Uber prices 20% lower & Less driver requirements

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655 posts

Ultimate Geek
Inactive user

#1541493 25-Apr-2016 10:07

scuwp: No it's part of it. They like to make sure you ain't a pedo, mass murderer, rapist, fraudster etc before they let you loose on the public. Of course lack of past conduct does not necessarily predict the future

UBER: We will continue to ensure that every driver-partner has passed a criminal background check from the Ministry of Justice and a driving history check from the New Zealand Transport Agency before they can drive on the Uber platform

They appear to be separate checks from different agencies. I am simply asking what the NZTA check covers as I have not heard of it before. I am interested to know more about the NZTA check as I've not heard about it before.

Yabanize

2350 posts

Uber Geek

#1541525 25-Apr-2016 10:44

I assume its either This or This

Scott3

3963 posts

Uber Geek

Lifetime subscriber

#1541708 25-Apr-2016 16:03

There are two things going on here:

Uber drops prices
Uber will now turn a blind eye to it's drivers breaking the law (Operating for reward without "P" endorsement or Commercial vehicle COF)

This move seems really strange by Uber. It's not like NZ the "P" endorsement and COF are that hard to get... we don't have draconian requirements like a $600k+ taxi Medellin for operating a taxi service here.

I would have preferred they stayed legit. They were able to undercut the rest of the market with P endorsed drivers etc, and they have the government onside making the "P endorsement" process much cheaper and faster.

What they have done has alienated existing (legal Passenger service) drivers as they have cut fare rates significantly. I fear that a surge of illegal drivers will lead to bad press about Uber here, and a rush of arrests.

Extract from Facebook.

NZ Law is really clear on Carpooling etc. Uber is clearly in the "for hire and reward" category, just like a pre-booked Limo or classic car for a wedding.

Hopefully no drivers are stupid enough to operate illegally without a P endorsement etc. Hopefully they realize that they are carrying all the risk of arrest / fines ect, while uber carries no risk, but reaps the rewards of their illegal operation.

And I used to consider myself be a big uber fan, and use uber a lot.

UHD

655 posts

Ultimate Geek
Inactive user

#1541807 25-Apr-2016 19:13

I think Uber have a point. There is something intuitively different about a taxi/limo service and an Uber. Ride sharing is quite different from calling a taxi, if I paid a friend to drive me to Wellington it is absurd that he could be labelled a criminal even if he made a small buck in profit out of it. The same holds true if I were picked up while hitch hiking and gave the driver some cash. That is all Uber is, the difference is that it is on a larger scale and coordinated via mobile technology.

gzt

17104 posts

Uber Geek

Lifetime subscriber

#1541837 25-Apr-2016 20:46

The simple answer is that Uber is not a ride sharing service. The driver and passenger do not share the same destination or purpose.

If your friend had some tattooing equipment and served multiple customers?

It is not really 'friend serving friend' or peer to peer. It is a one to many relationship.

gzt

17104 posts

Uber Geek

Lifetime subscriber

#1541842 25-Apr-2016 20:52

sbiddle:
Their FB page has turned into a bit of a train wreck from a couple of clearly disgruntled NZ drivers

https://www.facebook.com/ubernewzealand/

One guy there is saying there is a driver meeting next Tuesday and that the Lyft service is coming to New Zealand. I assume it is a meeting associated with the Uber NZ driver Facebook group? His personal page has Lyft logos on it.

Linuxluver

5828 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

Subscriber

#1541844 25-Apr-2016 20:57

Wheelbarrow01:

wellygary:

Until you see a govt press release that states that private hires no longer need a P endorsment, you are potentially heading for a pile of hurt if you get pulled over while operating without one....

Unless you're wearing an Uber uniform (something that does not exist anyway as far as I know), no law enforcement officer is going to know if you're operating a private hire service or not. the person riding with you could be a mate of yours for all they know....

Unless you have a car accident and the activity is illegal and the insurance company smiles are your brand new 100% excess.

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Scott3

3963 posts

Uber Geek

Lifetime subscriber

#1541854 25-Apr-2016 21:25

Unless you're wearing an Uber uniform (something that does not exist anyway as far as I know), no law enforcement officer is going to know if you're operating a private hire service or not. the person riding with you could be a mate of yours for all they know....

Wouldn't it be super easy for the police to do a sting. Set up an account under an alias, and prezzy card Request ride, check drivers name for "P" endorsement and car number plate for COF before the car shows up. Go for a cheap ride somewhere, and repeat. Once the operation is complete go door knocking and arrest all illegal drivers. I assume uber would shut the accounts down quickly if they arrested the drivers on the spot.

I wonder how sneaky Uber is going to be? Only send Legit drivers to people who have less then 10 rides or have been a rider less than a 3 months?

Yabanize

2350 posts

Uber Geek

#1541855 25-Apr-2016 21:30

Uber is hardly pre booked, it's more 'On Demand' You press a button and within 5 minutes your car is there

@Linuxlover uber drivers are required to have 3rd party insurance. Also, Uber has their own insurance for up to 5 million

scuwp

3885 posts

Uber Geek

#1541865 25-Apr-2016 21:59

UHD:
scuwp: No it's part of it. They like to make sure you ain't a pedo, mass murderer, rapist, fraudster etc before they let you loose on the public. Of course lack of past conduct does not necessarily predict the future

UBER: We will continue to ensure that every driver-partner has passed a criminal background check from the Ministry of Justice and a driving history check from the New Zealand Transport Agency before they can drive on the Uber platform

They appear to be separate checks from different agencies. I am simply asking what the NZTA check covers as I have not heard of it before. I am interested to know more about the NZTA check as I've not heard about it before.

Both the same. The NZTA does the traffic side themselves as they have access to that data directly. They also request police vetting. The difference is the NZTA are doing it under law to authorize a driver to be fit and proper (which can also be revoked) while Uber....well who knows what there standard is.

https://www.nzta.govt.nz/driver-licences/getting-an-endorsement/fit-and-proper-person-check/

Lazy is such an ugly word, I prefer to call it selective participation

gzt

17104 posts

Uber Geek

Lifetime subscriber

#1541870 25-Apr-2016 22:16

To be fair, we don't know the government standard for granting or rejecting. I would like to see that government guide or standard published. I suspect it is a fairly low bar. It really is not clear to me what they accept or reject in the 'fit and proper person' area. Individual companies may have higher standards, but imho passenger endorsement just sets some kind of minimum in the 'fit and proper person' area and I suspect it is pretty low.

sbiddle

30853 posts

Uber Geek

Retired Mod

Trusted

Biddle Corp

Lifetime subscriber

#1541927 26-Apr-2016 07:21

The fact these drivers thing Lyft is something a magical fix shows how little they really understand that they're simply a pawn in a game they they have no real control over. Drivers are simply an inconvenience to Uber that they can't yet replace because self driving cars aren't yet in the market. It doesn't take a genius to realise Uber's ultimate goal is to gain market share now so they can control the market when self driving cars become reality.

Uber are evil in many ways, yet I continue to support them. Why? Because they offer me a service that is better than what every other player in the same space can offer.

scuwp

3885 posts

Uber Geek

#1541933 26-Apr-2016 07:39

gzt: To be fair, we don't know the government standard for granting or rejecting. I would like to see that government guide or standard published. I suspect it is a fairly low bar. It really is not clear to me what they accept or reject in the 'fit and proper person' area. Individual companies may have higher standards, but imho passenger endorsement just sets some kind of minimum in the 'fit and proper person' area and I suspect it is pretty low.

I can't be bothered trying to work out the links on my mobile, but the fit and proper and general safety criteria is outlined in sub part 2 of the Land Transport Act. That is your published standard.

Lazy is such an ugly word, I prefer to call it selective participation

gzt

17104 posts

Uber Geek

Lifetime subscriber

#1541966 26-Apr-2016 09:45

scuwp:
gzt: To be fair, we don't know the government standard for granting or rejecting. I would like to see that government guide or standard published. I suspect it is a fairly low bar. It really is not clear to me what they accept or reject in the 'fit and proper person' area. Individual companies may have higher standards, but imho passenger endorsement just sets some kind of minimum in the 'fit and proper person' area and I suspect it is pretty low.

I can't be bothered trying to work out the links on my mobile, but the fit and proper and general safety criteria is outlined in sub part 2 of the Land Transport Act. That is your published standard.

That is the criteria. It does not say anything about how those criteria are applied in practice. There will be an internal nzta document covering that procedure.

gzt

17104 posts

Uber Geek

Lifetime subscriber

#1542024 26-Apr-2016 10:41

sbiddle: The fact these drivers thing Lyft is something a magical fix shows how little they really understand that they're simply a pawn in a game they they have no real control over. Drivers are simply an inconvenience to Uber that they can't yet replace because self driving cars aren't yet in the market. It doesn't take a genius to realise Uber's ultimate goal is to gain market share now so they can control the market when self driving cars become reality.

Hard to tell if that guy is serious or just going for the maximum wind up. The Lyft app is appearing on the NZ istore but I assume that is normal rather than new.

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