Ok, maybe I’m a little late to the Uber world but, had purposly held back on using them during all the bad press etc. However most of that is behind them and they are making huge strides into the UKI market.

uber App

Uber is an app driven car service available on all major platforms (iOS, Google Play, Windows, Amazon) and enables you to book a various range of cars to get you from A to B with out the need for cash.

When you join up you can assign a debit/credit card/paypal to your account and be charged once your trip is completed.  In London you get a good range of cars.

Reading the Uber site and various other blogs and reviews there is no fixed model of what type of car fits into each of the above cateegory. What if the driver of a nice S Class Mercedes is having a slow day in the Lux world and decides to anwser a few X or XL calls? For this review I tried uber X, a uber XL and Taxi.

uber X

Using uber at a major airport like Heathrow is always going to be hit and miss. If you land at a busy time with plenty of other uber users you could be in for a wait!

I used the service on a Friday evening and had only a 7 min wait. As I had assigned a card for both business and personal, I was able to bill directly to my work card.

Mr E. picked me up in a 2 year old Toyota Prius, which could have just come from the showroom! The trip took about 20mins but did come out nearly £10 more than the fare estimate. This was due to parking surcharge that was added along with the 10% tip I had agreed in advance to be added via the website. It would be good if uber could make a note of these on the fare estimate page!

uber XL

This car bracket is aimed at the “family going on holiday” booking.  A sign maybe of how big uber has become, my driver had a drop off in the road next to where I was when I made the request. He was with me 7 mins later, and I was able to see and track this via the app.

As expexted Mr N picked me up in a 7 seater Toyota and had me at Heathrow in under the 25 mins suggested by the app. Although the car had seen better days, it was clear the driver had tried to maintain it internally as best as possible and he was very polite and talkative.

uber Taxi

This was a typical minicab type service. I used the service in Dublin which only offers the taxi range at present.

I’m not sure how those operating the taxi services will fair on the uber rating system. This to me was a typical mini cab. Well, well used, stale in smell and run into the ground.  That said the driver was there immediatly and got me to my location quickly. The car was a 6 year old Ford Mondeo.

Final Thoughts

Overall I was so impressed with the app, the back end account section of the main website and the tracking.  It is clear uber have tried to address some of the bad press with the ETA share option so you can notify others of the driver and when you are due at your location.

Will I use them again? Yes. Would I feel more comfortable once uber address some of the negative press they get in the UK? Very much so.

Compared to the usual minicab company I use uber were more expensive by 5-10% and you may want to bear this in mind!

Have you used uber? It would be great to hear the experince others have had with them.