An Ontario woman is warning the public of a potential Uber scam happening around the Greater Toronto Area after her friend was charged a nearly $300 cleaning fee for a mess she didn’t make.
On Monday, TikTok user @bribaby1346 posted a video detailing the experience of her friend who was allegedly wrongfully charged a cleaning fee after she took an UberX following a night out in Waterloo.
@bribaby1346 ONTARIO PEOPLE‼️ This happened in waterloo on friday night. Dont use uber unless you want this shit to happen to you. @Uber ##uber #greenscreen #scam ♬ original sound – Bribaby
“So, my friend took an Uber on Friday night and this was her Uber price OK, ($42.39) then she just got an email today (Monday) saying, ‘We need to charge you a cleaning fee of $297.77,’ she explained.
“He (Uber driver) claimed that something happened in the vehicle where there was a mess left and there was absolutely no mess at all,” she continued.
The TikToker goes on to say that this type of incident has been happening often and is a new scam, so that is why she is alerting others to be careful when using the ridesharing app.
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Some rideshare have commented about having a similar experience.
“This happened to me like 2 weeks ago I lost $150,” one TikTok user said.
“This happened to me a while ago but they said I damaged their car. I just asked for a picture and they couldn’t provide me a pic so I got my money back,” another user said.
“THE SAME THING HAPPENED TO ME TWICE NOW!!! in a row. On Halloween, my $100 Uber was turned into a $700 ride! After taking $100 cash for an extra stop 15 minutes away. I’m glad It’s not just me!” another user commented.
An Uber spokesperson did not confirm any reports of this scam in the GTA, but did say rideshare users can report in the app if they were unfairly charged.
“If we notice a driver is misusing the cleaning fee policy, this is considered potential fraudulent behaviour and is reviewed by a fraud review team. If the driver exhibits an unusual pattern of claiming cleaning fees, they cannot claim such fees in the future. Drivers associated with fraudulent activity may have their accounts deactivated,” Keerthana Rang said in a statement to Now Toronto.
“Cleaning fees are paid in full to the driver. If a rider was charged a cleaning fee that they feel is inaccurate and/or unfair, they can dispute this through Uber Support in the app or go through this link,” she continued.
Rang added that drivers are able to request a cleaning fee if a rider makes a mess or causes damage to their vehicle that prevents them from taking further trips and impacts their earnings.
To do this, drivers have to submit at least two photos of the mess with a description, a picture of the receipt for a cleaning service, and details of the trip when the mess occurred. Cleaning fees are also assessed on a case-by-case basis, according to Uber.
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