Uber glitch overcharges customers 100 times their fares

July 18, 2019

An apparent Uber glitch resulted in some customers of the ridesharing company being charged 100 times their advertised fares on Wednesday.

One customer wrote on Twitter that she was charged $1,308 for her Uber ride — sparking a fraud alert from her credit card company — instead of the advertised fare of $13.08. Others reported similar overcharging, including one person who expected an $8.79 fee for her ride but instead was charged $879.

WTF, @Uber, you charged $1,308 to my card instead of $13.08?! (Second screenshot shows the same route fare a moment later; it’s #ComicCon so it’s fluctuating rapidly.) pic.twitter.com/2S6sxRmnRc

— Kelley | ???? (@Astro_Kelley) July 17, 2019

Uber responded by telling customers that the problem was caused by a “known issue” that created “very high” charges. It said it fixed the problem, but didn’t explain what caused it. Some customers expressed frustration at what they viewed as an underwhelming response.

“The issue has not been fixed because my bank account has still been debited for the wrong amount,” one customer responded to Uber. “Fixing the issue would mean I was refunded the wrong amount that I was charged.”

@Uber_Support when you overcharge a customer $1,576 saying “don’t worry, it’s happening to a lot of other people, too” is NOT a helpful solution. Uber is even denying overcharging me despite Chase Bank investigating it as fraud. Check your bank statements, guys.

— Jason Bogdan (@thefranchisenyc) July 17, 2019

Uber didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. The company told The Washington Post that it would correct the fares and that customers would be charged the lower amounts, although their credit cards may temporarily reflect the higher charges.

It wasn’t immediately clear how many consumers were impacted by the glitch.