So Not once, or twice but three times today I had Parents requesting rides for their kids. The first was a simple 12 year old going to a friends house, When he got in the car I asked if he was riding alone and he said, "YUP."
I then told him to go grab one of his parents so I could speak with them.
He want and grabbed Mom, and she came outside.
I told her,
"Ma'am, I can't take him by himself, he's not old enough."
She replied, "Ok, I'll just take him then, just cancel and keep the fee. no worries."
(I thought that would go worse, but I'll be glad to take your $4 for driving 1 mile.)
Second however was a doosy.
Pulled up in a Suburb on the southside at 4:30
Two girls get in the back seat, and we are apparently waiting for two more, I then ask.
"Quick question, How old are you guys?"
One responds,
"I'm 16, she's 17, and our two friends are 17."
I say,
"Someone over 18 (besides me) has to be in the vehicle during the trip."
She replies,
"We took an Uber here and had no problems, when did that rule change."
I say,
"Its always been in effect, alot of drivers don't enforce it."
One girl then hands a phone to me and asks me to speak to her mother. Mom asks what the problem is and I explain to her the same thing, She then insists I cancel and make sure she isn't charged (she was.)
I then cancel her ride and make U turn and park in a spot 50 feet from their house, I'm curious what the next driver is going to do. I then go offline and sit still, not a word comes out of my mouth and i'm facing forward. One of the girls asks what I'm doing, I say "I'm taking a break."
She says, "Oh well we'll just order another rides since your such a TIGHT ASS about the rules."
I say,
"If another driver wants to take the risk that's on them. I'm just sitting here minding my own business."
She say.
"No, You acting like an As***le just sitting there waiting. You going to snitch on us to the next driver
I say,
"I'm not acting like anything, I'm just sitting here, you approached me."
(In reality, I was going over the terms of service so if any of this happens in the future I can have it bookmarked on my phone if I need it handy.")
I left two minutes later.
The third one was alot calmer,
Young kid comes out and jumps in the back, I ask how old he is and he says 15, I ask if he's riding alone and he says yes. I give him the same speal and he says of course no other drivers give him a problem. I tell him that someone over 18 can ride with him if they are available. He comes back out and says "Mom can't come right now, What if I give you $10 extra?" I say no. "Ok, can you explain this to my mom?"
I say Sure.
Mom Comes out and asks what the problem is and I tell her its against terms of service. She was clam about it and explains she was in a pinch and needed to get him back to his Dad's place tonight. I apologized for not being able to accommodate her but I can't skirt the rules and put myself and her son at risk if there is an accident.
Sorry to Rant but I need to ask you guys, Have you had Parents mad at you? Do you verify age if they look under 18? Do you request ID? Do you trust their word if they say they are 18 but look 16?
Love to hear back and be safe out there.
