Uber Fee, Uber Cancellation Fee, Uber Cleaning Fee, Uber Damage Fee and More

When Uber passengers and Uber drivers use the Uber platform, they will be subjected to various fees. There is a specific purpose to each of the fees levied by Uber. Uber levies the following Uber fees: Uber booking fee, Uber cancellation fee (Uber no-show fee), Uber toll fee, Uber airport fee, Uber cleaning fee, and Uber damage fee. Any of the previously mentioned Uber fees could be levied in any combination. However, usually an Uber cancellation fee is levied or any of the others. I have not seen a situation where the Uber cancellation fee is levied in addition to the other mentioned Uber fee.

This post will detail the various Uber fees, list if they can be avoided and if they are refundable.

Here is the summary of the various Uber fees:

Uber Booking Fee: This flat fee is levied on every trip and varies by city. It is usually between $1 and $2.
Uber Cancellation Fee: It is a $5 fee if you cancel after 5 minutes of requesting a trip or no-show a ride (Uber no-show fee).
Uber Toll Fee: levied to the passenger if passenger chosen route requires a toll or if a toll is required for the driver to return empty due to local regulations
Uber Airport Fee: levied to the passenger due to local airport regulations. Varies by location and can be up to $10.
Uber Cleaning Fee: between $50 and $150.
Uber Damage Fee: up to $250 to the passenger.

Uber Payment Terms:

Lets start with going over Uber Payment terms. By using their service, customers agree to fees which may be immediate and some non-refundable. Below is the full Uber payment terms:

(https://www.uber.com/legal/usa/terms)
Any fees that the Company may charge you for the Application or Service, are due immediately and are non-refundable. This no refund policy shall apply at all times regardless of your decision to terminate your usage, our decision to terminate your usage, disruption caused to our Application or Service either planned, accidental or intentional, or any reason whatsoever. The Company reserves the right to determine final prevailing pricing – Please note the pricing information published on the website may not reflect the prevailing pricing.
The Company, at its sole discretion, make promotional offers with different features and different rates to any of our customers. These promotional offers, unless made to you, shall have no bearing whatsoever on your offer or contract. The Company may change the fees for our Service or Application, as we deem necessary for our business. We encourage you to check back at our website periodically if you are interested about how we charge for the Service of Application.

Uber Booking Fee:

The Uber booking fee is a separate flat fee added to every UberX, UberXL, UberSelect trip that helps support safety initiatives for riders and drivers as well as other operational costs. Previously known as the Uber safe rides fee, your Uber booking fee will appear in your trip receipt.

The Uber booking fee (Uber safe rides fee) varies by city. The fee varies between $1 and $3.

Can Uber Passengers avoid the Uber Booking Fee? The Uber booking fee cannot be avoided on UberX, UberXL and UberSelect. The Uber booking fee can be avoided if the Uber passenger requests UberBlack and UberSUV. In addition, there are some cities that do not have an Uber booking fee because all Uber trips in that city requires commercial insurance.

Can Uber refund the Uber Booking Fee? The Uber Booking Fee is non-refundable. However, there are some locations that do not incur an Uber booking fee because the location requires commercial insurance, like any city in the state of New York or any trip on UberBlack or UberSUV.

Uber Cancellation Fee and Uber No-Show Fee:

The Uber cancellation fee is typically $5 on UberX, UberXL, and UberSelect, $10 for UberBlack and UberSUV. The Uber cancellation fee is charged to the passenger if any of these occur on an UberX, UberXL, UberSelect, UberBlack and UberSUV:

Passenger cancels the ride after 5 minutes of requesting a trip
After the driver arrives at your pickup location for 5 minutes and passenger does not show up (Uber no-show fee)
Passenger cancels the ride after driver arrives at pickup location

Here is the Uber cancellation fee policy for UberPool:

Levied if the driver arrives at your pickup location for 2 minutes and the passenger does not show up (Uber no-show fee). If you are the first passenger, it will be $5. If you are not the first passenger, it will be $2. There may be no way to know which passenger you are in UberPool.

The Uber cancellation fee also encompasses the Uber no-show fee. This is when the passenger no-show for their Uber trip. I get many Uber no-show fee in any given week and it is one of the most avoidable Uber fees. It requires an Uber passenger to be on time for an Uber trip. This is not hard since the Uber app can track the driver and typically gives you an accurate time of arrival. You also get notified when the Uber driver is close or have arrived at your destination. there is almost no reason why an Uber passenger no-show an Uber trip.

Can Uber Passengers avoid the Uber Cancellation Fee? Check when your Uber is arriving and be sure to be outside and visible at the location you request to pick up. Double check where you request the pickup. Keep your phone with you after you request the Uber trip. The Uber system notifies the passenger when the Uber driver arrives. The aforementioned tips will help Uber passengers avoid the Uber no-show fee. There are many reasons why the Uber passenger doesn’t show up for their Uber trip and get charged an Uber no-show fee. Make sure to be put the pickup location in the right place and be present for your Uber trip to avoid the Uber no-show fee. I personally have collected many Uber no-show fees and it is very easy for Uber drivers to get them.

Can Uber refund the Uber Cancellation Fee? It depends. If you can prove your story about why the driver was not present at the correct location, you can get a refund for the Uber cancellation fee. Remember that Uber has data on both the driver and passenger so it will be easy to prove if the Uber driver at fault or the Uber passenger is at fault.

Uber Toll Fee:

The Uber Toll Fee is levied to the Uber passenger if the chosen route requires a toll or if a toll is required for the driver to return empty due to local regulations. The Uber toll fee is typically nonrefundable. Here are some examples of passengers levied an Uber Toll Fee:

Trip requires going over a tolled road and there are no alternatives.
Passenger requests a specific route that requires a toll, such as a tolled highway, or a special toll lane.
Trip requires the driver to return over a toll road without a passenger because of local regulations. One example is a trip from New Jersey to New York City by a New Jersey Uber driver. Because specific New Jersey Uber drivers are not allowed to pick up passengers in the state of New York, some drivers are required to return to New Jersey without a passenger. Uber will charge the passenger a toll on this trip, even if the toll is not required for the passengers trip and required for the Uber driver return trip.

Can Uber Passengers avoid the Uber Toll Fee: Request a route that does not include the toll. You may want to consider how much your time is worth. Often, the toll is $5 but it can save you 20 minutes. Also, keep in mind that there will be extra distance and time charged to the Uber trip if you want to avoid a toll, so it often doesn’t make sense to avoid a toll. If you want to be sure, text the Uber driver with specific instructions at any time before the start of the trip so there is physical proof of request.

Can Uber refund the Uber Toll Fee? For situations 1 and 3 above, no. The only situation where a toll fee can be refunded is if the driver took a route that required a toll but there is a reasonable alternative route that didn’t require a toll. It is difficult to get a refund for the Uber toll fee.

Uber Airport Fee:

The Uber airport fee is levied to the passenger due to local airport regulations. The Uber airport fee varies by location and can be up to $10. The Uber airport fee can be levied on an Uber airport trip with a dropoff at the airport or a pickup at the airport. The fee is levied where the passenger is picked up.

Can Uber Passengers avoid the Uber airport fee? Uber passengers can request the trip outside of the airport grounds to avoid the Uber airport fee. Here are a few common ways:

Use the hotel shuttles to leave airport premises
Use free airport shuttle to leave airport premises (like to the employee parking lot)
Use the rental car shuttle to leave airport premises (sometimes rental car terminal is still considered airport premises)
Take public transportation to get out of the airport (bonus if you can also avoid a toll with public transportation)

Can Uber refund the Uber airport fee? It is unlikely you can get a refund. If the Uber airport fee is levied on your Uber trip, it cannot be refunded unless you can prove that you were picked up by the Uber driver outside of the airport. There can be situations where the Uber driver can drive into the airport, start the trip and pick you up outside the airport. Uber has data on both passenger and driver location so it can be easy to prove who is at fault.

Uber Cleaning Fee Policy:

The Uber cleaning fee is between $50 and $150. Damage is charged to the passenger after proof of damage is assessed by Uber. The damage could be to the exterior or interior of the car. If the Uber passenger pukes on the exterior of the car, Uber can still charge the Uber passenger to clean the exterior of the car. Uber is the one who decides how much the Uber cleaning fee and it often favors the Uber passengers and not the Uber driver. I have seen many examples where the Uber driver had a quote for the cost of cleaning the affected area of the car, yet the awarded Uber cleaning fee was much lower than the quote.

Below is Uber’s official statement on Uber cleaning fee:

(https://support.uber.com/hc/en-us/articles/201830876-What-Is-this-cleaning-fee-)
Drivers work hard to maintain clean vehicles. A clean up fee (Uber cleaning fee) for damage to the interior or exterior of the vehicle incurred as a result of events such as vomiting or pet accidents will be assessed and charged when applicable. In most cases, this fee will be $100 – $200, but the exact amount depends on the extent of the damage. We will always notify you when such a charge is necessary.

Can Uber Passengers avoid the Uber cleaning fee? The only way to avoid the Uber cleaning fee is to not soil the interior or exterior of your Uber driver’s car.

Can Uber refund the Uber cleaning fee? If the Uber passenger can provide sufficient evidence that they did not soil the Uber driver’s car, then Uber can refund the cleaning fee. However, the Uber driver has to provide sufficient evidence to receive an Uber cleaning fee so it is unlikely that any Uber passenger have sufficient evidence to overturn the Uber driver’s evidence of damage.

Uber Damage Fee Policy:

The Uber damage fee can be up to $250 for Uber passengers and up to the amount of the damage assessed by an independent shop for Uber drivers. There is a lot of proof needed from the Uber driver in terms of a statement, pictures, and a quote in order for the Uber damage fee to be paid out to the driver. Uber is aware of various scams by Uber drivers concerning any of the mentioned fees and Uber does a good job eliminating fraud by Uber drivers. It doesn’t mean fraud can’t happen, but unlikely. Payment of the Uber damage fee to the Uber driver depends on who is at fault. See below for more details.

Below is Uber’s official statement on Uber damage fee:

(https://www.uber.com/legal/terms/us/)
You shall be responsible for the cost of repair for damage to, or necessary cleaning of, vehicles and property resulting from use of the Services under your Account in excess of normal “wear and tear” damages and necessary cleaning (“Repair or Cleaning”). In the event that a Repair or Cleaning request is verified by Uber in Uber’s reasonable discretion, Uber reserves the right to facilitate payment for the reasonable cost of such Repair or Cleaning using your payment method designated in your Account. Such amounts will be transferred by Uber to a Third Party Provider, if applicable, and are non-refundable.

Can Uber Passengers avoid the Uber damage fee? The only way to avoid the Uber damage fee is to not damage the Uber driver’s car.

Can Uber refund the Uber damage fee? If the Uber passenger can provide sufficient evidence that they did not damage the Uber driver’s car, then Uber can refund the damage fee. However, the Uber driver has to provide sufficient evidence to receive an Uber damage fee so it is unlikely that any Uber passenger have sufficient evidence to overturn the Uber driver’s evidence of damage.

What is the most common levied Uber fee?

The most common levied Uber fee by far is the Uber booking fee since it is levied on almost every Uber trip, save for UberBlack and UberSUV and trips in New York State. The next most common levied Uber fee is the Uber Toll Fee since some trips require a toll. The next most common Uber fee is the Uber airport fee.

The most avoidable Uber fee is the Uber cancellation fee. To be more specific, the most avoidable Uber fee is the Uber no-show fee. In any given week, I get about 10 Uber no-show fee. I ultimately never know the reason why an Uber passenger no-shows an Uber trip.

The least common Uber fee is the Uber cleaning fee and the Uber damage fee. It is not common for an Uber passenger to damage the Uber driver’s car in any way. In addition, the burden of proof on the Uber driver is rather high to eliminate fraud from Uber drivers since a minority of Uber drivers will do anything to get paid an Uber fee. This is not to say that there hasn’t been successful claims from Uber drivers to get an Uber cleaning fee or Uber damage fee that was fraudulent or the successful defense of such Uber fees by Uber passengers, even though there was damage caused by said Uber passenger to the Uber driver’s vehicle.

Difference between Uber Cleaning Fee vs Uber Damage Fee?

There is a small distinction between the Uber Cleaning fee and Uber Damage fee. The main difference between the Uber cleaning fee and Uber damage fee is that the Uber cleaning fee is often capped at the above amounts. The Uber cleaning fee is only paid when the interior or exterior of the car is dirty because of a passenger.

The Uber damage fee is when there is physical damage of the Uber driver car beyond wear and tear that is directly caused by the passenger. This Uber fee charged to the passenger is often capped at $250 while the Uber fee paid to the driver is capped by the actual repair costs. The Uber driver will have to provide proof of the damage and also repair costs. The good thing for Uber passengers is that they can only be charged up to a maximum of $250 for damage, while the Uber commercial insurance covers the rest.

What if the Passenger Isn’t Responsible for Damage?

This is where the problems lie with the Uber damage fee and the Uber cleaning fee. Here are two specific situations regarding damage and cleaning related Uber fee:

Uber Cleaning Fee: When you have a passenger in the car, someone outside the car vomits on the outside of your car.
Uber Damage Fee: When you have a passenger in the car, someone throws something at your car, damaging a window.

Regardless of if you can prove it was caused by the passenger or anyone in his/her party, as long as they were not a passenger in your car, you will have to claim it under the Uber commercial insurance. This will be claimed against the Uber commercial insurance only if the Uber driver have comprehensive coverage of their vehicle. The insurance claim will also be subjected to the below stated deductible. There will be no Uber fee paid to the Uber driver, but rather paid through a claim to Uber commercial insurance.

Here is the Uber commercial insurance policy for contingent comprehensive insurance and collision insurance.

Contingent comprehensive and collision insurance. If an Uber driver holds personal comprehensive and collision insurance this policy covers physical damage to that vehicle that occurs during a trip up to the actual cash value of the vehicle, for any reason, with a $1,000 deductible.

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Uber Fee, Uber Cancellation Fee, Uber Cleaning Fee, Uber Damage Fee and More