.
I’ve also had to deal with drunk pedestrians downtown crossing wherever they want to because they are drunk and don’t care. Definitely frustrating.
Of course, this is a problem for all drivers, not just rideshare drivers. It just highlights how, while rideshare driving might not be ‘rocket science’, it does take a certain level of skill.
Especially at night, drivers have to be extra vigilant, pay attention, and be ready to stop quickly in the case of a pedestrian or bicycle crossing (even if they don’t have the right of way!)
19. Harder to be approved for mortgages/loans
On Reddit, one respondent said, “Lack of benefits? How do you apply for a mortgage with rideshare driving as main income?”
It can be a lot harder to obtain a loan when you are self-employed/contract worker. You don’t have the steady paycheck that a W-2 worker sees on a regular basis. We’re considered more of a risk, but it doesn’t have to be impossible.
There are some companies out there that are willing to take the risk and give us loans and mortgages and all that. One such company that is helping with that is Argyle. Check out what they can do for rideshare drivers here.
I recently got pre-approved for a mortgage. Granted, I have a W-2 as well as contracting. But for the contract work I do, I needed to show my previous two years of tax returns and prove that I’m growing my contract income as opposed to losing money year over year.
Once they understood and saw that I was, in fact, making money as an independent contractor, I was approved for a higher loan than I would have with just my W-2 income.
Read more about how rideshare taxes work here: Your Guide to Rideshare Taxes
20. Lack of bathrooms
I feel this one. The porta-potties at the airport are disgusting and never cleaned out. I don’t want to spend money at a gas station every time I have to go to the bathroom. There are just no free, clean bathrooms out there for a driver in need.
On Reddit, this driver said, “Not being able to find someplace safe and clean to pee. Being a female driver, this is the very WORST part of driving.”
I’ve definitely been in that boat before. It is not fun.
21. Bad GPS
The Uber and Lyft GPS systems are notoriously bad.
One person shared, “The sh*tty GPS that only registers the back of buildings and leads me down sketchy alleys and that has me driving to the left for three locks just to get to the same destination that I would have gotten to if I just went up the street.”
To that, someone said, “The GPS follows garbage truck routes, that’s why.”
And more specific to the Uber map, this person said, “Basic example. Uber maps doesn’t show tolls. I mean what type of car mapping system doesn’t show tolls? So many others … pick-up pin drops away from customer cluster areas, “surges” on lakes and airport runways…”
22. Limited to one area of driving
For the most part, drivers are pretty limited in where they can drive, depending on the market. For example, I live in the Twin Cities in Minnesota which is not all that far from the Wisconsin border.
If I drop off a passenger in Wisconsin, though, I will not be able to pick up someone heading back to Minnesota. I can’t go on the app at all until I’m back within the border lines of Minnesota.
23. Being treated generically
The companies don’t seem to treat us drivers like much of anything. No matter how hard someone tries, no matter how high their rating is, no matter how great customer service the driver provides…it all seems to mean nothing.
There’s no distinction among drivers – a 4.9 star driver with 10,000 rides and hundreds of glowing compliments can be deactivated and discarded just as easily as a brand new driver with a 4.6 rating and 0 compliments. Yet who’s put in more time and is probably more invested as a driver?
24. Being treated like a chauffeur
Someone responded on Facebook stating, “People using me as their chauffeur, expecting me to stop at 2 different places on their way home from work.”
On the one hand, chauffeurs are not much different from drivers for Uber and Lyft, but on the other, we’re not paid anything like an actual chauffeur would be paid. If you want that kind of special treatment, kindly pay for it.
25. The logo is pink (Lyft only)
I mean, it’s not the most neutral color.
Bonus: Look on the bright side
I’m including this here because it was one of the few things that really stood out during this research:
“I just try to concentrate on the driving and not on the hate🤷♂️”
What Do You Hate or Love About Driving for Uber or Lyft?
While we wanted to highlight what drivers gripe about when it comes to driving for Uber/Lyft, plenty of you will probably respond with “I like the flexibility! I like earning on my own schedule! It’s the perfect job for retirees!” and we definitely agree!
As with any job, there are pros and cons. No job is perfect, and everyone eventually will have something to complain about – even if the job itself is overall good.
So let us know – what did you think of this list? Agree or disagree? Were we too easy (or too hard!) on Uber and Lyft?
-Paula @ RSG
