This mom-to-be was horrified by where her Uber driver tried to take her—now she’s warning others.
Most Uber rides are forgettable. You get in, say hello, and depending on how you’re feeling that day, you may (or may not) be up for making small talk with the driver.
When you get to your destination, you leave a rating, maybe a tip, and go on with your day. But this woman was taken on a ride she’ll never forget.
A disturbing rideshare experience
In the trending video, which has more than 325,000 views at the time of publishing, expecting mother Beverley (@beverleysknowbest) showed exactly what went down with her creepy Uber driver.
“My Uber driver tried to kidnap me on the way to the OBGYN,” Beverley wrote in the video’s text overlay.
In the 22-second clip, you can distinctly hear an upset Beverley firmly rejecting her driver’s request, getting out of the car, and telling him, “I’m not going to your [expletive] house.”
Beverley explained in the caption that right before she started filming, the man asked if they could stop at his house. Beverley declined, explaining she couldn’t make a pit stop since she was on her way to the doctor’s office.
When she tells the man that she’s going to call the police, he repeatedly says, “Go ahead,” as if he’s doing nothing wrong.
But instead of waiting around to see what the police have to say on the matter, the man drives off in his red Hyundai.
Video of the encounter haunts viewers
Beverley films the entire interaction, getting angles of his face and a clear image of the license plate—presumably in an effort to get proof for Uber and the police.
@beverleysknowbest He asked me to stop at his house I said absolutely not and I told I Him I had to go to the dr he yelled at me and said I’m not even sick and wouldn’t let me out of the car #uber #ubersupport #22weekspregnant #uberhorrorstories ♬ original sound – Gen z parents 🖤
“That was the weirdest [expletive] interaction I’ve ever [expletive] had in my life,” Beverley proclaimed once she was safely on the street and out of the car.
In a series of update videos (which commenters kept asking for), Beverley assured her audience that she and her baby girl are fine and made it to their appointment.
While she said that she planned to go to the police station after her appointment, it’s unclear if she ended up going. She did share that the driver is currently banned from Uber, but added, “I wanna push it as far as I can go and actually see a change.”
What to do to keep yourself safe
While Uber and Lyft claim to have strong vetting protocols, like background checks, there’s always a chance that a creep or other bad actor could be the one chauffeuring you.
Between 2021 and 2022, there were 2,717 incidents of sexual assault and misconduct and 36 physical assaults reported in Uber U.S.’s most recent safety report.
Lyft had 2,651 reports of sexual assault and 23 reports of fatal physical assaults between 2020 and 2022, according to the brand’s safety report.
As a rider, you can do the following to keep yourself safe, according to the Helping Survivors organization:
- Ensure the car matches the description and license plate in the app.
- Confirm your driver’s identity before getting into a vehicle, specifically asking them to confirm their name.
- While inside, you can roll your windows down enough that your arm would fit through in case you need to open the door from the outside.
The org also suggests covertly recording the driver if they begin to behave in a way that makes you uncomfortable. However, telling the driver you’re recording could agitate them and create more volatility in the situation. Remember that you can also use an app or make a phone call to contact the police.
Other rideshare scams to watch out for
Unfortunately, this isn’t the only sketchy situation to watch out for.
Recently, Lyft customer said her driver made her pay in cash after she saw him swipe to cancel the ride. She alleges that he gaslit her, claiming it was she who made the cancellation. Her primary concern wasn’t the money, but the fact that Lyft was no longer monitoring the ride.
In another situation, Uber customer, Ma’kiah Michelle, said a woman approached her asking if Michelle would order her a ride and she’d pay her for it in cash. Uncomfortable with the proposition, Michelle refused and instead suggested she take a cab (she is in New York City, after all).
People speculated that the woman was up to something nefarious. Suggestions that the driver was potentially going to give her fake cash or may have been setting the driver up to be robbed resounded from the comments section.
“Anytime your gut is telling you something you need to follow it,” Michelle advised.
Commenters react
“Oh nawww, that’s odd,” a top comment read.
“He wasn’t scared at all he said go ahead … could be fake plates ….,” a person speculated.
“There’s no damn reason to go to your house while you have someone in your car. If you actually need to at least wait till you drop them off,” another pointed out.
“I got kidnapped once, ended with something pointed to the back of his head after refusing to let me out for 20 min, and acting like his GPS didn’t work! My ride was 6min, turned into 45!” a commenter revealed.
The Daily Dot reached out to @beverleysknowbest for comment via TikTok direct message and comment and to Uber via email.
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