In 2016 we launched Uber’s first Peer Advisor Program in Seattle. This effort gives our driver-partners an opportunity to tap into the knowledge of highly rated peers and pass along feedback to the local Uber operations team.
Over the last several months, the network has grown to include over 1,000 driver-partners and 30 Peer Advisors.
We’ve already taken action on several suggestions shared through the program and we look forward to working with the driver community to continuously improve in the future.
Check out what we’ve recently accomplished together and sign up to join the network.
Taking action on your feedback
- We’ve made some policy changes on a national level to better support drivers. These changes lean toward giving you the benefit of the doubt, decreasing your time off the road in the event of an investigation, and accounting for your positive history as an Uber driver-partner when making decisions about your driving status. For example:
- You’ll have more of a say in fare adjustments, like mid-trip cancellations.
- When a rider claims they didn’t take a trip with you, we’ll use technology and your story to validate the claim to be sure you’re compensated.
- When a rider claims the driver they requested didn’t match their photo in the app, we’ll help you take a selfie to verify your identity instead of taking you off the road.
- We’ll take your driving history and longevity on the platform into account when reviewing claims like rider complaints on professionalism, unsafe driving, and more before we make a decision. We’ll also look at the rider’s history of making these complaints.
- To provide drivers with better support, we’ve opened a new Greenlight Hub in South Seattle with an onsite mechanic for inspections, free parking, and—for the first time ever in Seattle—Saturday hours.
- We’ve increased the minimum fare for Seattle riders from $4 to $4.50.
- We’ve created a fix so Seattle area driver-partners will no longer be inconvenienced by requests from across Lake Washington. This means you can avoid making the long trek around the lake or worrying about cancelling on riders.
- We’ve identified in-app bugs faster because they were reported by the Peer Advisor Program network. Examples include issues with surge and the queue at the airport, as well as navigation issues in Uber maps. When a Peer Advisor reports these issues, our engineers can begin working to fix them immediately.
- You’ve shared a lot of feedback about uberPOOL. We know improvement is needed and we’re working through some complex challenges that require extensive analysis, testing, and engineering power. You’ll continue to hear more from us about changes to uberPOOL, but in the meantime, we’ve acted on several of your suggestions:
- We’ve changed the way you see uberPOOL earnings in the app with the goal of making them easier to understand. We’ve also developed an online resource to increase transparency and understanding about how uberPOOL earnings are calculated.
- We’ve responded to driver concerns about too much contact with the app during trips as well as feedback about rider pressure to not accept new requests during trips by creating a feature that automatically adds riders.
- One of the concerns we’ve heard from driver-partners is about uberPOOL rider education. As a result, we’ve built and launched a robust rider education campaign with info on all of the ways uberPOOL differs from uberX and other products.
- In addition, we’ve offered Peer Advisor Program members access to focus groups on new products and product updates, participation in promotional opportunities like the AT&T Football rider promotion, Halloween at the Georgetown Morgue Haunted House, and the Goodwill Earth Day clothing drive.
What’s next for the program
- We’re revamping the Peer Advisor Program website so you’ll soon have access to more information about Peer Advisors, network perks, and our ongoing progress.
- We’ve created specific action committees for Peer Advisors, such as uberPOOL, partner support, and airport. This will help ensure your feedback reaches the right Uber operations team members as efficiently as possible.
- To improve our support for partners with diverse needs, we’ll be offering groups for hearing impaired drivers as well as the option to join preferred language groups.
- In addition, the Peer Advisor Program is now accessible to driver-partners in Bellingham and Olympia.
Stay tuned for more updates to come—and thanks again for your partnership!
-The Uber Seattle Operations Team
Posted by Travis
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