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Dear UberPeople Community,
We whole heartily apologize for the delay in response to your messages. Thank you all for the incredible feedback, challenging questions, and for letting us know your views on what we are trying to accomplish. We went through your comments/inquiries and came up with answers that we felt would address them.
Here are the points in which we addressed below in order:
· "Nobody will make money with Uber other than Uber."
· Misconception: You are better off driving your own vehicle for Uber
· Advertisements Not On Cars
· Types of Cars
· September Promotion
· Uber Leasing
· Insurance
"Nobody will make money with Uber other than Uber."
We understand your frustration with the fact that Uber has decreased their fees and in some cities increased their cut. We agree that this action has decreased the number of potential drivers willing to drive for them. We believe, however, that it has undeniably increased demand for Uber. Decreasing your fees as the driver makes it cheaper to your target audience (the everyday person in the city looking to catch a ride) and you eventually get more business. We personally can't think of anyone we have met in D.C. who doesn't have the Uber app!
Driving for Uber is not for everyone. There are many that can make far more in their primary jobs than they can driving for Uber or Lyft. But you also have to think about those people that are only making $10-12 an hour in their current job. Has Uber not elevated their incomes to the $18-20 range and allowed them to be their own boss? If Uber can raise the pay rates of those people while providing a valuable service to the community, they should be applauded. While it wouldn't make sense for some, it does make sense for that cashier making $10 per hour standing behind a counter. So while we agree that driving for Uber may not be for everyone, it makes a lot of sense for a lot of people.
Misconception: You are better off driving your own vehicle for Uber
This misconception may make a lot of sense for the part-time driver who is putting in a couple hours a day every week but for a full-time Uber-X driver we would advise you not to do this.
An Uber driver told us a story about buying his own car for Uber, which really inspired our idea. Here is what they said:
I got really excited about Uber around this time last year and like many other people went out and bought a brand new car- I got a Nissan Altima for $22,000 after taxes and title with payments of only $400 a month. Super excited I began driving around 6,000 miles a month which was netting me around $5,000 a month. This made a lot of sense to me only paying $400 a month for the car to make around $5,000 a month driving.
Later I realized that $400 a month was not the true cost.
After a year of driving I was pretty happy with the whole experience. I made more money than I had before and I had a brand new car. My vehicle at this point had about 72,000 miles and I had the tires/brake pads/rotors replaced twice (about $2600) plus some minor maintenance ($200) and about 10 synthetic Oil Changes ($800).
One day I began to think about the depreciation my car had taken since I bought it so I stopped in to a CarMax to get an appraisal and the value of my car was floored by their offer of $12,500.
I went home a little distraught and took a long hard look at what it truly cost me to drive this past year for Uber/Lyft (not including gas and Insurance) and realized it was certainly not the $400 a month I had initially thought.
After looking over everything this what I came up with:
$9,500 Depreciation ($22,000 Purchase Price - $12,500 Current Value = $9,500 Depreciation)
+$2600 Mechanical upkeep
+$800 Maintenance
=$12,900 Total Cost for the year!
=$1,075 per month! Almost triple what I had thought.
Worst of all, the really expensive repairs are coming up at 90,000 miles and I have 4 more years on my loan agreement!
This driver did not do his math as well as he should've and he regrets it. Unfortunately, he didn't think about all the costs that come along with paying for a new vehicle and driving it to the ground for your job.
We really take pride in how in touch we are with our drivers on a personal level. One of our drivers even offered to perform live for us at our next driver's event and we are pretty pumped about that as well.
DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE THE TRUE COST OF CAR OWNERSHIP!!
Advertisements Not On Cars
THERE WILL BE NO ADVERTISING ON ANY CARS WHATSOEVER…but thank you for addressing that. We are sorry for the confusion and will make that more clear in the future.
Type of Cars
We grow our inventory based off of the most efficient and reliable vehicles that we can put our drivers in. Our stock of cars includes 2013-2015 Nissan Versa and Sentra, Toyota Corolla and Yaris, and the Honda Civic. The highest mileage on a car that you will get is 25,000 miles, however, our vehicles are delivered fully detailed along with bumper-bumper maintenance so the car is as good as new.
Our drivers love our cars and use them for their personal lives as well. A person that was driving a 2003 Honda Civic is now in a 2014 Honda Civic and they are loving it. The expense to own a vehicle or lease a vehicle is an every day expense whether you realize it or not. To own a vehicle, you will be putting endless wear and tear on it from driving it thousands of miles a month and you will be paying for all of the maintenance on it, which is 2x the expenses when you drive 4x more than the average person for your job. Our drivers look at leasing our cars as a business expense and personal expense because it is mutually beneficial.
September Promotion
Our September Promotion was an attempt to make our cars as affordable as possible in order to save you money. For someone looking to lease a vehicle, no down payment, no credit check, no mileage cap and free bumper-bumper maintenance is a pretty sweet deal.
TO MAKE IT CLEAR: If you sign up for our $200 promotion you will never pay more than $200 for the time you are with us and your mileage cap will never change.
Due to an overwhelming response, we decided to beta-test this business model into October and are hoping to make it permanent by the beginning of 2016.
Uber Leasing
A lot of our current members tried the Uber Lease Program and reported to us why they were disappointed. Here are some of the complaints that they had:
1) It can take weeks to go through the approval process
2) The down payment depends on your credit
a. Only the best credit gets $250 advertised down payment. Poor Credit applicants must pay upwards of a $1000 dollars or more
b. We have $0 down payment and can get you on the road the SAME day!
3) The free maintenance plan only covers Oil Changes, Tire Rotation and Cabin Air filter…All very inexpensive items
a. Our Plan covers everything and yes the expensive items like tires ($800 average) and Brakes ($700 average)
4) Mentorship
a. For new drivers not knowing the "tricks of the trade" when driving for Uber, they can lose a lot of money until they get the hang of things. Our Uber drivers make an average of 20% more than standalone drivers because we help them save time and money. For example, each driver will be assigned an experienced mentor who they can call at anytime for any questions they have while they are in the ridesharing business. Call it your own free concierge for ridesharing. We have helped people do things from walking them step by step through getting all of their insurance together for Uber to strategizing with them on the best credit cards to get for gas. We have helped some of our members properly account their expenses in order to minimize their yearly tax bill. Really, we are there for you when you need and people have loved to get that peace of mind. Also, everyone has really loved the mentor they have worked with.
5) Lastly, Uber leasing is not really run by Uber. You are leasing a car from a dealership that Uber made a deal with but they are not in tune with ridesharing. Our drivers were really disappointed with that. It's like going to buy a hamburger at a Mexican restaurant, just not ideal. That dealership can be very predatory in their practices. We are rideshare focused meaning that we are way more flexible with our lease terms than a dealership can be. We want to get you into a vehicle and give you all the control like having the ability to return your car whenever you want. Many of our member's initially tried Uber Leasing and were very excited they found out about us and how easy and transparent the whole process was.
Insurance
You are required to obtain insurance for the vehicle that lists you as a driver, same thing you would do if you're buying a car from a dealership. Getting this insurance has been extremely easy for our drivers, most of the time not taking them more than a couple of hours to get. The only requirement we have is that we be listed as the Lien Holder (as you would with any lease) and have no more than a $500 deductible.
FAQ Page
We are sorry for the confusion over the information presented on the FAQ page of the website. This week we have been reorganizing the website to fit our new business model. Everything you need to know will be updated on the website within the next couple of days.
We whole heartily apologize for the delay in response to your messages. Thank you all for the incredible feedback, challenging questions, and for letting us know your views on what we are trying to accomplish. We went through your comments/inquiries and came up with answers that we felt would address them.
Here are the points in which we addressed below in order:
· "Nobody will make money with Uber other than Uber."
· Misconception: You are better off driving your own vehicle for Uber
· Advertisements Not On Cars
· Types of Cars
· September Promotion
· Uber Leasing
· Insurance
"Nobody will make money with Uber other than Uber."
We understand your frustration with the fact that Uber has decreased their fees and in some cities increased their cut. We agree that this action has decreased the number of potential drivers willing to drive for them. We believe, however, that it has undeniably increased demand for Uber. Decreasing your fees as the driver makes it cheaper to your target audience (the everyday person in the city looking to catch a ride) and you eventually get more business. We personally can't think of anyone we have met in D.C. who doesn't have the Uber app!
Driving for Uber is not for everyone. There are many that can make far more in their primary jobs than they can driving for Uber or Lyft. But you also have to think about those people that are only making $10-12 an hour in their current job. Has Uber not elevated their incomes to the $18-20 range and allowed them to be their own boss? If Uber can raise the pay rates of those people while providing a valuable service to the community, they should be applauded. While it wouldn't make sense for some, it does make sense for that cashier making $10 per hour standing behind a counter. So while we agree that driving for Uber may not be for everyone, it makes a lot of sense for a lot of people.
Misconception: You are better off driving your own vehicle for Uber
This misconception may make a lot of sense for the part-time driver who is putting in a couple hours a day every week but for a full-time Uber-X driver we would advise you not to do this.
An Uber driver told us a story about buying his own car for Uber, which really inspired our idea. Here is what they said:
I got really excited about Uber around this time last year and like many other people went out and bought a brand new car- I got a Nissan Altima for $22,000 after taxes and title with payments of only $400 a month. Super excited I began driving around 6,000 miles a month which was netting me around $5,000 a month. This made a lot of sense to me only paying $400 a month for the car to make around $5,000 a month driving.
Later I realized that $400 a month was not the true cost.
After a year of driving I was pretty happy with the whole experience. I made more money than I had before and I had a brand new car. My vehicle at this point had about 72,000 miles and I had the tires/brake pads/rotors replaced twice (about $2600) plus some minor maintenance ($200) and about 10 synthetic Oil Changes ($800).
One day I began to think about the depreciation my car had taken since I bought it so I stopped in to a CarMax to get an appraisal and the value of my car was floored by their offer of $12,500.
I went home a little distraught and took a long hard look at what it truly cost me to drive this past year for Uber/Lyft (not including gas and Insurance) and realized it was certainly not the $400 a month I had initially thought.
After looking over everything this what I came up with:
$9,500 Depreciation ($22,000 Purchase Price - $12,500 Current Value = $9,500 Depreciation)
+$2600 Mechanical upkeep
+$800 Maintenance
=$12,900 Total Cost for the year!
=$1,075 per month! Almost triple what I had thought.
Worst of all, the really expensive repairs are coming up at 90,000 miles and I have 4 more years on my loan agreement!
This driver did not do his math as well as he should've and he regrets it. Unfortunately, he didn't think about all the costs that come along with paying for a new vehicle and driving it to the ground for your job.
We really take pride in how in touch we are with our drivers on a personal level. One of our drivers even offered to perform live for us at our next driver's event and we are pretty pumped about that as well.
DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE THE TRUE COST OF CAR OWNERSHIP!!
Advertisements Not On Cars
THERE WILL BE NO ADVERTISING ON ANY CARS WHATSOEVER…but thank you for addressing that. We are sorry for the confusion and will make that more clear in the future.
Type of Cars
We grow our inventory based off of the most efficient and reliable vehicles that we can put our drivers in. Our stock of cars includes 2013-2015 Nissan Versa and Sentra, Toyota Corolla and Yaris, and the Honda Civic. The highest mileage on a car that you will get is 25,000 miles, however, our vehicles are delivered fully detailed along with bumper-bumper maintenance so the car is as good as new.
Our drivers love our cars and use them for their personal lives as well. A person that was driving a 2003 Honda Civic is now in a 2014 Honda Civic and they are loving it. The expense to own a vehicle or lease a vehicle is an every day expense whether you realize it or not. To own a vehicle, you will be putting endless wear and tear on it from driving it thousands of miles a month and you will be paying for all of the maintenance on it, which is 2x the expenses when you drive 4x more than the average person for your job. Our drivers look at leasing our cars as a business expense and personal expense because it is mutually beneficial.
September Promotion
Our September Promotion was an attempt to make our cars as affordable as possible in order to save you money. For someone looking to lease a vehicle, no down payment, no credit check, no mileage cap and free bumper-bumper maintenance is a pretty sweet deal.
TO MAKE IT CLEAR: If you sign up for our $200 promotion you will never pay more than $200 for the time you are with us and your mileage cap will never change.
Due to an overwhelming response, we decided to beta-test this business model into October and are hoping to make it permanent by the beginning of 2016.
Uber Leasing
A lot of our current members tried the Uber Lease Program and reported to us why they were disappointed. Here are some of the complaints that they had:
1) It can take weeks to go through the approval process
2) The down payment depends on your credit
a. Only the best credit gets $250 advertised down payment. Poor Credit applicants must pay upwards of a $1000 dollars or more
b. We have $0 down payment and can get you on the road the SAME day!
3) The free maintenance plan only covers Oil Changes, Tire Rotation and Cabin Air filter…All very inexpensive items
a. Our Plan covers everything and yes the expensive items like tires ($800 average) and Brakes ($700 average)
4) Mentorship
a. For new drivers not knowing the "tricks of the trade" when driving for Uber, they can lose a lot of money until they get the hang of things. Our Uber drivers make an average of 20% more than standalone drivers because we help them save time and money. For example, each driver will be assigned an experienced mentor who they can call at anytime for any questions they have while they are in the ridesharing business. Call it your own free concierge for ridesharing. We have helped people do things from walking them step by step through getting all of their insurance together for Uber to strategizing with them on the best credit cards to get for gas. We have helped some of our members properly account their expenses in order to minimize their yearly tax bill. Really, we are there for you when you need and people have loved to get that peace of mind. Also, everyone has really loved the mentor they have worked with.
5) Lastly, Uber leasing is not really run by Uber. You are leasing a car from a dealership that Uber made a deal with but they are not in tune with ridesharing. Our drivers were really disappointed with that. It's like going to buy a hamburger at a Mexican restaurant, just not ideal. That dealership can be very predatory in their practices. We are rideshare focused meaning that we are way more flexible with our lease terms than a dealership can be. We want to get you into a vehicle and give you all the control like having the ability to return your car whenever you want. Many of our member's initially tried Uber Leasing and were very excited they found out about us and how easy and transparent the whole process was.
Insurance
You are required to obtain insurance for the vehicle that lists you as a driver, same thing you would do if you're buying a car from a dealership. Getting this insurance has been extremely easy for our drivers, most of the time not taking them more than a couple of hours to get. The only requirement we have is that we be listed as the Lien Holder (as you would with any lease) and have no more than a $500 deductible.
FAQ Page
We are sorry for the confusion over the information presented on the FAQ page of the website. This week we have been reorganizing the website to fit our new business model. Everything you need to know will be updated on the website within the next couple of days.
