We all belong to different communities that teach us the importance of treating everyone with respect and looking out for one another. When we created our global Community Guidelines in 2016, we had these common values in mind.

As Uber grew, so did our Guidelines. And over time, this made them unwieldy and harder for people to engage with. That’s a problem – because community standards are only effective if everyone understands them. 

So today we’re launching new Community Guidelines that are simpler and clearer. And since everyone on our platform is expected to follow these guidelines, we’re taking steps to make sure everyone in the Uber community knows about them and what they mean. 

Ensuring Everyone Gets It

Over the coming weeks riders, as well as driver and delivery partners will see a full screen summary of the Community Guidelines when they open the Uber app. They’ll be asked to confirm that they understand and agree to abide by these guidelines or they may lose access to the Uber apps.

We’re also launching a campaign to educate the entire Uber community about these guidelines. From in-app messages and emails to signs in our driver support centres, we’re getting the word out.

We’re proud that Uber brings people together who come from different walks of life and we want every Uber experience to be a great one. By educating customers and partners about the Community Guidelines, asking them to confirm they understand, and holding everyone accountable, we can help Uber be welcoming and safe for all.

One Uber

Our new Community Guidelines fall under 3 key pillars – 

  1. Safety and Respect for All
  2. Follow the Law
  3. Keep one another Safe. 

These principles are ones that apply to the entire Uber community – whether you’re a driver, rider, order Uber Eats or ride JUMP scooters. Importantly if you do something that breaches the guidelines, you won’t just lose access to Rides, Eats or JUMP – you’ll lose access to all the Uber apps. 

Ratings-based Rider Deactivations 

Respect is a two-way street, and so is accountability. That’s why this time last year Uber Australia and New Zealand announced that riders whose rating fell below a minimum average for the city would lose access to the Uber app, after several notifications have been provided. This new policy was aimed at those who were persistently not treating drivers with respect.

I’m glad to say that a year on from this change only a handful of riders have lost access to the Uber apps due to low ratings. More importantly we’ve seen an increase in the average rider rating across Australia since we announced our rider ratings policy, as well as an almost 30% reduction in poor trip experiences for drivers in Australia. 

Overall, our top rated riders are based in Tamworth, while Port Macquarie, Bathurst and Horsham tie for top rated drivers on the app. 

Riders on Victoria’s Surf Coast are the most complimentary, with a whopping 25% of trips resulting in the rider giving their driver positive feedback.

Overall, Perth saw the biggest increase in average rider rating since our rider rating policy was introduced.

We think we can do more though to build on this positive trend. When we introduced the new policy, riders at risk of losing app access began receiving tips on how to improve their ratings, such as taking their trash with them in the vehicle and never asking drivers to exceed the speed limit. From today, more riders will receive these tips and sooner – before their ratings drop below the average minimum ratings in their city. 

Of established cities in Australia, Sunshine Coast and Newcastle saw the biggest positive jump in ratings given to riders who received information on how to improve their rating. 

We want every experience using the Uber app to be a safe, respectful and positive experience for everyone.