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New £15 Uber sign-up code available as UberTAXI launches

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There was a major protest in Central London yesterday by black cab drivers.  They believe that Transport for London should not have licensed taxi app Uber because only black cab drivers are allowed to charge passengers using an in-car meter which balances both time and distance.  Uber argues that the fares are not calculated by an in-car meter and so they are within the rules.

Uber has not taken this quietly, although I admit I was pretty surprised by their response.

UberTAXI

Yesterday Uber announced the launch of UberTAXI.  This allows you to call a black cab via the Uber app.

Is this a joke or not?  It is difficult to tell.  An ‘UberTAXI’ option has appeared in the Uber app albeit no cars are currently available.

One thing that makes me think it is not a joke is that I found a trade article which said Uber is only charging 5% commission versus the 10% taken by Hailo.  However, as most black cab drivers consider Uber to be their sworn enemy, I’m not sure than an additional 5% will make much difference.  It is difficult to imagine many black cab drivers signing up for this.

(To put this in context, when Hailo applied for a minicab licence recently to allow it to offer executive cars alongside black cabs, a large number of Hailo drivers quit in disgust.  These drivers have presumably been picked up by Get Taxi.)

The irony is that the main loser from all of this is probably Addison Lee.  The fact that AddLee is rarely mentioned these days is a symbol of how it has fallen.

The founding family cannily sold out for a reported £300m to private equity house Carlyle in 2013 and the company is presumably now carrying a substantial amount of bank debt.  We stopped using AddLee before that – after regularly spending £300 or so a year with them – because they decided to stop carrying child booster seats.

A new £15 sign-up code

As part of its PR offensive yesterday designed to rub sand in the eyes of the protesting black cab drivers, Uber launched a £15 credit via HFP for new members.

If you download the Uber app on your iPhone or Android device and use the promotional code HEADFORPOINTS your account will be credited with £15.  This is enough for a decent ride in one of their UberLUX vehicles or a couple of trips in an UberExec or UberX car.

If you already have an Uber account, you could open another for your partner.  Remember that you will need access to a unique mobile phone number as they send a confirmation code as an SMS.  Mobile phone numbers which have already been used by Uber are not accepted.

Category

General

Comments (43)

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

  • mike sanders says:
    12 Jun12 June 07:12

    how do i access this service with an overseas mobile and can I get the service from LHR on arrival.
    Is AddLee still in business?

    • Andrew (@andrewseftel) says:
      12 Jun12 June 07:37

      The Uber app works in any city worldwide after you’ve done the initial set-up.

      • Rob says:
        12 Jun12 June 08:24

        It does, it is a bit spooky opening the app in Dubai and seeing all the cars there ready to go. (Taxis can be very hard to get in Dubai at shift changeover time around 4pm, so Uber is good then.)

        One caveat – you CANNOT use your £20 credit overseas. Any ride you make will be charged in cash to the credit card Uber holds.

      • mike sanders says:
        12 Jun12 June 08:24

        Many thanks all of you I have signed up got the twenty quid and waiting for the T shirt, I’ll see how it all works when I get to London.

        • Rob says:
          12 Jun12 June 10:33

          If you walked around London with an Uber t-shirt on you would find an off-duty black cab driver taking a swipe at you ….!

          • CWK says:
            13 Jun13 June 00:04

            Usually plenty of Uber cars across the three levels at Heathrow.

            You would probably need to head to departures, to the drop off area, where you’re Uber car can collect you.

    • Rob says:
      12 Jun12 June 08:22

      AddLee is still there, yes!

    • pazza2000 says:
      12 Jun12 June 08:54

      Yes you can get UBER on arrival at LHR. At any one time there seem to be a few available in or around the airport.

  • Tim Millea says:
    12 Jun12 June 07:17

    Some of the subtlety of the black cabbies’ argument is lost on me. The last time I used one was 30 years ago, and even then, for a relatively short cross London journey it cost more than a flight to Greece. Are they simply objecting to any competition? Why are they not embracing something that is likely to bring them more customers?

    Taxi drivers the World over have a certain reputation. If ever my journey would involve a taxi ride, I won’t do it. The trip is off.

    • Worzel says:
      12 Jun12 June 07:42

      ? !

    • Rob says:
      12 Jun12 June 08:21

      You should try India, you can hire yourself a guy and his cab for the whole day for £10 and they’ll go wherever you want!

      • mrtibbs1999 says:
        12 Jun12 June 08:42

        I hired a chap in Cairo once for a tenner. I felt bad and gave him £15 for the day. He was over the moon. Apparently it was about 10 days wages to him. The car was a battered Lada and we went to all the sub pyramids. Wonderful days when you could go anywhere in Egypt without being raped or murdered!

    • Tariq says:
      12 Jun12 June 10:54

      +1, I’d rather drive through London myself than use scumbag Taxis.

  • Andrew (@andrewseftel) says:
    12 Jun12 June 07:38

    One thing worth noting is that UberTAXI now creates a five-seater service through the app. Great if there’s a group of you.

    • CWK says:
      13 Jun13 June 00:09

      Furthermore, as taxis have greater passenger cabin space than the Uber cars, you can use UberTaxi to carry awkward items of luggage with you, you couldn’t have otherwise (i.e. a cello, perhaps?!).

      Taxis are also wheelchair friendly, so there’s another service.

  • Erico1875 says:
    12 Jun12 June 07:43

    That strike was probably the best publicity Uber could have wished for.

  • sandgrounder says:
    12 Jun12 June 08:58

    They really should let Private Hire in London use Taximeters. They can in other parts of the country. The Hackney trade need to stop making excuses and evolve or die.

  • Brian Peers says:
    12 Jun12 June 09:13

    Anybody having problems signing up with an AMEX?

    I’m getting a dreaded message about CVV codes must be 4 characters for Amex and 3 for Visa despite having 4 numbers there…

    • mike sanders says:
      12 Jun12 June 09:25

      visa has total seven numbers it is the last three that matter, Amex is four on the front of the card, but then you knew all this.

  • Andrew says:
    12 Jun12 June 09:34

    And this morning Uber is in second place in the App Store, behind the Facebook Messenger they’ve forced on all users. There only seems to be one winner from yesterday!

  • Mark says:
    12 Jun12 June 09:55

    How long is the credit valid for?

    • Rob says:
      12 Jun12 June 10:28

      Guessing a year. When I started using them seriously – which was about 6 months after signing up – my bonus was still there. If you’ve got a phone that can take the app then sign-up, wherever you live. I expect Uber to be in most major UK cities within a year anyway.

      I actually had my first f***-wit Uber driver yesterday out of about 30 trips. Tried to do a U-turn in our (one-way) street and set off driving before my 3-year old had got his seatbelt on. They are generally OK though. The UberLUX guys also know where they are going. Below that level, don’t get into the car without the postcode of your destination!

      I also had a f***-wit black cab driver on Sunday at Paddington, who was so useless that I seriously think he had borrowed the cab from someone else. He actually asked me how to get to Kings Road from the new Paddington taxi rank.

      • Idrive says:
        12 Jun12 June 13:06

        after you advised a few days ago I used get taxi 4/5 times,the lack of minimum is the key there.
        Though, i had a terrible experience with a driver when he took the longest way to destination and got stuck into heavy traffic (i could not get off i was in the middleofnowhere) and he not only did non even apologize but also tried to argue…
        a part from that, my last driver was in the top ten! 🙂

      • CWK says:
        13 Jun13 June 00:14

        All Uber drivers need to pass their own knowledge test before they’re allowed onto their system. Obviously the Lux one is harder than the one for the X.

        You should have reported the taxi at Paddington. Is it likely that it was the owner’s mate/brother/mechanic etc., was driving the cab, earning on the sly.

    • pazza2000 says:
      12 Jun12 June 10:38

      I don’t think it expires. The promos do, but not the sign up credit.

      • Alan says:
        12 Jun12 June 11:02

        It’s showing a 1-year validity when I check on my account (it doesn’t seem to show it in the app, but it does under ‘Payments’ on the website.

        • pazza2000 says:
          12 Jun12 June 11:07

          Fair enough. I don’t think I’ve ever seen an expiration with previous credits though. I’ve had my £20 sign up for almost 2 years.

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

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