Uber, UberEats to Add Fuel Surcharges on Wednesday

By Yehudit Garmaise

Uber will be billing its riders and UberEats customers a temporary surcharge, starting Wednesday, to compensate for the rising price of gas, which Uber drivers pay themselves, the company announced last week.

New York City Uber delivery workers, however, who mostly use bicycles and recently saw a 5.3% pay increase, are the only ones nationwide who Uber said will not be charging fuel surcharges.

Starting on March 16, Uber customers who live outside of NYC will be charged an extra 45 cents or 55 cents, and UberEats’ customers will be charged an extra 35 cents or 45 cents, per deliver, for at least the next 60 days.

Locations, average trip distances, and each state’s price increases determine the amounts of gas surcharges, said Uber said, which said that the company will reassess whether surcharges are needed after two months.

Drivers’ earnings, of course, need to pay for their fuel, so many Uber drivers are forced to drive many extra hours: some drive as much as 60 hours a week, to maintain former income levels as gas prices have surpassed $6 per gallon on the West coast.

The average price per gallon of gas this weekend in the US was $4.33, according to the American Automobile Association.

According to Uber, 100% of the surcharges will go directly to drivers.

"While earnings on our platform remain elevated compared to historical trends, the recent spike in gas prices has affected rideshare and delivery drivers," Uber said.

Gas prices were already skyrocketing before Russian President Vladmir Putin invaded Ukraine, which caused further oil market disruptions. In addition, last week, in an attempt to stop Putin without sending in troops to fight him, among many other economic sanctions on Russia, President Joe Biden banned all imports of Russian oil, liquefied natural gas, and coal this week: a move that could cause prices at the pump to spike even higher.

Photo Credit: Flickr