Uber SA introduces cash payment option

UBER South Africa is now offering the option of cash payments. The e-hailing taxi company introduced the payment method yesterday on customer requests.

“The cash system is still at experimental levels‚ but it’s not new with the firm globally,” Uber Sub- Saharan Africa managing director Alon Lits said.

Cash payments are also available in Cairo in Egypt, Nairobi in Kenya, and Lagos‚ Nigeria, and in Latin America‚ India and South East Asia where cash is still the most popular method of payment.

Lits said last week the option reduced the barrier for people who wanted to use the application but were worried about their account information being online‚ and those who without a credit card.

Drivers had‚ when the cash-payment method was proposed ‚ expressed concerns over their safety‚ but Lits had said there was no data from other markets that indicated the new methods of payment would compromise safety.

Yesterday, Lits also addressed drivers’ fears of passengers not paying after being dropped. “In a situation where riders don’t want to pay‚ we advise our drivers not to argue‚” Lits said.

“Rather let Uber know that you are having problems with the rider and we can then track the rider down and take it from there. “The driver will still get paid.”