[gerbilly]

Geez, this was just basic street smarts when I was growing up. Ask some questions upfront.

Have cash on hand when dealing with taxis. Don't assume card terminals will work, or even that they won't skim your card.

You may say, 'That's why I hate taxis cos they scam you,' yet this thread has contains many examples of Uber(Eats)* scamming people too.

Why is that better? Cos it's accessed via smartphone for some reason?

Conjecture/Rant: There is a growing cohort of people who want everything to become 'frictionless'. They are even afraid to just talk to people, talk to girls, everything has to be through text or through an app. If they get their way humans will start to interact with each other more like machines than like people, hey, maybe even through APIs! Meanwhile, what makes life interesting 'is' friction between people and cultures.

[vineyardmike]

Yea - And those darn kids play music too loud too!

I grew up in the suburb where there were no taxis. I live in SF, and we can’t call a taxi without an app. I visit NYC once a year. Plenty of people (esp immigrants from other cultures) don’t have “street smarts” that match what some urbanite 30 years ago would have. I tried taking a taxi from JFK last time I was in NYC. The driver claimed he didn’t know where my hotel was, or even the neighborhood (“Chelsea”). They stopped in the left side of the highway to spit out the door. They pretended not to take cards, they added on fees not in the original agreement, etc. If I’m gunna be scammed either way, at least let me use google maps to put in an exact address and pay by card.

Wanting frictionless commerce is not a character flaw geez. An app is way more convenient. I can talk to people “IRL” but some things are easier with an app. Getting a taxi to pick me up is easier with an app that knows my current location - that’s a good product development not an indictment on the next generation.

[gerbilly]

> Yea - And those darn kids play music too loud too!

I sure hope so.

> I visit NYC once a year. Plenty of people (esp immigrants from other cultures) don’t have “street smarts” that match what some urbanite 30 years ago would have.

Ironically, the immigrants probably have more street smarts.

> The driver claimed he didn’t know where my hotel was, or even the neighborhood (“Chelsea”).

And you rode with him anyway? Why would you do that?

Reliance on Apps to intermediate everything is bullshit in my opinion. Plus I personally specifically don't want to share my location with some app written by people I've never met who are 100% likely to either misuse it themselves or to sell it to someone who will.

When they want to take your freedom away, they won't come jackbooting in with rifles, they will do it by offering you convenience.

[ipaddr]

Giving them an address for pickup works as well as a location based tracking and allows you to tell them to meet you 5 blocks away if you are on the move when you call.

The driver didn't know the neighbourhood nickname you gave..did you give them an address? You have to searching the map on Uber anyways, did you search your google map for the address?

Taxis will go down the streets you tell them while you drive. Turn left or right next lights work. It's more flexible than ubers pre determined route.

Immigrants have more street smarts than you give them credit for. They literally uprooted their lives from places who generally scam more than the places they move to. They have taken a scammier cab ride before they even left their home country.

[cameldrv]

No. It's 2023. You're expected to take credit cards like it says on the little logo on the window. If your credit card machine is broken, your Taxi is broken and you can't pick up fares unless YOU tell them ahead of time that it's cash only.

If this happens to me I simply tell the driver I don't have any cash and exit the vehicle. Now if you have luggage in the trunk this of course gets a little more complicated. Somehow the credit card machine amazingly comes back to life as I'm getting out.

[imglorp]

> Why is that better? Cos it's accessed via smartphone for some reason?

No, at least the ideal is there's a functional reputation system for drivers and riders. Of course, if corporate is going to scam you, too, and if they're going to make less than 5 stars a death penalty for a driver, and if the app and payments are always buggy, then /shrug it all stinks.

[dfxm12]

Cab drivers are the real ones getting scammed, unfortunately, and rarely have any way of recourse. When paying with card, they are rarely paid in a timely manner, if they get the proper amount at all. This is even before uber made medallions worthless. When I was growing up, it was a matter of common courtesy to use cash in situations like that, where you know the employer is going to play games with the employee when you pay with card, like a cabbie's fare or a waitress' tip. As we got older, most of us who worked in service industries & survived on tips knew this the hard way because we were also a victim of wage theft via skimming tips, etc.

I'm glad my city isn't allowing certain businesses to go completely cash free for this reason. The push to force credit card payments everywhere just hurts a class of people that are already vulnerable.

[Tyrek]

This incredible scope creep in the customer's responsibilities (not just price, but I somehow have to adjust for a vague sense of the employer-employee relationship, for ethical/ESG considerations, etc. etc.) is just... overwhelming. I shouldn't be responsible for your employment relationship, that is between you, your employer, and the relevant regulatory authority.

[gerbilly]

Yes I totally agree. When businesses push for going cashless, they are often doing it to claw back the tips customers are giving their workers.

Tips that have become customary because it's become accepted that a waiter mustn't be paid a living wage. Why has it become accepted, because we have a hidden caste system.

But the customers get to feel cool to frequent a place that 'gets it' because cash is or old people.

[scarface_74]

Yes because most people get paid everyday.

> I'm glad my city isn't allowing certain businesses to go completely cash free for this reason. The push to force credit card payments everywhere just hurts a class of people that are already vulnerable.

And forget about the vulnerability of the merchants who have to worry about being robbed.

[cameldrv]

I don't believe this. I think that the real reason that cab drivers don't want to accept credit cards is because they don't want to pay taxes on the money like everyone else has to. Sorry buddy, your inability to evade taxes is not my problem.

[rfrey]

I refuse to believe that not cheating people by default, and not expecting others to cheat me by default, is synonymous with acting "more like machines than people". What a cynical, depressing world view.

[gerbilly]

That comment wasn't about cheating it was about the communication medium. I.e. communicating via text or app vs. face to face. I.e. talking to each other like we're computers instead of face to face like people.

[scarface_74]

I’ve stepped foot in 18 different cities in the past year where I’ve used Uber - mostly personal but a few business.

Why would I ever go through this in every city I go to instead of using Uber?

[darkwizard42]

Getting scammed and having a poor experience isn't the kind of friction we should be encouraging. I don't think that conjecture holds much water.