Driver Safety | Page 2 of 4

by John Ince on May 29, 2017 39 Comments

Is it Better to Drive During the Day or at Night?

Harry here. In general, I’ve found it better to work at night, especially weekend nights, because you can usually guarantee on bar hoppers and club goers to request an Uber or Lyft ride all throughout the night. However, not everyone can (or wants to) drive at night, so today, senior RSG contributor John Ince compares day time driving to nighttime driving to see which one truly comes out on top.

Haven’t started driving yet and considering signing up? Check out my “Guide to Uber Driving” here and my “Ultimate Guide to Driving for Lyft” here to see if it’s right for you!

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Fair is the official vehicle partner for Uber and is a great medium to long term option for drivers in need of an eligible rideshare vehicle. Get $100 off the start-up fee when you use the code 'RSG100'. Click here to sign-up!

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by Will Preston on April 24, 2017 15 Comments

How to Handle a Passenger Who Scares You

Harry here. Driver safety is a real issue, especially for those of us who drive late at night. And even though the odds of something happening are low, since Uber does millions of trips a day, it’s always best to be prepared. Today, RSG contributor Will Preston recounts a recent ‘scary’ experience and what he could have done to handle it better.

Have you ever wondered what you would do, or what you should do, if a passenger sets off your Spidey sense? I had a situation last weekend that put me in this position. At the time I thought I handled it all right, but now I know I could’ve handled better. Worse, I almost handled it really poorly – based on what the sheriff’s department said when I spoke to them.

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by Harry Campbell on February 28, 2017 4 Comments

RSG052: Ben Branam on Staying Safe While Driving

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There are countless stories of rideshare safety incidents in the media these days and driver safety is a topic I get a lot of questions about from new drivers. And even though the odds of something happening while driving are low since Uber does millions of trips a day, it’s still a real fear for some drivers.

Today’s guest is an Uber and Lyft driver and safety expert. Ben Branam has devoted his entire career to various driving and protection type jobs. He’s served in the military, driven big rigs and now runs a blog and podcast all about self protection.

If you’d like to read a transcript of this podcast, please click here.

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by Christian Perea on February 9, 2017 5 Comments

GetDismissed Allows You To Fight Traffic Tickets From Your Couch

Harry here, We’ve partnered up with GetDismissed.com to help drivers fight traffic tickets in California. Today, senior RSG contributor Christian Perea covers a basic strategy for fighting tickets in CA. If you would like to sign up for their service using our link, you can save $10 by using the code RSG10.

Traffic tickets suck, but I’m sure I don’t need to tell you that. It always seems that I spend an entire day on the road watching other people break traffic laws: speeding, texting, stopping in the red zone, swerving in lanes while checking their Facebook status and all with no interference from the cops!

In fact, I once tried to let a cop into traffic as he was trying to exit a Shell station. Traffic was bumper to bumper and nobody would let him in. I waved for him to go since I’m a nice guy (and prefer that he be in front of me). He then waved for me to go first and once I did, the cop pulled me over for having an “illegal light” which just so happened to by my Lyft Glowstache. It took him 45 minutes to write the ticket, and my passengers and I watched Dodgeball in my car while he tried to figure out what law I broke.

Not the actual cop.

(FYI, Lyft may pay this ticket for you if you call their Trust and Safety Line and it’s not a moving violation.)

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by John Ince on February 8, 2017 24 Comments

Is It Safe To Drive For Uber and Lyft?

Harry here. It seems like there’s no shortage of scary stories in the news about safety issues for Uber drivers. Today, RSG senior contributor John Ince takes a look at just how safe being a rideshare driver can be and what drivers should do to be prepared just in case.

By now most drivers have heard about the Taco Bell executive who attacked his Uber driver in a now infamous Youtube clip. But in case you missed that one, the Taxicab, Limousine & Paratransit Association (TLPA) has created the website, Who’s Driving You?

It’s obviously biased, but it paints a pretty damaging image of safety with a long list of frightening incidents. Whenever Uber or Lyft are pressed on the safety issue, they reflexively respond with a refrain that goes something like, the number of such incidents is very small in comparison to the millions of rides given every day.

But as the ridesharing platforms grow, they’re also expanding into socioeconomic sectors and regions that are prone to higher crime rates. In addition, Uber’s decision to test out cash payments in Colorado has raised concerns among many drivers. Due to all of this, many drivers rightly wonder whether this gig is really as safe as Uber and Lyft want us to think it is.

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