UberEats: Where they cancel your order after making you wait an hour and a half, then change your name to “Bitch” when you complain.
Nope, that’s not the tagline for the worst “Shark Tank” pitch in history. That’s what actually happened to Caitlin Reardon after she placed an order for burritos.
The 25-year-old San Francisco resident told HuffPost she and her roommate ordered some Mission-style burritos for out-of-town visitors on Monday night, but grew frustrated after more than an hour of waiting.
So she did what any normal person would do, and called UberEats to see why her order had been delayed. Turns out the delivery service had canceled her order because no drivers were willing to pick it up ― even though the app still showed that her food was being prepared.
UberEats suggested she try ordering again, but since the company couldn’t guarantee her order wouldn’t get canceled a second time, Reardon went with another delivery service.
“We all agreed that we should submit feedback, since we had been waiting for so long only to have the order canceled,” Reardon said. “My note was harsh, but at no point did I personally attack anyone. I’ve worked in customer service, and I feel I acted as most upset customers do.”
Reardon provided HuffPost with a copy of her complaint to Uber:
The next day, Reardon received a reply: “Hi Bitch,” it began.
In response to her complaint, someone with access to Reardon’s Uber account had apparently changed her name on the app to “Bitch.”
“I was shocked when I opened my email to see the ‘Hi Bitch’ greeting,” Reardon said. “At first, I honestly thought ― did I cross a line? But then I thought no, companies do not have the right to treat you this way regardless of what you may have said.”
Adding insult to injury, she’d ordered an Uber for her sister minutes earlier so she could get to work. That meant her sister would get a ride from a driver who would call her “Bitch,” mistakenly believing that was her actual first name.
“I am just so upset” Reardon told HuffPost. “This was the last straw.”
The incident extends what’s already become a long line of Uber PR misfires and serious accusations alike. Earlier this year, a former Uber engineer accused the company of overlooking sexual harassment, which ultimately led to the resignation of former CEO Travis Kalanick in June. Uber appointed a new CEO late last month.
“You would think with all the negative press lately, there would be more safeguards against something like this happening,” Reardon said. “This just shows how little they care about this issue ― it was so easy for this employee to change my profile.”
Reardon’s real name has since been restored, and an Uber representative told HuffPost that the employee involved in the incident had been fired.
“The behavior of this agent is unacceptable, and he is no longer working with us as a result,” the spokesman said. “High quality customer service is something we strive for every day, and we’re disappointed this standard wasn’t met in this situation.”