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Hi, I'm Kevin and I'm an attorney, writer, gig economy expert, side hustler, and the blogger behind Financial Panther. I paid off $87,000 worth of student loans in just 2.5 years by choosing not to live like a big shot lawyer. I started this blog to share all I know about personal finance, travel hacking, and making more money by side hustling. Click here to learn more about me.
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Uber Eats Scams – The Most Common Scams And How To Avoid Them

Last Updated on January 25, 2023January 25, 2023 Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links.Financial Panther has partnered with AwardWallet and CardRatings for our coverage of credit card products. Financial Panther, AwardWallet, and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities.

Uber Eats scams are a headache many Uber Eats drivers will have to deal with at some point in their driving careers. Do even a cursory online search and you’ll see countless news stories of drivers getting scammed for hundreds – or even thousands of dollars – by thieves. For example, here’s a news story of a driver that lost over $400 to a scammer impersonating Uber support. Needless to say, having someone steal that much money from you can be devastating for anyone. 

Fortunately, you don’t have to fall victim to these scams if you know what they are and how they work. With the right background knowledge, you’ll be aware and able to avoid anyone trying to scam you.

So, in this post, we’ll take a look at some of the most common Uber Eats scams, how they work, and what you should do to avoid becoming a victim of any of these scams. Let’s take a look.

Uber Eats Scams 

While there are countless potential Uber Eats scams out there, most of them work in the same way. Here are the main scams you should be aware of if you’re driving for Uber Eats. 

1. The Fake Uber Eats Support Scam  

The most common scam used by thieves is the fake Uber Eats support scam. This is when someone calls pretending to be from Uber Eats support. They’ll then use your trust to get information from you and gain access to your Uber Eats account.

Here’s how it works. First, the scammer places a small order at a restaurant, usually at a fast food restaurant. Typically, the order will be for something like a soda or cookie at Mcdonald’s or another similar type of restaurant. After accepting the order, the scammer will then call the driver and pretend to be from Uber Eats support. Because the scammer placed the order themselves, they’ll know your name and the order details, which they can use to convince you that they work for Uber Eats.

For example, the scammer might call you, and say, “Hello, is this [your name].” Once you answer yes, they’ll say they’re calling about your current delivery and read out the order details to you. Typically, the scammer will then let you know there’s an issue with your account or with an issue with the order and that you’ll need to cancel it. To secure your account, they’ll then ask you to provide your login details and read back any two-factor authentication codes that are sent to you. By providing this information, the scammer can then gain access to your Uber Eats account, where they can then change your bank information (because you’ve given them your login details and all the two-factor authentication codes). The scammer then cashes out your Uber Eats balance into their bank account. If you have a sizeable balance, it can lead to a huge monetary loss.

Another variation of this scam is where the scammer calls you, again using the information they know about you from their scam order. They’ll then let you know you’re eligible for some bonus and you’ll just need to confirm your account information to claim the bonus. Some drivers, excited about this potential bonus, will provide this information without thinking about what’s really happening.

The big takeaway from these scams is to never give your account information to anyone, not even someone claiming to be from Uber Eats support. Remember this – Uber will never ask you for your account or login information (see this Uber page where they make that clear). If you receive a call like this, you should immediately hang up, then contact Uber Eats support. Uber will cancel the order for you and pay you for the order, as well as ban the scammer’s Uber Eats account.

2. The Customer Says You Didn’t Deliver Their Food 

The second most common Uber Eats scam is where the customer makes a false claim that they did not receive their order. By claiming they didn’t receive their order, the customer can get free food. This scam is particularly terrible because it hurts Uber Eats drivers, who can be terminated over claims that they didn’t deliver a customer’s order, and also likely hurts restaurants because Uber Eats will probably do a chargeback on the restaurant to cover the cost of the meal. 

Unfortunately, this is something you’ll almost always have to deal with at some point. To avoid potential issues, always try to document everything you did when delivering the order. If it’s a “leave at the door” order, you’ll be covered because you submit a photo of the delivery when you complete the order. If it’s an order that asks for a PIN, make sure you enter the customer’s PIN so that you’re covered by any claims that you didn’t deliver the order.

Another potential option to cover yourself is to document your deliveries. Some Uber Eats drivers wear body cams or GoPro cameras, which can be used as video evidence if a customer makes a false claim that their order was never delivered.

As a final option, if you have a bad feeling about a customer, taking a lot of photos of the delivery location can potentially be helpful. I know if I have a bad feeling about a customer, I’ll snap a photo at the address, just in case. It’s not foolproof by any means, but it’s at least something. 

The absolute best thing you can do, however, is to have a good record of completed deliveries. Uber Eats isn’t going to deactivate you because a single customer claimed they didn’t get their order. If you have a lot of successful orders and a high customer rating, a false claim against you will have less impact. So, the best thing you can do is just keep a high customer rating and have a lot of completed deliveries under your belt. 

One final word of advice. If you do receive a false claim that you didn’t deliver a customer’s order, do not, under any circumstances, confront the customer. Some people will do this out of anger or think that it’ll help them, but doing this will always lead to your deactivation and will just make things worse for you. Not to mention, it could put you in physical danger as well. It’s simply not worth it.

3. The Customer Picks Up The Food Before The Driver Gets There  

One final scam that can happen is when an Uber Eats customer places an order on DoorDash, then goes to the restaurant before you get there and picks up the food before you arrive. Because they know the name on their order, they’ll ask for their order as if they are the Uber Eats driver picking up the food. When you arrive later, the restaurant will tell you they already gave the food to another driver, not realizing that it was the customer stealing the food. Later, the customer will get to cancel the order because their food never arrived. You get screwed out of a payout and the customer gets themselves a free meal. 

Unfortunately, there’s not much you can do to avoid this type of scam. The only thing you can do is contact Uber Eats support when this happens. They’ll usually give you a small payout when this happens, so you can at least get a little bit of money for the time you spent going to the restaurant. 

Note that it isn’t always the case that the customer stole the food if you arrive and the order was already picked up. Uber Eats isn’t perfect and they sometimes will accidentally assign an order. So it is possible that another driver did pick up the food before you. 

4. The Change Of Address Scam 

This is less of a scam as it is a way for some customers to try to get deliveries from restaurants that are out of their range or to try to lower their delivery fees. In this situation, a customer will place an order with one address, then when you pick up the order, they’ll contact you and tell you they are actually at a different address and ask if you’ll deliver it to them. Most of the time, they’ll try to entice you by saying they will give you an extra tip.

If this happens, be aware you are under no obligation to make the delivery to a different address. Customers are responsible for putting the correct address and your only obligation is to deliver it to the address they have on file. 

If the order isn’t much farther away (and I mean it needs to be within a few blocks of the original delivery address), I’ll often complete these orders. I’ll also deliver to a different address if the customer’s address is in a location I already plan to be in. Otherwise, I will not deliver it to a different address.

You have two options here. The first is to go to the address the customer put on file, then start the delivery timer. You can then take a photo of the delivery and leave it. The second – and better option – is to contact Uber Eats support and let them know. I think it’s better to get it on record, just in case the customer tries to say you didn’t deliver their order.

Final Thoughts  

These are the primary Uber Eats scams you should know about when you’re delivering for Uber Eats. If you follow the tips in this post, you should hopefully be able to avoid any issues with these scams.

If you’ve encountered other Uber Eats scams that are worth mentioning, please feel free to leave them in the comments below. I hope this information was helpful!

More Recommended Ebike/Scooters

Check out these other ebikes/scooters I've had the chance to do a review for:

  • GEN3 Outcross Bike – The GEN3 Outcross is a solid, affordable fat tire ebike that does a good job of doing what I need it to do. It works great for city riding, giving me a smooth ride in all conditions. It’s works really well as a winter ebike since the fat tires give it good traction over snow and ice. Check out my GEN3 Outcross Review.
  • Himiway Escape Bike – The Himiway Escape is an interesting bike for anyone looking for a moped-style ebike. If you’re a gig economy worker, the Himiway Escape is particularly interesting and it’s possible to think of it as an investment, especially if you can opt to do deliveries with the Himiway versus using a car. It’s not cheap, but you can definitely make your money back when you compare the mileage you’ll put on your car versus using an ebike. Check out my Himiway Escape Bike Review.
  • Espin Sport Bike – The Espin Sport is a good ebike for someone who is looking for an ebike that feels and rides more like a regular bike. There are many ebikes that are really only bikes in name. In reality, they’re basically electric mopeds. The Espin Sport, by contrast, is a bike you could probably ride without the battery and you’d feel like you’re just riding a regular bike. Check out my Espin Sport Review.
  • Varla Eagle One Scooter – The Varla Eagle One is an excellent scooter that can make sense for a lot of people. It can work as a primary mode of transportation. You can use it to work on gig economy apps like DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Grubhub. And it can also be a recreational vehicle if you’d prefer to use it for that. Check out my Varla Eagle One Review.
  • Fucare H3 Scooter – The Fucare H3 is a fun scooter and I’ve enjoyed testing it out. For a daily commuter or quick trips or errands, the Fucare H3 is probably the scooter I’ll use. It’s portable and easy to maneuver, so it’s just easier to take on the road when I need it. Check out my Fucare H3 Scooter Review.

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For additional investing app bonuses, be sure to check out the ones below:

  • M1 Finance ($10) – This is a great robo-advisor that has no fees and allows you to create a customized portfolio based on your risk tolerance. You also get $10 for opening an account. Check out my M1 Finance Referral Bonus – Step-By-Step Guide.
  • SoFi Invest ($25) – SoFi Invest is an easy brokerage account bonus that you can earn with just a few minutes of work. Use my SoFi Invest referral link, fund your SoFi Invest brokerage account with $100 and you’ll get $25 of free stock. I also have a step-by-step guide for the SoFi Invest referral bonus.
  • Moomoo (5 free stocks) – Moomoo is a free investing app currently offering 5 free stocks (usually worth around $75-$100) if you open an account using a referral link and deposit $2,000. Read my Moomoo referral bonus guide for more information.
  • Webull (5 free stocks) – Webull also gives you 5 free stock valued between $3-$3,000 each if you open an account using my referral link. Here’s a guide I wrote about how to earn your free stocks using Webull.
  • Robinhood (1 free stock) – Robinhood gives you a free stock valued between $2.50-$225 if you open an account using my referral link.
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More Recommended Bank Account Bonuses

If you’re looking for more easy bank bonuses, check out the below options. These bonuses are all easy to earn and have no fees or minimum balance requirements to worry about.

  • Chime ($100) - Chime is a free bank account that offers a referral bonus if you use a referral link and complete a direct deposit of $200 or more. In practice, any ACH transfer into this account triggers the bonus. This bonus is easy to earn and posts instantly, so you’ll know if you met the requirements as soon as you move money into the account. I wrote a step-by-step guide on how to earn your Chime referral bonus that I recommend you check out.
  • Digital Federal Credit Union ($100) – Digital Federal Credit Union (DCU) is a free, nationwide credit union that I recommend to readers for two reasons. First, DCU has a $100 referral bonus if you open a free DCU checking account with a referral link. Second, DCU has a saving account that gives you 6.17% interest on your first $1,000. Check out my in-depth post on how to set this account up.
  • Upgrade ($100) – Upgrade is a free checking account that’s currently offering a $100 referral bonus if you open an account and complete three debit card transactions. These bonus terms are easy to meet, so it’s well worth doing this bonus as soon as you can. Importantly, this bonus says that it’s now scheduled to end on January 31, 2023. As long as you get your account opened before January 31st, you should be eligible. Here’s a post I wrote with more details: Upgrade $100 Referral Bonus – Step By Step Directions.
  • SoFi Money ($275) – SoFi Money is a free checking account from SoFi. They’re currently offering a $25 referral bonus if you open a SoFi account with a referral link and deposit $10. You can also make an additional $250 as well if you complete a direct deposit. This is a good bank that is also 100% free, so you won’t have to worry about managing this account. Here’s a post I wrote with instructions on how to earn your SoFi Money bonus: SoFi Money Referral Bonus: Step By Step Guide.
  • Current ($50) – Current is a free fintech bank that’s offering new users a $50 referral bonus after signing up for an account using a referral link.Current is an easy bonus to earn and also gives you access to three savings accounts that pay you 4% interest on up to $2,000. That means you can put away up to $6,000 earning 4% interest. That’s very good and makes Current an account I recommend to everyone. Check out my step-by-step guide on how to earn your Current Bank bonus.
  • Fairwinds Credit Union ($100) – Fairwinds Credit Union is offering a referral bonus for users that sign up using a referral link. Fairwinds has no fees or minimum balance, so this is a particularly easy bonus to earn. Since this is a smaller credit union, my gut instinct tells me this offer won’t be around long, so if you’re in a position to meet the bonus requirements, grab this bonus before it’s gone. Here is my step-by-step guide on how to earn your Fairwinds Credit Union bonus.
  • OnJuno ($60) – OnJuno is a fintech/neobank that is currently offering a $10 referral bonus if you open an account using a referral link and make a deposit of $50 or more. You will also get 1000 JCOIN. The 1000 of JCOIN is cryptocurrency. At the time I'm writing this, it'll be worth about $50. Check out my OnJuno referral bonus guide here.
  • Varo ($30) – Varo is a free fintech banking app similar to Chime or Current. It’s currently offering a $30 bonus to new users that open a new Varo account with a referral link. The bonus for this bank is very easy to meet, all you need to do is spend $20 within 30 days of opening your Varo account. Check out my step-by-step guide to learn how to earn this bonus.
  • Novo Bank ($40) - Novo bank is a free business checking account that’s currently offering a $40 bonus if you open a Novo business checking account using a referral link. In addition to being a good bank bonus, Novo is also a good business checking account. It has no monthly fees or minimum balance requirements and operates a good app and website. Indeed, it’s the business checking account I currently use for this blog. Check out my post on how to easily open a Novo account.
  • Albert ($150) – If you can manage to do a real direct deposit, Albert is an easy account you can use to earn a referral bonus. Here’s a review about Albert I wrote. And here’s a step-by-step guide on how to earn your Albert referral bonus.
  • Netspend ($20 + 5% Interest Savings Account) – Netspend is a company that provides 5% interest savings accounts. If you sign up using my referral link, you’ll get a $20 signup bonus once you make your first deposit into your Netspend account of $40 or more. That means you get a 5% interest savings account and a free $20 to start! Make sure to check out my in-depth guide on how to set up these accounts.
financial panther

Kevin is an attorney and the blogger behind Financial Panther, a blog about personal finance, travel hacking, and side hustling using the gig economy. He paid off $87,000 worth of student loans in just 2.5 years by choosing not to live like a big shot lawyer.

Kevin is passionate about earning money using the gig economy and you can see all the ways he makes extra income every month in his side hustle reports.

Kevin is also big on using the latest fintech apps to improve his finances. Some of Kevin's favorite fintech apps include:

  • SoFi Money. A really good checking account with absolutely no fees. You'll get a $25 referral bonus if you open a SoFi Money account with a referral link, and an additional $250 if you complete a direct deposit.
  • DCU. Digital Federal Credit Union (DCU) is a free, nationwide credit union that I recommend to readers for two reasons. First, DCU has a $100 referral bonus if you open a free DCU checking account with a referral link. Second, DCU has a savings account that gives you 6.17% interest on your first $1,000.
  • Novo Bank. Novo bank is a free business checking account that’s currently offering a $40 bonus if you open a Novo business checking account using a referral link. It’s the business checking account I currently use for this blog.
  • M1 Finance. This is a great robo-advisor that has no fees and allows you to create a customized portfolio based on your risk tolerance. You also get $10 for opening an account.
  • Personal Capital. One of best free apps you can use to monitor your portfolio and track your net worth. This is one of the apps I use to track my financial accounts.

Feel free to send Kevin a message here.

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