I am not sure if this is the right place to ask but I couldn't find a better place. Anyway, I have recently tried Uber and I believe many on this forum uses Uber. So I got a visa gift card and tried to use it on Uber but they couldn't verify my card. This happens only when the company collects unnecessary information about the individual. I had a similar problem when I tried to purchase a new cell phone with T mobile online. The reason was that T-mobile checks the identity at a higher level, which is required by the government. But why does Uber do the same? Is that required by the government? I started wondering how much information Uber collects and whether it is necessary...Does anyone know?

I've been using the visa gift card for a while and never had issues with taxi, train etc. Only Uber....

Companies routinely verify credit card information. Most gift cards can only have zip codes set - Uber requires a full billing address.

And, why would they take the chance that, after taking a ride, your gift card is empty?

Since Uber does not charge until the end of the ride, I can see their case for not accepting visa gifts cards, which are much more likely than regular card to be declined.

I would be more interested by how long they keep, and who can access your location details, trip origins and destination...

Uber has a posted privacy policy that should explain this:

https://www.uber.com/legal/privacy

Many merchants reject prepaid cards, and this often has nothing to do with identity verification but rather with the need to bill an initially unspecified amount.

Yeah, I agree with the others above. Uber doesn't accept gift cards for simple financial reasons. They don't want you hopping in their taxi with a $50 gift card on-file and enjoy a $150 ride. There is no hidden reason here.

Not to mention for the safety of their drivers; they want a little more data on ya than a gift card!

AFAIK, Uber has your credit card, full address, email address, and then I would imagine some sort of data via the app on your phone like your GPS coordinates when you request a ride etc.

But couldn't that also happen with a credit card? If you took a $150 ride with only $50 available balance on your credit card, would't Uber be just as screwed by the credit card user as by the prepaid debit card user? I don't get the double standard.

No double standard. I always see that Uber pre-authorizes my card before a charge.

Did you try calling them to ask if they could add the prepaid card to your account as first order of billing?

Uber don't do calls.

Ah, I forgot (here in China, they don't encourage calls, but they don't shy away from them either).