Quite a few pieces around about this issue, which was initially highlighted by Cabbyman elsewhere on here.
It's mostly about the USA, but this Mirror piece alleges a couple of UK examples, although they're more general cleaning charges rather than about vomit as such.
But they sound more like the run-of-the-mill Saturday night taxi disputes rather than anything more systematic, so whether there's any real problem with the scam in the UK isn't clear.
Uber 'vomit fraud': Taxi drivers accused of scam that could make your ride really expensivehttps://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-new ... s-12971885Some Uber drivers are allegedly 'staging fake messes' to justify a 'cleaning fee'Most taxi drivers have probably had the unfortunate experience of having a punter vomiting in the back of their cab.
In these cases, it makes perfect sense to charge that person to get their mess cleaned up.
But now some Uber drivers have been accused of a scam that allegedly sees customers paying out for cleaning up spillages that have never happened.
'Vomit fraud' allegedly sees drivers create 'fake' sick stains to justify charging their customers a huge amount.
In recent months this type of fraud has been called out by disgruntled Uber users across the globe on social media.
Even people in the UK claim to have been hit by the scam.
Riders claim they have reported taking trips with the company, only to get a notification from them once they've arrived to say an "adjustment” has been made to their bill for cleaning.
Uber's policy allows the driver add on a "cleaning fee" to a rider's bill if their car interior or exterior is damaged in any way.
This can range anywhere between $20 (£15) for vacuuming to $150 (£115) for "significant quantities of body fluids (urine, blood or vomit) in the interior of the vehicle.”
According to an investigation by the Miami Herald , multiple Uber users say they have been caught out by 'vomit fraud'.
When they complained to Uber they said they were told the company had received photos of the mess, said to have been faked by drivers to claim the cash.
According to Uber: "Riders are responsible for damage to the interior or exterior of a vehicle caused by incidents such as vomiting or food spills while in a driver's vehicle.
"Cleaning fees are assessed and charged according to the extent of the damage. If charged to a rider, these fees are paid in full to the driver."
Ellouise Dennis, from London, is one of those who claims they were hit by a fake "cleaning charge".
Writing on Facebook she said: "Myself and two friends had a 9 minute Uber trip and were all dropped off at our houses successfully without any issues.
"In the morning my payment was increased as a cleaning charge was added of £110 and was taken straight out of my account!!! We had no food or drink on us and made no mess whatsoever.
"The picture evidence they sent me was nothing to do with my journey.
"When reading into this on twitter and local newspapers, I’ve found that some Uber drivers are making a mess deliberately and blaming it on their last passengers of the night.
"When I complained about this, Uber didn’t take my side at all and provided a generic response saying ‘we appreciate your understanding’.
"It wasn’t until I tweeted them for everyone to see, that they started taking it seriously and said they will be refunding me.
"I just wanted to share my experience to warn people that this can happen and the money gets taken out straight away!!"
Sophie Jennings and a friend were charged £106 for a 1.8 mile trip that took around seven minutes.
She claims they were told the fee was due to a cleaning fee for "open alcohol bottles" they never left beind.
She wrote on Facebook: "Over 3 days later we received a bill of £106 for open alcohol containers and cleaning fee.
"This is completely false and no way associated with our trip.
"With only a photo of the back of a car with drink over the seat and empty bottles - and absolutely no evidence that this was the car we got in or evidence to prove this was after our trip. We sent a number of emails to Uber requesting more evidence and proof.
"We received a final generic response stating that ‘The fee has been charged correctly’.
"This is a massive scam and a way for Uber and Uber drivers to earn extra money and is happening to a lot of people."
One Uber driver, who asked to remain anonymous, told the Herald people have been committing 'vomit fraud' for a long time.
“Many people don’t review their emails or credit card statements, so the drivers wind up pocketing the $80 or $150" she added.
Uber urges passengers to get in touch with the company if they feel they have been unfairly charged.
An Uber spokesman said: “Participating in fraudulent activity of any kind is a clear violation of our Community Guidelines.
"We are constantly evaluating our processes and technology related to these claims and will take appropriate action whenever fraud may be detected."
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