Uber drivers getting a raw deal?

[Eldon]

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/fgQPj90OrQE" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/fgQPj90OrQE</a>

She ballparks about just over $2 per hour for Los Angeles area Uber drivers.

Why so low?  Factoring in Uber's cut, taxes, and, of course, depreciation of your vehicle.

Uber drivers what say you?  Assuming that you are factoring in depreciation of your car (e.g., car repairs, wear-and-tear on the brakes, tire erosion, etc.), do you find that it's worth it?  I mean, you must if you are still driving.

Thoughts?

[WarriorInNYC]

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/fgQPj90OrQE" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/fgQPj90OrQE</a>

She ballparks about just over $2 per hour for Los Angeles area Uber drivers.

Why so low?  Factoring in Uber's cut, taxes, and, of course, depreciation of your vehicle.

Uber drivers what say you?  Assuming that you are factoring in depreciation of your car (e.g., car repairs, wear-and-tear on the brakes, tire erosion, etc.), do you find that it's worth it?  I mean, you must if you are still driving.

Thoughts?

Haven't watched the video, but is this specific to Uber?  Or is this also similar to Lyft and other share ride services?  I'll have to watch this and ask my brother about this later, he drives for Uber and Lyft in Chicago.

One thing regarding depreciation and fuel, drivers should be able to deduct a certain amount of that from their taxes, so they wouldn't be getting hit with the whole cost.

[Galway Eagle]

It's great for quick temp money if you're planning a vacation or saving for something but I'd never do it as a full job or even consistent part time job

[Badgerhater]

She makes lots of valid points

However, I have always found the 54 cent/mile vehicle cost to be a bit misleading.   Some of those costs are fixed even if the car is only driven one mile -- having a car, insurance.

If you drive 15K miles on your own and 5K for Uber.  You may need repairs 25 percent sooner and buy 25 percent more gas, but you will still have 75 percent of those costs without driving for Uber.

She does mention, but glosses over, that a car is indeed a capital asset.  It is an asset that the owner can leverage into some cash at the time of their choosing.  That has value.

Talk to any small business owner today and basically it is a game of taking in a bunch of money and then paying most of it in expenses and taxes.  Often, the best reward is being your own boss and having some flexibility, because the financials frequently can be better working as a salary/wage drone for someone else.

[muwarrior69]

http://www.npr.org/sections/alltechconsidered/2017/06/09/531642304/the-faceless-boss-a-look-into-the-uber-driver-workplace

[Marquette Gyros]

Delete

[Marquette Gyros]

Delete

[Marquette Gyros]

I usually ask Uber drivers if they like driving for Uber. Maybe two out of the last 20 have said yes. The last dude in NY said "anyone who says yes is out of their minds."

Why? Generally - Uber taking a larger percentage of fares, UberPool, investments in self driving cars making drivers obsolete.

Customer experience isn't necessarily great either in my experience. Drivers better than your typical Chicago cabbie - but plenty of no shows, surge pricing with the slightest drizzle, and the app consistently overpromises and underdelivers re: wait times.

Yeah it's the biggest unicorn - but for a few reasons I don't see an IPO in the next 36 months. I get that they're supposed to be losing money at this stage - but the challenges seem bigger than too much investment for growth.

In the eyes of their drivers - and me as a customer - they're becoming as monolithic and unfriendly as the cab companies.

[Eldon]

A formal report on how much Uber/Lyft suck:

Ride-hailing giants Uber and Lyft are delivering pitiful levels of take-home pay to the hundreds of thousands of US independent contractors providing their own vehicles and driving skills to deliver the core service, according to an MIT CEEPR study examining the economics of the two app platforms.



https://finance.yahoo.com/news/mit-study-shows-much-driving-154538176.html

[Dr. Blackheart]

They'll make less when a robot replaces them in five years.

[StillAWarrior]

They'll make less when a robot replaces them in five years.

If the stats Eldon posted are correct, that's not true for 30% of the drivers -- they'll actually save money when the robots take over.