Uber Promotes Subprime Auto Loans to Increase Driver Pool

[eridani]

http://readersupportednews.org/news-section2/318-66/30402-uber-promotes-subprime-auto-loans-to-increase-driver-pool

A livery driver for a fleet owner in Boston was looking for a way to obtain his own car and drive for Uber, the popular ride-sharing service. He heard about a vehicle financing program Uber was promoting to drivers who, like him, had a poor credit history. Roger, who asked to use only his first name for business reasons, signed a lease in September with an Uber-referred lender for a brand new Chrysler minivan.

Now less than a year later, Roger says he is on the brink of bankruptcy while facing weekly payments of $450 for his car lease plus late fees.

Uber, with a head-spinning valuation of $50 billion, has become a dominant force in the passenger transportation industry in large part by luring more drivers to its platform than anyone else. In an effort to maintain that edge and expand its pool of self-employed drivers beyond those who already own a car, the company has been steering potential drivers with bad credit to subprime lenders whose leases lock borrowers into years of weekly payments at sky-high interest rates.

On its website and in promotional emails to current drivers, Uber promotes its vehicle solutions program with pitches right out of the subprime lending playbook. “Credit challenges? No problem. Get on the road in 2 days with $0 down,” reads Uber’s driver signup page.

One of Uber’s first subprime leasing partners was Santander Consumer USA, a subsidiary of the Spanish banking giant. The lender drew the attention of federal authorities in 2014 when the Department of Justice issued subpoenas to the company as part of an investigation into the subprime auto loan market. In February Santander agreed to pay $9.35 million in a settlement with the Justice Department for illegally repossessing more than 1,000 vehicles from active military personnel.

[FrodosPet]

1. Uber's driver screwing campaign is coming back to bite them

A few months ago, I would sit in front of prime hotels, bars, and clubs and watch the stream of people coming out and jumping in an Uber car. Now they come out and stand there, staring at their smartphones in frustration, until they either give up and jump in my cab, or until I catch a dispatch or flag and leave.

Drivers are either giving up or limiting their time on Uber after realizing how bad the personal transportation industry sucks. It sucks even worse when you are not making enough to pay your car note, maintenance, and sit and wait (and wait and wait and wait) for runs time.

[FrodosPet]

2. Another reason people cannot get an Uber

http://boston.cbslocal.com/2015/05/07/many-passengers-unaware-of-uber-blacklist/

BOSTON (CBS) – The next time you take Uber you might want to make sure you’re nice to the driver.

Turns out just like you can rate the drivers they are rating the passengers too. And that number can make the difference between a quick pick-up or being blacklisted.

That’s because if your Uber rating drops too low a driver might decide to ride right past you or you could get bounced from the Uber system completely.

That almost happened to Emily Tarran. When she found herself waiting longer than usual for her daily 3 a.m. Uber pick-up to get to work she starting asking questions.

~ snip ~

[TampaAnimusVortex]

3. I'm all for it... Let drivers and riders rate whomever they want.

More information is great. The more information everyone has, the better decisions they can make.

[FrodosPet]

4. Maybe a picture of the passenger would help?

After all, some drivers (both taxi and Uber) don't want "those" people in their cars.

Synopsis: The personal transportation industry sux!!!

[Gormy Cuss]

5. The rating isn't based on a rational scale.

The driver just picks a rating without having to amplify it. Thus if the driver is just having a bad day the passengers may not rate highly; if the passenger is too chatty or not chatty enough, down with the rating. If the passenger complains that the wait was longer than the app stated, the driver can ding the passenger; if previous passengers have rated the driver poorly, the driver is free to take revenge on current and future passengers.

Do you really think this is a good thing?

BTW, it cuts both ways. Good drivers can be rated poorly by passengers on irrational bases too.