Taking a late-night Uber can be a nerve-wracking experience for anyone as fears of something bad happening start to creep in. It’s often even more worrisome for women, vigilant about being alone in a car at night with what’s often a male driver.
You just want to get to your destination quickly and safely.
But what happens when your Uber driver starts doing things that immediately raise the red flag in your head? Here’s how one woman went about it.
Uber Driver Wants To Do What?
In a viral video with more than 1.1 million views, content creator JB (@wishihadjessiesgirl) shared the harrowing experience she says she had with an Uber driver in hopes of raising awareness for others.
“POV: Your Uber driver wants to pull over to charge his car for ‘only 15–20’ minutes at 3 a.m. when you’re by yourself,” the text overlay on the video reads.
In the video, JB is seen recording herself from the back seat while speaking with the driver. The conversation appears to begin after he’d already suggested stopping to charge the electric vehicle.
“Do you want me to end the trip?” he asks.
“Yeah, I don’t want to get into a random parking lot with you. You also just missed the exit,” JB says, obviously worried for her safety.
Despite this, he keeps prodding, saying that where they’ll go usually has people around at night, as if that’s supposed to make her feel safe.
“I just want to make you feel more comfortable,” he says.
“I mean, you just asked me to go to a random parking lot with you, and you just missed the exit,” she rebuts.
In the caption, JB adds that she called the police, who met her at a random gas station, but they never found the creepy driver despite checking local charging stations. She adds that the request was even more sus given that she could see his car had 43% charge and they were only 25 minutes from her house.
“Posting this to raise awareness about how scary Ubers can be. Thank god I was sober and paying attention,” she wrote. “Absolutely the scariest thing ever. @uber “
Gallery: waymo-uber-lawsuit
What Should You Do If You Feel Unsafe In An Uber?
An unexpected route change doesn’t always mean your driver has set out to harm you, but it is something to be vigilant about, Kennedy, Johnson, Schwab & Roberge write, adding that other warning signs include erratic driving, a driver or vehicle that does not match the app, an unauthorized passenger, broken locks, and a driver that ignores a rider’s boundaries.
Uber advises riders to verify the driver’s photograph, vehicle model, and license plate before getting in and asking, “Who are you here to pick up?” so the driver has to confirm the passenger’s name instead of the passenger offering it up themselves. They also recommend sharing your trip status with a trusted contact.
If the ride begins to feel unsafe, here are other steps:
- End the ride at a well-lit, populated location when it’s safe to exit.
- Use the shield icon to open Uber’s Safety Toolkit. In an urgent situation, the in-app Emergency Button can call 911 and display the rider’s real-time location and trip information for the dispatcher.
- Report the experience to Uber after getting somewhere safe.
- Keep relevant information, like the trip time, route, communications, and any police report number.
Uber says all trips are tracked by GPS and lists additional tools, including PIN verification, audio recording, and access to an ADT safety agent by call or text.
RideCheck uses GPS and phone-sensor data to identify a possible crash or a trip that has gone unusually off course, then checks whether the rider and driver need help.
Would You Have Ended the Ride?
People in the comments section seemed livid on JB’s behalf, and some shared their own experiences.
“This happened to me with an uber leaving Logan and he did something similar and his voice sounds similar!! He kept missing exits and wouldn't listen to me until I threatened to call the police and my dad was coming to meet me where I was! So glad you're ok!!!” a top comment read.
“No way… REPORT THIS TO UBER. that is so scary,” a person said.
“I wish we could call 911 while still recording,” another wrote.
“They aren’t even supposed to stop at a gas station btw,” a commenter added.
Motor1 reached out to JB via TikTok direct message and comment, and to Uber via email. We’ll be sure to update this if either responds.
