Uber?
September 9th, 2015 at 5:05:50 PM permalink | |
AZDuffman Member since: Oct 24, 2012 Threads: 135 Posts: 18136 |
Did it have those eyelashes on the headlights? I've never used it yet but have the app ready. Minimal need as I rarely bar hop and if I do I can walk from my home, but next time I fly I will ring up the app and try it. The President is a fink. |
September 9th, 2015 at 5:55:44 PM permalink | |
Evenbob Member since: Oct 24, 2012 Threads: 146 Posts: 25010 |
Oh really? Try and drive a cab anywhere without one. It's illegal. And pickups are a bigger part of the business than you realize. 25% of my business came from the airport, bus and train station. Also outside of big hotels and sporting events. You can call ahead for a Uber, but most people take a cab because there is a line of them right in front of you. When I read the Uber boards, it's very clear that most of the Uber Dopes pay no taxes. The IRS hasn't caught up to them yet. They are supposed to be filing quarterly taxes if they paid more that $1000 in taxes last year or they expect to pay more than $1000 this year. Failure to file quarterly and you get a penalty for every quarter missed. Like the guy that brags he got $900 from Uber last week. He's aware in the back of his mind that he'll have to pay tax eventually, but he'll deal with it later. I guarantee he doesn't know that he has to pay a whopping 15.3% right off the top for FICA and Medicaid. He has no employer to absorb half of that. Thats $137 a week if he makes $900 a week. It takes the IRS about 2-3 years to catch up to the paperwork, and most Uber drivers haven't been in the system long enough to hear from them. When I was in business, it was all cash and drivers never filed because the gov't had no idea what they were doing. Even now most only file on a portion of what they earn, Uber drivers have a paper trail and get away with nothing. If you crunch all of it, taxes and expenses and depreciation, he's making about $250 a week. That's if he works 45 hours, and most do not. If you take a risk, you may lose. If you never take a risk, you will always lose. |
September 9th, 2015 at 6:11:53 PM permalink | |
AZDuffman Member since: Oct 24, 2012 Threads: 135 Posts: 18136 |
But it should not be. No special driving skill. A CDL there are reasons for, an example is knowing how to drive with air brakes. But a cab is just a sedan like most people drive.
Depends on where you are at. Not so in my town. Some hotels have cab stands, but leave a bar or restaurant and see how many you can hail. Plus watch the little meter go click-click-click when you are in traffic. Me, I'd rather have a contract price and just order on my phone than walk blocks.
The pay will sort itself out over a few years. They get to write the mileage off. While delivering luggage I know many nights that well over half my revenue will not be taxed because of the mileage. Any smart 1099 driver should be able to write off 75% of revenue or more to cost. When I was doing O&G work I could write off almost 1/3 for miles, tolls, and parking. Plus with Uber you cannot get stiffed for a fare, it is paid in advance. The President is a fink. |
September 9th, 2015 at 7:29:56 PM permalink | |
Evenbob Member since: Oct 24, 2012 Threads: 146 Posts: 25010 | The one thing nobody understands until they do it is, the devastating effect constant city driving has on a car. Spending 6-10 hours a day of stop and go driving, your tranny shifting up and down hundreds of times, constantly using the brakes, the air on all summer, never being able to shut the engine off. Nobody does this to a car except cab drivers and city cops. In fact, we got a lot of our cars from them after the cops put 75K on them. UPS, Fedex, USPS, all have special vehicles. Face does stop and go, but not for 8 hours a day. We had drivers is their own cabs at times. They we're always newbs, an experienced driver would never use his own vehicle. We always had a pool as to how long they would last. I won a lot because I always picked the shortest amount of time. It was always the vehicle that made them quit, they got tired of the constant repairs. I read some of these Uber drivers have bought brand new cars to destroy. That's just nuts, a quickly depreciating car that you also have to make payments on. If you take a risk, you may lose. If you never take a risk, you will always lose. |
September 9th, 2015 at 7:36:10 PM permalink | |
AZDuffman Member since: Oct 24, 2012 Threads: 135 Posts: 18136 |
Learn the business the easy way or the hard way. Important thing is let them learn. Delivering luggage we have one guy with a new van, one of those Nissan mini-work vans. Another has fairly new sedans. Others of us have older SUVs. New cars in general are a bad idea. The President is a fink. |
September 9th, 2015 at 8:41:37 PM permalink | |
DRich Member since: Oct 24, 2012 Threads: 51 Posts: 4943 | The drivers I spoke to (around 10) said their average fare was around $9.50 and they did over 3 per fares per hour. I was told that Uber requires a 4 door vehicle that is less than 10 years old. The car must be inspected by Uber (or a contractor). The vehicles I remember riding in were: Cadlillac XTS (2015), it looked brand new. Honda Accord Chevy Trailblazer Toyota Prius Toyota Camry I would guess the average age was 5 years old. A lot of the drivers were students at the university. My understanding is Uber has a program with another company that they will rent you the car for $200 a week and you keep it all 24 hours. One driver told me he bought a new car just for Uber and rents it to his friend for $150 a week for the half of the day that he doesn't drive it for Uber. It seemed the average was working about 4 hours per day for the drivers I spoke to. One guy told me he turns his phone on at home at doesn't start working until his first call comes in. They always dispatch the nearest driver so he said he is rarely five minutes away for his first pick up. At my age a Life In Prison sentence is not much of a detrrent. |
September 9th, 2015 at 8:44:57 PM permalink | |
Evenbob Member since: Oct 24, 2012 Threads: 146 Posts: 25010 | It's a no brainer now, with GPS. Cabbies had to know a city inside and out, now a new driver can do well on his first day. It's still a suck ass job, no matter what you're doing. Stuck in traffic all day, learning to drive super defensively, getting pissed at other drivers all the time. In and out to help people with laundry and groceries, going into bars to tell them you're there. You make money in the winter, but the conditions suck. Never again. If you take a risk, you may lose. If you never take a risk, you will always lose. |
September 9th, 2015 at 8:54:33 PM permalink | |
Wizard Administrator Member since: Oct 23, 2012 Threads: 239 Posts: 6095 | It is a free market. If Uber drivers are making out so badly, let them find other work. If the cab companies think their medallion makes them special, then they should have done something extra to deserve the status. Like the black cabs of London. Instead they long-haul their customers and who knows what else. I've yet to see a cab driver know how to use a map. If taxes are an issue, then I would suggest making Uber drivers pay a commensurate amount per mile driven as cab drivers. Both are using city streets for their business and both should be expected to pay for the additional wear and tear they cause. Knowledge is Good -- Emil Faber |
September 9th, 2015 at 8:57:53 PM permalink | |
DRich Member since: Oct 24, 2012 Threads: 51 Posts: 4943 | BTW, Uber has a rating system where after the ride you rate the driver one to five star and leave comments that other can read. Every one of my drivers got 5 stars from me. You can reject a driver when it is dispatched and request a different one. The drivers also rate the passengers so drivers can decide if they want to pick up the passenger based upon the passenger rating. At my age a Life In Prison sentence is not much of a detrrent. |
September 9th, 2015 at 11:26:52 PM permalink | |
Evenbob Member since: Oct 24, 2012 Threads: 146 Posts: 25010 |
They are special. They were born in the Depression, in NYC. Everybody who had a car was a cabbie and nobody was making any money. So the city issued 12,000 medallions, and today, 75 years later, there are only 13,000. In NYC, the medallions will win, it's inevitable. Every dumb ass with a car is a cabbie again, I don't think so.. If you take a risk, you may lose. If you never take a risk, you will always lose. |