jamesteroh

You do see the drivers rating when they accept the ride and AFAIK you can cancel right away without a penalty. If you don't like the rating then just cancel and request another uber. You admitted in the first post that you never tip an Uber driver so if they see you have a low rating they probably figure they aren't going to get a tip and that may be why you are getting no help with your luggage. If you have the cash tip out when they arrive at the airport or hotel in hand, then they'll be a lot more likely to help you with your luggage.

Rcasti

Uber driver here. We rate the rider before we know whether or not they tipped (I have never once been tipped cash).

To be honest, less than 25% of riders tip and of them, most are no more than $2.

It's nice getting a tip but I pretty much always assume I'm not getting one.

Global Adventurer

Only $2.00???! That's shameful I tip drivers in the USA at least $5.00USDand in Mexico 50-100 MXN ($2.50 - $5.00USD). If they helped with luggage or went a short cut to get out of a major traffic jam may tip more.

Eastbay1K

Why is it shameful on a short ride? Sometimes my rides are $10 or so. Better to tip nothing? It isn't like leaving a penny on the table for the server you didn't like. It doesn't seem like my tipping and/or lack thereof depending on circumstance affects my rating, which has hovered in the 4.87 - 4.88 range for ages. What has affected my rating was asking a driver to pull up about 20 feet on a street so I could cross at a safe place as there was a barrier preventing crossing where he originally wanted to drop me off. I saw him giving me a 1 while departing the vehicle.

Global Adventurer

Short ride? How about a ride from the airport to the hotel across the street? I still tipped $5.00. But tipping is a personal decision and I do it to show my appreciation, especially if it is the ONLY way for me to transport myself. Uber was especially useful when all the hotels stopped shuttle bus service. My only other option was to walk with all my luggage or call a cab and wait for it to arrive whenever (and I mean whenever), and charge twice as much as Uber and my tip. Been there and done that.

Visconti

As with most of you, if the driver assists with my luggage, I'll tip at least $5 in cash, but never via the app. If the driver remains seated, I'll forgo the tip. My rating's at around 4.9, and has been so for ages.

Global Adventurer

My score hovers around 4.95-4.98. What I have noticed is tips that are via the app are sent to the driver about an hour after the fact. By then the driver already rated you based on just your demeanor. If they decide to increase your rating they can but by then they're busy transporting more passengers. That's why I tip cash before they rate me.

My score was 4.95 and I took about 4 Ubers in 2 days and tipped cash and my current score is 4.98. Unfortunately it won't get back to 5.0 because some terrible Uber driver wearing PAJAMAS wanted a cash tip and all I had was a few dollars cash on me even though I tipped him in the app later, he never changed the rating. He was the only driver that gave me a 1 rating on my account under the settings menu.

So tipping cash helps to keep your score from dropping. It's unfortunate but that's the way it is.

Auto Enthusiast

Some drivers might have disabilities that make it difficult to quickly hop out of the car and lift your luggage into the trunk.

jamesteroh

Should they be doing airport/hotel runs if that is the case? I had a 5 lb weight restriction on my one arm for a few months and needed the driver to put my carryon on in the trunk and retrieve unless they wanted me to risk banging up the paint tryin to put it in and retrievig it with just one arm.

Auto Enthusiast

If the app doesn't show the destination until after the ride is accepted, and the driver gets dinged for refusing or canceling rides offered, maybe they feel like they have no choice. Imagine if you were the driver while you didn't have full use of your arm for a while, and needed to stay on the platform for your income.

jamesteroh

Not sure how a driver would handle it if they have mobility issues and have a passener that has weight restrictions on ftheir arm or mobility issues. Not sure if they are even required to handle passengers luggage like a cab or shuttle driver or if most drivers just do it in hopes of a decent tip and to help the customer out.

Fortunately when I had weight bearing restrictions in Oct to last month, I only had two trips and the uber drivers helped me with my bags on those two trips. I was still able to lift my carryon with my good hand but didn't want tor risk scratching up their paint.

Even if the driver has mobility issues and can't assist with bags, then they shouldn't expect the same kind of tip.

lamphs

Re: my rating. I have a 4.95 rating with Uber. I never realized I had a rating until I had a casual conversation with a driver in DC who told me that he won't accept a ride for someone who has a rating of less than 4.75.

Re: tipping/luggage. I really only use Uber/Lyft under two conditions - airport (where I always have at least one checked bag if not two) or going around DC (I usually park at the DC/MD border and then either use a ride or Metro depending on where I park and my destination. IME, the only driver's that assist with bags are those with the nicer cars. I really don't need the assistance (and I am careful with my car as well as other's cars), but it it nice. I generally tip $5 for that, but for a basic point to point ride, I usually only tip $1, maybe $2.

Now I have a rant/question, but checking for other threads to see if the question is answered elsewhere.

vanillabean

I have no idea whether my 10% Uber tipping has affected my 5.0 Uber rating. I just figured my pleasant demeanor and good looks are a factor. It's not like I'm big on the Uber business model, too unregulated for my taste. What do the drivers do for heath insurance or retirement savings? But I happened to get the Amex Platinum card and wanted to try out its various offerings, and a $15 off per month is one of them. And Uber has surely nailed the network concept and the app, and I do appreciate tipping after the service rather than before. Also, I see now that "A Uber passenger rated with a single star will have a hard time getting picked up by a driver, so there's a strong incentive to be on one's best behavior. (The driver rates the passenger before seeing the tip, although I'm guessing a lot of customers don't realize that.)"