On my last day of my beach vacation, I got a notification from Uber One that my credit card had been "successfully" charged for an annual membership- $96. Thing is, I never signed up for Uber One and had no interest in doing so.
So today- my first full day back- I visited the Uber One site to find out how to cancel this "membership" which I guess is supposed to save someone who regularly uses Uber delivery fees and earn cash rewards or whatever, I seriously have used Uber for two rides total and I really can't describe any more clearly how totally uninterested I am in becoming a regular user. Well, the site brings you on an endless loop of directions on how to get rid of the membership and get a refund- apparently the App USED to have an End Membership button but they removed it because it was making it too easy to remove the membership. Uber One also makes it very clear that there is no contact number so you will not be able to talk to a human being about this issue or any other issue. Allegedly there's a chat available but it's so well-hidden that it might as well be non-existent.
Then I did what everyone does when they can't find an answer to their problem- I looked for a YouTube video explaining how to cancel a membership to Uber One. Unfortunately, the video I found was six months old and it showed how to navigate to the End Membership option which no longer exists (I only know that it once DID exist because of this video.)*
Finally, I went to the Uber One Facebook page, and surprisingly enough was able to contact Uber through it and cancel the membership and get a refund in about five minutes. I didn't get out without one more insult from Uber however- a note that said that the membership I never signed up for was being cancelled and my money returned "as a one-time courtesy"- in other words, the next time Uber decides to charge me for something I don't want and didn't ask for, I'm out of luck they are keeping the money go pound sand I guess. So I decided that I couldn't just get the refund- I had to freeze my credit card, order a new one, and delete the Uber App from my phone. I'd say "live and learn," but that would imply a level of responsibility I do not feel. So I'm not going there. More like "corporations will mug you if they think they can get away with it."
*I left this modest proposal in the comment section of this YouTube video: The CEOs of every company that sells a service with a membership fee, automatic reoccurring payments, etc. should be strapped to chairs, handed smartphones, and given the task of cancelling payments and providing refunds through their own sites. If they can't cancel a payment or request a refund through their own apps within five minutes, every minute thereafter should result in one month in prison. If it's not possible to do either of these tasks through their sites, they should serve a year in prison. If the site claims that it is possible but does not actually provide a way to do it, they should serve life sentences. That would fix problems like this quickly. Someone seeking high political office- Run with this. You've got my vote.
I made a modest suggestion on
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