Uber Drivers Steering Riders to Off-App Cash Payments: Diagnose and Fix the Leak

You are a product manager at Uber. More and more drivers are pushing riders to pay them in cash instead of paying through the Uber app. How would you tackle this problem? ```hint Find out what actually happens Work out what these trips look like in the data (is the ride still recorded in the app?) and why each side goes along with it before proposing fixes; drivers and riders may need different levers. ``` ### Clarifying Questions - Is cash an accepted payment option in the affected markets, or are riders there supposed to pay only through the app? - When this happens, does the trip still run through the app with the payment switched to cash, or does the driver cancel and finish the ride off the app? - How is Uber learning about the trend (rider complaints, support tickets or patterns in trip data), and is it concentrated in particular cities? - Is the main concern lost revenue, rider and driver safety, or legal and tax exposure? ### What a Strong Answer Covers - A precise definition of the behavior, sized from trip data before solving - The motives of drivers and of riders, with solutions aimed at each - A prioritized mix of incentives, product changes and enforcement - A success metric for rides leaking off the app, with guardrails for driver supply and wrongful penalties - Safety, fairness to honest drivers and differences between markets ### Follow-up Questions - Your detection model starts flagging drivers for removal. How do you keep false accusations low, and what appeal process do you build? - Research shows most drivers want cash because they need money the same day. What would you build, and how would you know it reduced cash requests? - How would your plan change in a market where many riders have no bank card?