Complaint Review: Uber - Nationwide

The following is the entire exchange between Uber "customer service" and myself:

Sent by KG. on Tuesday, April 18, 2017

I had tried to schedule the ride thru the Uber app and it said the request had failed and was not scheduled.The app would not let me redo the ride request, so I went and ordered a ride from Lyft. The driver from Uber showed up so I took the ride and had to cancel the Lyft ride, which I was charged $5 for canceling. I would like to be credited the five dollars I had to pay for the Lyft ride I had to cancel.

Sent by Anku on Wednesday, April 19, 2017 at 1:41:07 AM

Thanks for reaching out, K. Happy to help! You can schedule a ride by tapping the icon next to the destination box. After setting your pickup date and time (note that it is a 15 minute window), you'll be prompted to set your destination. Before your confirm by tapping Schedule, you can edit your pickup location by tapping the address next to the schedule ride icon on the map. To edit or cancel a scheduled ride, select Your Trips from the menu and then select Upcoming Trips. We'll send you a push notification 24 hours before your trip is scheduled, 30 minutes before your trip is scheduled, and when a driver accepts your trip request. We’ll also let you know if surge pricing applies. Thank you!

Sent by KG. on Wednesday, April 19, 2017

I'm sorry, maybe you misunderstood. I know how to use the app- I explained that when I attempted to schedule the ride, the app crashed and said the ride request failed and did not go through. I quit the app, reopened it, tried to reschedule the ride, but it still said it was unable to. I gave up and ordered a ride through Lyft instead, assuming the Uber ride was not scheduled. While waiting for my Lyft ride, the Uber driver came anyway. I was confused because I didn't think the ride had gone through. I took the ride with the Uber driver, but had to cancel the ride with the Lyft driver. I would now like a refund of $5 for the ride I was forced to cancel with Lyft, since I wouldn't have had to order a ride with Lyft in the first place had the Uber app worked properly.

Sent by RS on Wednesday, April 19, 2017

Thanks for letting us know about this, K. We've taken a closer look at this trip, and based on your previous account history, we have reason to believe that this trip took place. As a result, we will not issue a refund at this time.

Sent by KG. on Wednesday, April 19, 2017

I told you that the trip DID take place. I want a refund of $5 for the other trip I had to schedule through Lyft and had to cancel due to your Uber crashing and saying that it wasn't scheduled in the first place. Am I not making this clear?

Sent by SG on Wednesday, April 19, 2017

Hi K Thanks for reaching out. We are currently unable to find the trip you're referencing. Please submit your issue directly here. You'll be asked to select the specific trip. Alternatively, this can be done in your app. To do this, visit the Help section, select the correct trip, and choose the appropriate issue. We appreciate your help and look forward to assisting with review. Please let us know if you have questions.

Sent by KG. on Thursday April 20, 2017

This is now the fourth time I've tried to get a direct response from someone that is more than a "stock" answer that doesn't resolve this issue. The email chain is pasted below. This issue was a problem with your app (please see below). I only want to be reimbursed for the $5 fee (not the whole amount of the ride) I was charged for having to cancel the alternate ride I had to set up with Lyft since your app didn't work.

Sent by Sunil U. on Thursday, April 20, 2017 at 10:03:44 PM

Sorry to hear about the trouble with your Uber app, K. That definitely sounds frustrating and I'll be happy to see if I can help. If you haven't already deleted the app and reinstalled it directly from uber.com/app, this would be a good first step. This ensures you're using the latest version available and resolves any known issues. If you continue to have trouble, please share the details and any troubleshooting steps you've already tried so that I can lend a hand and get you riding again.

Sent by KG. on Thursday, April 20, 2017

I have done that. Yes, this has been VERY frustrating. But, if you read my request- I would like a refund of $5 because of it.

Sent by KG. on Wednesday, May 3, 2017

So it's now been TWO WEEKS since this incident happened and reached out to "customer service", and I have yet to receive more than a canned response addressing the previous issues I have discussed. I never even received a response to my last email. I have been more than patient. I realize you may think "it's only $5, get over it". But that's not the point- it's the principle of it. It is obvious to me that Uber does not care AT ALL about their customers, their issues, and has no desire to rectify problems that arise. Therefore, I AM DONE. The Uber app has been deleted from my phone, I will NEVER use Uber again for ANY reason, and EVERYONE I know will be told about this and encouraged to dump Uber and use Lyft instead. I had even begun the process to become a driver. No more. Lyft will now have all of my business. I can only imagine how many others have had similar unresolved issues that you've blown off. Again, you may think, "so what?" Just remember rule number one in any business: word travels, and more so when it's negative.

Sent by Uber Support on Wednesday May 3 2017

K, Thanks for your reply to a previous support inquiry. To make sure we get your messages to the right place, we’re unable to respond to conversations with more than 7 days of inactivity. Please note that your message has not been received by our support team. We'd still love to help out with any issue you’ve run into. Just tap “Help” in the app or visit help.uber.com from a web browser. There you’ll find answers to frequently asked questions and be able to contact us.We look forward to chatting with you soon!

Sent by KG. on Wednesday, May 3, 2017

ARE YOU KIDDING ME? WOW. Just WOW.