Uber has launched new features in an effort to improve driver safety.
Starting Wednesday, the app will feature “verified” rider badges which will signal to drivers that a customer has undergone additional verification steps. Riders who choose to get verified will have their account information checked against third party databases or have the option to upload an identification card like a license. Once the process is complete, riders will receive a verified badge.
Uber drivers will see when a rider has a verified badge straight from the trip request in the app. The feature comes in response to driver feedback.
“We designed these new verification measures in response to driver feedback that they want to know more about who is getting in their car,” Uber said in a press release.
The rideshare app began testing the initiative in select cities earlier this year, and found verified riders tend to give drivers 5 star ratings more frequently, and get fewer serious complaints from drivers.
Uber also launched a new “Record My Ride” feature that’ll allow drivers to record rides from the front-facing camera of their smartphones. This will replace the need for a dashboard camera to record audio and video of trips. After a successful pilot, the feature is now available nationwide in the U.S.
“We built Record My Ride with privacy in mind: every recording is encrypted and stored directly on drivers’ devices, and nobody—not Uber, not riders, not drivers—can access it unless a driver chooses to send it in for review. We believe this feature will help promote safety and allow us to more quickly and fairly resolve any incidents that may arise,” Uber said.
These new features come in addition to other initiatives by the company with drivers in mind, like offering more clarity on where rider fares go and a driver app redesign.
Uber is also testing new initiatives.
The company is piloting the option for drivers to block a rider if the driver rates the trip with 2 or 3 stars. This builds off an existing policy that un-matches drivers and riders if a driver rates a trip 1 star.
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