The applications offer the possibility of discovering its user rating which is not always up to expectations.
Noting everything, delivery people, drivers, restaurants and even schools, is now part of our daily lives. Many are unaware of this, but the reverse is also possible. On VTC applications – Uber, Freenow or Bolt – drivers also have the power: to rate their passengers.
Are all the passengers VTC “intellos”, nice, punctual and all with 5-star averages? However, there are many customers with bad behavior, which can quickly have consequences on their access to the various applications.
Door slamming and rudeness
However, it is difficult to know what is considered a bad rating on the platforms. Less than 4.5 stars? Less than 4? Asked about this question, Uber only tells Tech&Co that the national average is 4.78/5 and that 27% of passengers have between 5 and 4.9 average for their user rating, 24% between 4.9 and 4.8, 23% between 4.8 and 4.7 and finally 26% are below 4.7. A subliminal way of indicating that people with an average below 4.7/5 are considered bad passengers?
It remains to be seen what lowers the note. According a study by Harris Interactive for Uber conducted in 2021, 67% of drivers consider aggressiveness and lack of politeness as what annoys them the most, followed by eating in the car (49%) and asking to smoke with the window open (40% ). Another reflex that can take away the 5 stars for the best passenger: slamming the vehicle door too hard.
But Brahim Ben Ali, secretary general of the national inter-union of VTC, affirms it to Tech&Co: more and more drivers automatically put 5 stars, in order to avoid inconvenience.
“It’s a real game that has taken hold. Some customers sometimes ask that we give them 5 stars, otherwise they won’t give us 5 stars”, assures Brahim Ben Ali.
Good grade against good grade
The driver regrets what he describes as a “repressive system on one side or the other”. Because a legend runs among users of VTC applications: in the event of a bad passenger rating, it would be customary to wait longer to obtain a vehicle. “Fake!” respond without complex Uber and Freenow, questioned by Tech&Co. “Poor passenger ratings do not impact customer experience in the way we allocate rides,” Uber said.
“The passenger rating does not influence the allocation of drivers or access to races,” says Freenow.
Brahim Ben Ali, however, is not of the same opinion. “The rating system is repressive on both sides. When a driver has a bad rating, he has fewer rides. When a passenger has a bad rating, he will wait longer because the drivers will want to take him less It’s a lie to say that it has no impact”, supports the representative of the VTC drivers.
The only certain impact remains the suspension of a passenger’s account in the event of excessively abusive behavior. At Uber, passengers can also be permanently suspended if they get too bad ratings. But again, no details are provided on this eliminatory score. According to Brahim Ben Ali, the key to a good rating ultimately remains to make no judgement: “I always put 5 stars, except if there is really an aggression of course. We are still humans, that happens sometimes. ‘having a bad day and not being in a good mood.’
