How to decide which rides to accept and which ones to decline and/or cancel, as a rideshare driver?
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In this article, I will explore how to decide which rides to accept through the Uber and Lyft apps.
This is somewhat subjective and will depend on what your strategy for driving is. Obviously, we want to accept high paying rides and decline low paying rides, but there are exceptions and things to consider.
To start with, we need to understand how the apps are working today. Up until recently, you did not know how much a ride was paying. When Uber and Lyft sent you a ride request it simply told you how long it was and in what general direction it was headed. As a driver, you only found out how much you were paid for that ride, when it was completed.
We drivers have long requested that the apps tell us how much each ride will pay before we accept the ride. Uber and Lyft both recently agreed to do this, but at a cost. That cost is that they pay us less for those rides, while they charge customers more. So, basically we traded information for pay. But there are some things we can do to fight against this, but it means that we have to work harder. I would love to just be able to turn on the app and take any ride they gave me and not have to stress out about it.
Also, before the change to upfront pricing, driver pay was based on mileage and time, and Uber and Lyft took a percentage. This was logical. Today, what they charge passengers and pay drivers is based on a secret algorithm, which can be hard to figure out.
To me, it seems to be an auction type of system. A passenger requests a ride. Uber or Lyft decides what they think the lowest amount is that drivers will accept for that ride and starts sending that offer out to drivers. If no driver accepts the ride, then the app starts offering more money for that trip. So, the system depends on drivers knowing what they are worth and being willing to decline rides, for the benefit of all drivers.
Here is an example that shows this in action: The other week, I got a ride that was about 20 minutes for $4.75. By the time I drive to the pickup spot, wait for the passenger, and drive them to their destination, it could easily take 30 minutes. So, if I did two of those per hour I would make a wopping $9.50 an hour, minus gas and wear and tear on my vehicle. NOPE, Decline! Then the next ride the app gave me was 24 minutes for $15.00. Huh? Now, I am making around $30 per hour. Of course, I accepted that ride.
So, what happened. Well, we don’t know for sure, because their algorithm is secret. But, one piece of it, was probably that several drivers declined that ride and they kept raising the price until someone accepted it.
How The Apps Tell Us About A Ride
So, now that I have established why we have to look closely at each ride and make decisions on which rides to accept, let’s look at what information Uber and Lyft gives us to make our decisions.
When we are driving, Uber sends us “ride requests” for us to either accept or decline. These ride requests pop-up on our screen for about 7 seconds. Yes, you have to be able to do the math quickly. These requests tell us:
- How much the ride will pay.
- The pickup street and drop off street.
- How long it will take to get to the pick-up location.
- How long it will take to get to the drop-off location.
In order to figure out whether or not to decline a ride, we have to quickly add up the amount of time it will take to pickup and drop-off a passenger, and throw in a little time for waiting on the passenger. Then we compare that time to the amount being offered by Uber for the ride.
So, one of the biggest factors here, to me, is the pickup time, as this is technically time we are not even being paid for. Uber only charges passengers for the time between us picking them up and dropping them off at their destination. As a driver, I want a very short pickup time and a longer trip. For pickups over 12 minutes, Uber does add a little bit for a longer pickup.
Also, drivers need to know that Uber is often very deceptive with this. If I am on a trip and I am 10 minutes from dropping off my current passenger, and Uber sends me a request with a 15 minute pickup time. Is that 15 minutes from when I drop them off or only 5 minutes from when I drop them off? You actually have no way of knowing. I have had both happen. If you happen to be headed in the direction of that next pickup then it could be 5 or so minutes, but it could also be 15 minutes.
Ok, back to figuring out whether or not to accept a particular ride. The main thing, that I do, is I try to quickly add up the amount of time it is going to take me to pickup a passenger and drop them off. Let’s say the pickup is 5 minutes away and the drop-off is 10 minutes, so this ride is probably going to take a minimum of 15 minutes. If I want to make at around $25 per hour before any bonuses, I need the base rate for this ride to be at least $6 to $7.
To make decisions quickly, I use the following rule of estimates $6 for a 15m trip, $12 for a 30m trip, $18 for a 45m trip, and $24 for a 60m trip. It does not have to be precise, but in those ballparks. A $6 trip for a 30m trip, no. A $15 for a 45m trip, maybe. A $10 drip for 15min, definitely.
Other Factors
Quests
I will accept short rides for less pay, if I am working towards a quest, where I will get a bonus for doing x amount of rides. For example, if I am trying to do a 60 ride quest over the weekend, then I can’t accept many long rides. I have to accept shorter rides and decline longer rides.
Congested Areas and/or Events
I will also decline rides, if they are at a club or event, where I know it is impossible to get in and out of the area. Sometimes the surges can be very high, but you end up stuck in traffic for an hour, eating up your profit.
This also applies to airport runs. Here in Atlanta, I actually like taking people to the airport and our airport if fairly easy to get into and out of. And airport passengers often tip well. The issue is that our airport is south of the city and you are likely to get a ride back into the city. This is great, except during rush hour traffic. You can get a 20 minute ride back to the city that takes an hour or more. So, I avoid going to the airport during rush hour traffic.
Out of the City
At certain times, I don’t want to take rides that are going to take me far outside the city, away from the larger surges and boosts. And, in Atlanta, when you get pulled out of the main metro-area, you keep getting pulled further and further out. To the point that, eventually, you have to stop working and drive back into the city.
And the main problem with being too far out of the city, is the pickup times. In more rural areas, pickup times can be much longer than the trips themselves. You might have to drive 20 minutes to pick someone up for a 5 minute ride. That does not work financially.
Dangerous Areas
This subject is a little more controversial. I love my city and like going all over and giving rides to everyone. But there are some clubs, gas stations, and streets, that are very dangerous to travel to at night. There are streets that have lots of drug houses on them. There are gas stations where lots of robberies happen. There is one club where I witnessed a shooting while picking up a passenger one night. I try to avoid rides at these places, especially late at night.
Cancellation Rate vs. Acceptance Rate
In the apps, you have an acceptance rate and a cancellation rate. Both of these are tracked by Uber and Lyft and make a difference as to rewards and benefits levels you can obtain. Right now, in order to achieve and maintain Pro Status with Uber, you need to have a 70% acceptance rate and no more than a 4% cancellation rate. Your acceptance rate goes up as you accept rides through the app and your cancellation rate goes up if you cancel rides that you have already accepted.
To the best of my knowledge, Uber will not deactivate you as a driver if your acceptance rate goes below 70%. You will just lose the benefits of being an Uber Pro driver. We will cover this in future articles. But Uber might deactivate you if you have too many cancellations. And I understand this. It is very frustrating to passengers if they get matched with a driver, and then have that driver cancel their ride, especially if they have been waiting for some time.
As a driver, you should do your best not to cancel rides. It is unprofessional and rude, but there are reasons for doing it:
- I was trying to press the decline ride button, during a ride request, but the app ignored me pushing the button or I was just not fast enough.
- I get to the general pickup area, but can’t get to the pickup location for some reason.
- There is really bad traffic or an accident, and I don’t want the passenger to have to wait for the traffic to clear.
- The passenger does not show up, and the clock runs out on them. This does not count against your cancellation rate.
- There are too many passengers to fit into my car. As an Uber X, I can only carry 4 people at a time. Sometimes you will get more than that wanting to crowd into your car. This is not only dangerous, but illegal. This does not count against your cancellation rate.
- Passenger is clearly drunk. I don’t mind giving rides to people who have been drinking, but if they can’t walk or seem like they might throw up in my car, then I will cancel.
- They have children and no car seat. This does not count against your cancellation rate.
- I get to a pickup location, but people are acting suspiciously and I feel that I might be in danger. Or the pickup spot is behind an abandoned building or something like that. Safety should always come first.
Again, there are reason for cancelling, so it is important to not use your cancellations frivolously, so that you can use them when you really need to.
If you decide to sign up to drive for Uber or Lyft, please use my referral links, or codes if you sign-up directly in the apps:
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