Well said!UBER Template in Red - my comments in black
Dear Sir,
You and your colleagues have probably had a bunch of these emails sent to you that are all copy and paste - because that is what UBER is good at - marketing/lobbying....and getting their minions to follow sheep like with whatever spin they put out to them .... from my observation and experience ..UBER are definitely NOT interested in being a good "corporate citizen" ...if they were then they'd find a way to legally enter the Australian market as a legitimate, Tax Paying, corporation.
I was an Uber-X "partner" driver for several months - very much part time, until it just became ridiculously UNprofitable for the level of risk vs the reward - the collection of GST on UBER"s behalf was the last straw.
I am resident in your electorate. I partnered with Uber because:
a) Drive to the pick up point (unpaid) - b) wait (unpaid) until the passenger turns up c) Drive to the drop off point (Uber expects the driver to have a clean car, safe, roadworthy car AND supply mints/water to every passenger - all extra expenses to the driver - regardless of if the fare revenue is $6 or $66 - i.e. a $6 minimum trip could in fact be a negative profit after expenses/GST etc if 3-4 people get in the car, all have a bottle of water ...but UBER still picks up their 20% Tax Free....) d) Drop off the passenger and then drive/wait (unpaid) until the next request for a ride
- I wanted something to do over the Xmas break and had happily used Uber as a passenger previously - and didn't like using Taxi's. .
- It is flexible. I can work when I want - true but in reality this is UBER SPIN as there are significant variations in when/where I can work and how much I can earn "after tax/expenses"
e.g. : The way Uber has it organised ( in UBER's favour) they don't care how MUCH a driver earns (after expenses/tax) ...only how many drivers there are .....as UBER still pick up 20% of ALL fares - TAX FREE -
- Whereas the Uber-X Driver has to
NB Unlike Taxis there is no "street hailing" - unlike Small Charter Vehicles there is no "regular clientele" so no way to build "a business" with a regular income/asset base Uber-X drivers are 100% reliant on the UBER App to generate ANY income - and if Uber decides to LOWER the Rates (as they have done) without consultation to win more market share and/or they decide to increase the Commission they charge the drivers to increase UBER's Profit ... the can do ....at any time ... without notice .... so flexibility os one thing ..."job security" and "profit" are completely different ..
It is safe. I have gone through stringent safety checks -
- there is a chance UBER will follow US trend and increase their commission to 30% for most trips - impacting driver profitability even further
- the Driver "partner" on the other hand bears ALL the running costs and ALL the risk of operating in a "grey area" which could also impact their private Car insurance PLUS to add insult to injury.... the Driver has to collect/pay UBER's share of the GST on every trip ....
- It is easy. I can use my own car and don't have to pay big upfront costs before getting on the road and earning money. --- OK now having read the above - try reading that statement without laughing out loud at the Uber "Spin"
Not neccessarily..... Uber uses an outsourced third party reference checking company that made sure I had a "good" driving/criminal record... no idea if it was "stringent" or not as they didn't pick up that I had a low range DUI (0.055) 20 years ago .... no pre driving counselling/no psych tests they have no idea if I am a closet psycho/rapist/axe murderer... just that I haven't been caught/tried convicted....
the app makes sure I know who I am picking up and where we are going.
NO WRONG AGAIN - this is UBER SPIN !!!! Uber hides the Destination of the trip until the Passenger is physically in the car and ready to go ... there is no way to know if the person who requested the ride is the actual person who will be travelling - eg I could request an Uber for my drunk out of town mate and put him in an Uber X - then it is the driver's responsibility to get him home/out of the car ... and hope he doesn't spew/get violent...nb ther e is no panic button/no camera/no 2 way radio in the car - and Uber dont even give out an emergency phone number for drivers to contact them (...because they don't care/don't want to know ....? ) and if he does get violent ... the guy wont be the person (first name only) who is displayed on the driver app screen.
At the end of each trip, riders pay me straight through the app so there is no risk of runners or robbery and I get a record of every single trip.
NO WRONG AGAIN - this is UBER SPIN !!!! - Passengers pay UBER DIRECTLY via their Credit card/pay pal account to an offshore UBER account in Holland where there is no risk Uber can be subject to Australian GST - then UBER remits a weekly amount into my TFN Registered Bank account so that I cna declare all of my income and pay additional tax on it - and collect the GST on behalf of Uber -
As my local Member of Parliament I want to know that you will support me and advocate for sensible safety based ridesharing regulations.
NO WRONG AGAIN - this is UBER SPIN !!!! I want you to be aware that I support SOME competition to the Taxi industry - they need it as their service/pricing is ridiculous and does not encourage safe driving - low cost, fair and equitable ride sharing does - but this company is not the panacea to all Perth's taxi problems - they are only in it for the money - no other reason - they do not care about their passengers or their drivers or the millions of Australian taxpayers who fund the infrastructure that they profit from .
I would also like to arrange a time to meet with you to discuss this issue, as it is important to me, my family and the people of our electorate.
If you are interested in a frank, honest and independent account of an Ex UBER-X driver (I am not and never have been a Taxi driver - but am a long term user in many different cities) I am happy to chat.
FINAL COMMENT: UBER says they have "created 10,000+ jobs" ... bullsh!t ... they have taken an existing service (Taxi's/Hire cars/Public transport) and DILUTED it among 10,000 or more Australians who are using their own vehicles (not Uber's) paying for their own petrol/maintenance/tyres etc, risking their assets and livelihood (no guarantee of insurance/workers comp etc for driver or his/her vehicle) ... whilst skimming 20% off the top and taking it out of the country TAX FREE/GST FREE... and at the same time thumbing their noses at the laws and legislation of this country that (most of us) citizens/residents/companies willingly comply with for the greater good of our nation/people.
I look forward to hearing from you.
UBERCURIOUS
Can I plagiarise it?
