Staying Safe While Ridesharing in Foreign Countries: Everything You Need to Know
My last 9-5 (who am I kidding it was more like a 7-7 and on-call the other 12 hrs a day) was at Uber. As one of their lawyers, I saw a lot of behind the scenes stuff, and I had a lot of behind the scenes conversations.
One of the most WTF convos I ever had was with a bunch of business guys on my team. But it wasn’t about business. It was simply about what we do when we’re ridesharing.
We were talking about getting in an Uber when it arrives and what safety precautions they take. I think there were five men and 2 women sitting around having this convo, and all the men admitted, that when they call an Uber they just hop in the next car that comes along that looks like the right one.
The ladies were SHOCKED!!! SHOCKED!!!
“You don’t check the license plate?” None of the men had EVVVER checked the license plate to make sure they were getting in the right car. NEVER EVER!!!
So…that’s bad. Don’t do that. If you want to stay safe while ridesharing, especially in countries you’re not familiar with, make sure you follow these safety precautions.
How to stay safe while ridesharing:
Check license plates - SO BOOM - The basic first step EVERYONE should take is to confirm that the license plate matches the license you are expecting. This should be the bare minimum for everyone. Please confirm that you are not just getting in a random car because it looks like the one you are expecting. Not every driver is going to have a good reaction to a mistake.
Check the photo of the driver. This is a little hard right now when your drivers should be wearing a mask, but try to make sure they look a little like what you’re expecting from the app.
Confirm that they are picking YOU up by asking them to say your name before you get in the car. If I have confirmed the license plate and the face, sometimes I’ll just ask them if they’re picking up Roshida, and if they say yes, I get in.
Ask them to confirm your destination. If all of the steps above have gone okay, this should be fine. But you know, it takes 5 seconds, so there’s no reason not to.
Watch the driver's GPS. - One of the ways I get really comfortable in a stranger’s vehicle is to check their GPS every few minutes. I don’t keep my eyes on it continuously, but most drivers use Waze to get around and from the backseat, I can usually see if the driver is following the route, the time of expected arrival, and the upcoming route. Looking at that and checking that against the ridesharing app, or a map program usually gives me comfort that we are headed in the right direction.
Pay on a credit card. If something bad happens and you need to know my whereabouts, all you gotta do is track my credit card. You don’t have to find out whether I was on Uber, Lyft, Grab, or Didi. I pay for almost everything on my credit card (and pay it off monthly of course) so that I have a record of my spending, but also there is a record of my whereabouts out there in the world.
If I pay a rideshare driver in cash, someone looking for me might have to go to all the different ridesharing services to find out where I went. But if I pay on my card, there is one place to go to figure out which service I took and then go directly there to get my info.
Never sit in the front seat - especially when riding solo. This one is kind of self-explanatory, right? Just don’t do it.
So that’s it - seven simple steps to stay safe while ridesharing during your long-term travels, career breaks, or sabbaticals. And these steps will work for you wherever you are in the world. Feel confident in your safety as you travel to all the new places in the world you want to explore.
