Understanding Your Upfront Fare: When It Can Change and What Extra Fees May Apply

Uber’s goal is to be transparent about pricing so you know what you’re paying before you ride. That’s why we show you an Upfront Fare when you book – calculated based on your estimated route, time, distance as well as real time conditions. 

To understand how your Upfront Fare is calculated, the fare breakdown is available to you at the time of request: 

The price you pay for a trip will be the Upfront Fare price in almost all cases. However, there are a small number of exceptions where the final fare may be higher or lower than the upfront price due to circumstances outside Uber’s control.

For example:

In these cases, the fare will be calculated according to the actual time and distance based on the default rates which you can access via the fare breakdown screen available in the app (shown above). This ensures you’re paying fairly for the actual distance and time travelled.

The final fare may also deviate from the Upfront Fare if you update the trip (such as adding a stop or changing the destination), when you would be shown a new mid-trip fare. You will be asked to confirm this updated price before the trip continues. 

The following additional fees may apply under certain circumstances:

To respect your drivers’ time, if the trip is cancelled after the time shown in the tables below, you will be charged a cancellation fee. The time thresholds apply after the trip is accepted by Uber and cancellation fees will be imposed in two circumstances:

You will be informed of the exact cancellation fee before you cancel. The fee will be waived in the event that your Driver exceeds the initial estimated time of arrival (ETA) by 5 minutes, if your Driver hasn’t made any progress towards your location or if your Driver is driving further away from the pick-up location. In those instances, the cancellation fee will be waived and Drivers won’t be eligible to receive the cancellation fee.

The below mentioned tables show the range of cancellation fee, depending upon the location, time of day, that may be charged for each choice of ride as well as the time threshold at which cancellation fees are charged. 

Cancellation time thresholds and fees per choice of ride (except for Reserve rides)

Cancellation time thresholds and fees for Reserve rides

The cancellation time thresholds and fees for Reserve trips vary by product/city and are shown in the app while requesting a trip, as shown in the screenshot below:

To respect your drivers’ time at pick-ups and during extra stops made while you are on the trip, you are charged a wait time fee if your driver is waiting longer than a few minutes at your pick up point or at any extra stops. The wait time fee threshold and/or fee per minute vary depending on product type, and are shown to you in the app on the fare breakdown screen (as mentioned above). If the trip is cancelled, you will not be charged a wait time fee in addition to the cancellation fee.

If you have an incident such as vomiting or a food spill, you may be charged a cleaning fee of up to £110 depending upon the type and severity of the mess. In the event you are charged a cleaning fee, you will receive an updated trip receipt. This is paid directly to the driver.