Uber still waiting to make it official with Thailand

[pennine]

I use Uber when in Johannesburg SA. It is a very efficient service, costing about half what the local taxis charge, hence their cries to ban Uber. Never waited more than 3 or 4 minutes and you can see on the map where the car is plus the drivers name, make of car and registration number. Of course the traffic is not like Bangkok.

[samtam]

How does it work? I need an account for Thailand, another for Euros, one for Australia, another for USA? Why can't they have one multi currency system? It's too confusing.

Use your credit card (registered on your Uber account) and pay any currency; forex conversion done by your bank wnen your credit card is debited.

[rwdrwdrwd]

Do you guys tip Uber? I never do when in the US, but seems harsh to not do so when they are essentially taxi price here and a much better service.

Edited May 18, 2016 by rwdrwdrwd

[Snig27]

How does it work? I need an account for Thailand, another for Euros, one for Australia, another for USA? Why can't they have one multi currency system? It's too confusing.

As above, it's pretty simple. Once you are registered all you need to do is open your app on your phone wherever you are in the world, add in the address for pickup and click to order the car. It comes to you [emoji3]

[Snig27]

The problem with Uber is that you can't schedule a car to pick you up in advance - you just summon one when you're ready, and then hope the driver can make it through the Bangkok traffic to get to you in a reasonable amount of time.

A very serious shortcoming. Just the other night, I had an Uber driver accept my pickup request for Lotus/Tesco at Fortune Town, but then ring me to say she couldn't make it because she was stuck in a traffic jam and couldn't make her way down the exit ramp from the tollway. When I asked her why she accepted my Uber hail if she was stuck in traffic, she replied, "I have to, I'm given no choice."

My experiences with Uber in Bangkok have been good, when they can show up within a reasonable amount of time to pick me up. That's maybe 50% of the time.

Yeah, that's my only real complaint too - oh and drivers that are completely unable to read a google map or follow a gps. Then, I've had that in Singapore (twice this week), New Zealand and London too.

Although I love Uber, (as stated in an earlier post in this topic), I have found the unreliable GPS a problem, and I thought it was just me. 50% of the time the car goes to an address in Suan Phlu instead of mine, a soi off Sathorn Tai. The last time I used the service, it picked me up correctly at Central Chidlom, and the driver's destination was incorrect compared to mine, (she showed me her phone and I showed her mine). There is a discrepancy in the GPS co-ordinates, or in English it shows a different address to that in Thai. I think I have overcome the problem by keying in my address, (a soi number, 27/2 - which is the non-sensical Thai postal address), rather than the condo name, (which is correct in English, but completely different in Thai). I don't know who does their GPS co-ordinates, but it is certainly an issue, and the driver admitted as much. When I have given the feedback to Uber Support it gets answered in the USA I think, so has no local knowledge input. When it all works I love it, but I'm still tweaking with the service, for the reasons aforementioned.

The map information comes from Google. I've had to fix the Google maps entry for my house (and much else around here, but that's beside the point) and now it works perfectly. I gave my address a name of Home on my Google map and now Uber recognises that on my devices (I'm signed into maps).

The most unreliable GPS I encounter is Singapore. It can put you miles away.

OK, thanks for enlightening me on source of GPS co-ordinates, but I'm not sure why the English version of my condo name comes out as a completely different one in Thai. Is that Google maps too, or Uber? Can you provide this Google map neanderthal (moi) with instructions on how to fix the Google map entry?

Today my pick up was OK because I used the Thai version of my condo name. The return journey I did the same, but the driver didn't know where it was, which wasn't such a big problem because I was travelling with him, so could tell him; obviously slightly defeats the point of GPS, and it would be an issue if I didn't know the route to my destination.

This might help. http://www.tomsguide.com/faq/id-2379966/edit-maps-make-corrections-add-businesses-google-maps.html

[Snig27]

Do you guys tip Uber? I never do when in the US, but seems harsh to not do so when they are essentially taxi price here and a much better service.

I do if it's a short distance and if there is no surge rating. Once they surge charge I think they've negated a tip.

[samtam]

The problem with Uber is that you can't schedule a car to pick you up in advance - you just summon one when you're ready, and then hope the driver can make it through the Bangkok traffic to get to you in a reasonable amount of time.

A very serious shortcoming. Just the other night, I had an Uber driver accept my pickup request for Lotus/Tesco at Fortune Town, but then ring me to say she couldn't make it because she was stuck in a traffic jam and couldn't make her way down the exit ramp from the tollway. When I asked her why she accepted my Uber hail if she was stuck in traffic, she replied, "I have to, I'm given no choice."

My experiences with Uber in Bangkok have been good, when they can show up within a reasonable amount of time to pick me up. That's maybe 50% of the time.

Yeah, that's my only real complaint too - oh and drivers that are completely unable to read a google map or follow a gps. Then, I've had that in Singapore (twice this week), New Zealand and London too.

Although I love Uber, (as stated in an earlier post in this topic), I have found the unreliable GPS a problem, and I thought it was just me. 50% of the time the car goes to an address in Suan Phlu instead of mine, a soi off Sathorn Tai. The last time I used the service, it picked me up correctly at Central Chidlom, and the driver's destination was incorrect compared to mine, (she showed me her phone and I showed her mine). There is a discrepancy in the GPS co-ordinates, or in English it shows a different address to that in Thai. I think I have overcome the problem by keying in my address, (a soi number, 27/2 - which is the non-sensical Thai postal address), rather than the condo name, (which is correct in English, but completely different in Thai). I don't know who does their GPS co-ordinates, but it is certainly an issue, and the driver admitted as much. When I have given the feedback to Uber Support it gets answered in the USA I think, so has no local knowledge input. When it all works I love it, but I'm still tweaking with the service, for the reasons aforementioned.

The map information comes from Google. I've had to fix the Google maps entry for my house (and much else around here, but that's beside the point) and now it works perfectly. I gave my address a name of Home on my Google map and now Uber recognises that on my devices (I'm signed into maps).

The most unreliable GPS I encounter is Singapore. It can put you miles away.

OK, thanks for enlightening me on source of GPS co-ordinates, but I'm not sure why the English version of my condo name comes out as a completely different one in Thai. Is that Google maps too, or Uber? Can you provide this Google map neanderthal (moi) with instructions on how to fix the Google map entry?

Today my pick up was OK because I used the Thai version of my condo name. The return journey I did the same, but the driver didn't know where it was, which wasn't such a big problem because I was travelling with him, so could tell him; obviously slightly defeats the point of GPS, and it would be an issue if I didn't know the route to my destination.

This might help. http://www.tomsguide.com/faq/id-2379966/edit-maps-make-corrections-add-businesses-google-maps.html

OK, I'll try. The more I think about it, the more I think it's a translation issue between an English name for a condo and the Thai translation, (which is of a different condo), albeit nearby, but a different road (Suan Phlu, rather than my road, a soi off Sathorn).