Last updated: 7 Dec 2015

We are committed to safety for riders and drivers on the Uber platform. As part of that commitment, last December I promised to keep riders and drivers updated on safety enhancements.

I’d like to share some of the details about our latest safety updates:

Code of Conduct: To properly detail expectations of riders
and driver partners, we have published a new Code of Conduct. Our goal is to enhance safety for everyone on the platform and provide clear guidance to all users about appropriate behavior during Uber rides. Any behavior that creates risks for riders and drivers has no place in the Uber community.
Safety Advisory Board: Uber will establish a permanent global Safety Advisory Board to work with us on an ongoing basis. The board will review our safety practices and advise on our roadmap for adding safety features to the platform. As part of this process, we are already engaging with outside experts to help us create the strongest board possible. We will continually embed their recommendations and independent guidance into our safety roadmap.
Quality Assurance: Working with law enforcement and security
experts, we have created the Uber Quality Assurance program. Off-duty law enforcement and security professionals will audit activity on the platform to ensure that partners are complying with safety standards, including refusing all street hails and acting in accordance with the Code of Conduct. Their reports will help ensure that any issues are dealt with expeditiously.
Incident Response Teams: To quickly respond to safety
incidents, we have created Incident Response Teams that are on call worldwide on a 24/7 basis. These are specially trained groups that investigate and respond to serious safety concerns that may occur. The teams are distributed in regions around the globe and are there for those critical moments when a rapid resolution is needed.
Working With Law Enforcement: Because all Uber rides are tracked by GPS, in the event of an incident, we are able to quickly provide law enforcement with very specific details about trip activity for their investigations. Our collaboration with authorities is not limited to incidents and accidents. For example, in the fall we were able to assist New York City public health officials to understand the travel patterns of a patient exposed to the Ebola virus based on Uber’s trip data.
Safety Product Updates: As I mentioned in December, we will continually leverage technology to further improve rider and driver safety. In India, two new safety features were recently added to the Uber platform. An SOS button allows riders to contact local law enforcement directly from the app in emergencies. In addition, the Send Status feature, which has built on and replaced the Share My ETA feature, enables riders to keep multiple people informed of their exact location at all times while riding with Uber. We’re also working with Safetipin to help measure city safety in New Delhi, and soon in Bogota, Nairobi and Jakarta as well.

We intend to make these and other new features available in the coming months elsewhere. Uber has been laser-focused on hiring additional engineers and product managers dedicated to safety as we pursue technologies like biometric identity verification and safe-driving monitoring. 

These initiatives are part of an ongoing process at Uber: With more than a million rides per day in 295 cities and 55 countries, continually improving rider and driver safety is the most critical component of what we do. As always, riding and driving with Uber provides the most accountable form of transportation, with GPS tracking of all rides, two-way feedback and round-the-clock customer service. We continue to welcome ideas from our riders and driver partners for how we can make the platform better, so please feel free to e-mail us at [email protected].

Thanks,
Phillip Cardenas
Head of Global Safety at Uber