The New York Daily News reports that ridesharing services Uber and Lyft receive very few complaints compared to the city's iconic yellow taxis. This news should not even merit a headline--anyone who has ever taken Uber or Lyft knows that the companies' customer service far exceeds that of taxis. The difference also highlights the declining need for consumers to go through government when they have complaints.
Yellow taxis received 17,269 rider complaints in 2015 and 86,000 total complaints since 2011, according to newly released data from the City's 311 hotline. In comparison, Uber received 532 complaints and Lyft received 52 complaints through the hotline since 2011. A disparity of 1500%.
Critics argue that because the city encourages taxi customers to report grievances to the hotline, more complaints will be filed against taxi drivers. Alternatively, all that is required of Uber and Lyft is a note in the "rate your trip" section that says riders can call the hotline to lodge a complaint. But this disparity is more attributable to ridesharing services' superior dual-feedback systems, which reduce the need for government regulation.
Ridesharing Needs To Translate Into All Aspects Of Life
Along with many other sharing-economy companies, Uber and Lyft use post-service, dual-feedback systems where riders and drivers both leave reviews. This process reinforces positive behavior and weeds out those who make trips difficult or unenjoyable. Many customers believe that they can trust these reviews, and feedback allows companies to cut ties with those drivers who consistently receive negative criticism and reimburse customers who had bad experiences.
Unsurprisingly, Uber and Lyft already have systems in place to resolve complaints from passengers, often making it unnecessary to call 311. If passengers are unhappy with their trips, they can simply press a few buttons to let the companies know. In addition to taking drivers off the platform if they consistently receive poor ratings, Uber and Lyft refund passengers for added costs that were due to driver mistakes. This stands in stark contrast to the 311 system, as getting complaints through the hotline is time consuming and usually ineffective.
Because drivers also rate their riders, Uber's and Lyft's feedback systems help keep customers on their best behavior. This is not possible with New York City taxis because riders can pay with cash and remain anonymous.
Ridesharing platforms provide a whole host of additional mechanisms that promote safe and satisfactory experiences. Both parties' locations are tracked throughout the duration of the ride, identities of drivers and passengers are verified, and no cash is ever exchanged, which protects drivers as much as passengers.
While there are more cars registered to drive with Uber or Lyft than taxis in New York City, taxis still make up the vast majority of trips because most ridesharing drivers work part time. This difference in driver hours could partly explain the disparity between the number of taxi and ridesharing complaints. But a more likely explanation is that ridesharing companies simply provide better service and enable riders to easily resolve their complaints without the city government's help.
This piece originally appeared on Epic Times
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Jared Meyer is a fellow at the Manhattan Institute's Economics21. Follow him on Twitter here.
This piece originally appeared in Epic Times