An Uber glitch sent drivers to riders' final destinations — before picking anyone up (UBER)

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Uber driver NYC

  • An issue with Uber’s dispatching software is sending drivers to a rider’s final destination before picking up the rider.
  • Both riders and drivers have reported the recurring issue over the past week.
  • The company did not respond to a request for comment from Business Insider, but it’s official support account said on Twitter that it was aware of the issue.
  • Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories.

Many Uber drivers and riders are reporting a peculiar problem: drivers were being sent to their destinations instead of the pickup point.

The issue appears to be mainly affecting the Uber Driver app, which is a separate product from the rider app, and sending drivers to a requested destination before picking up the passenger who requested to go there.

“It showed me my pickup location correctly,” one disgruntled customer said on Twitter. “It showed the driver my destination location, instead. This happened 2x. The second time, I called the driver and reset my pickup location w/o moving the pin. Only then did the driver get the correct location.”

Usually, drivers are not shown a riders’ destination until the ride has begun. This helps to avoid cancelled rides if a driver doesn’t like the direction or length of a requested trip.

An Uber spokesperson confirmed to Business Insider that the issue was affecting rides and that it was the result of a service interruption.  “The team worked quickly to resolve and ensure riders and drivers’ trips returned to a five star experience,” the representative said. 

Still, the issue appeared to affect many trips before it was fixed:

 

Drivers said that they were experiencing the issue as well.

“Anyone else have this problem,” asked a driver in Florida on the popular UberPeople forum. “3 times in Fort Lauderdale in the past two days, I get a ping, head to pickup point and find it is the destination and pax is waiting for me at an address the app did not provide.

App issues are a major complaint among drivers. In interviews with Business Insider, many have said the company often takes months to respond to, and properly address, bugs in the platform.

“Uber delayed two months about bugs in the app, when it was crashing as I was trying to login,” Harmony, a driver in Tennessee who asked to keep her last name private to avoid pushback from the company, said. “Finally I gave up and started driving for Lyft instead.”

Do you work for Uber? Have a news tip? Get in touch with this reporter at grapier@businessinsider.com. Secure contact methods are available here.

Now read:

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  • Female drivers for Uber and Lyft say sexual harassment is the norm — and getting help from the companies isn’t easy
  • Uber drivers are thrilled with the company’s plan to bar passengers with low ratings

SEE ALSO: Terrifying video shows a Lyft driver being attacked by a passenger, and it highlights a major fear of many drivers

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