LONDON: Uber is planning to offer its customers the ability to opt for a better driver when booking their trip, according to the ride-sharing app鈥檚 new CEO Dara Khosrowshahi.
Speaking on a panel at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, he said that currently customers only have the ability to request a better standard of car via their app rather than a better standard of service.
鈥淲e plan to do much more with driver ratings. What we are hoping to take the system into next [is ]鈥� to be able to have the drivers who are particularly good, who particularly provide a terrific service be at a different level from the average driver, and also allow the user to opt into a higher level of service.
鈥淩ight now the only higher level of service we define is a nicer car, and the car and service are two different things,鈥� he said.
His comments come as the ride-sharing company faces criticism for not doing adequate background checks on drivers following a number of high-profile cases where some drivers have been accused of assaulting their customers.
鈥–oncerns about safety have in part led to the ride-sharing service being banned from operating in some cities. Uber lost its license in London last year, a decision the company is in the process of appealing.
Khosrowshahi said: 鈥淲e are doubling down on making sure that the machinery of background checks and making sure that licenses are good, inspecting the vehicles,鈥� he said.
鈥淲e don鈥檛 mess around with ratings, so when you get a 4.8 or 4.9 rated driver you know they have passed an array of background checks, you know that driver has a history 鈥� that is much more information than you have when you hail a cab on the corner in New York City.鈥�
He added that it was important to be careful in representing a driver rating for what it is.
鈥淚t is rating for how you drove, it is not a rating about whether you are a serial killer or not. We have to be plain spoken for what we can do and what we can鈥檛 do,鈥� he said.
He added that the company was working with data scientists working to make the platform safer for both riders and drivers.