At the start of the year, we told you about Uber’s strategy to beef up the safety of its riders through the introduction of a four-digit PIN code to assist in ensuring that they board into the right car. The feature, which started in the U.S. is now available in Uganda, and users here will also have the option of receiving the code to provide to their driver before starting a trip.
The driver is required to enter the PIN code into the app, and the rider gets a notification that says “your ride is verified” if everything matches. Riders can choose whether or not to use Uber’s new PIN code feature, or whether to choose and use it only at night.
How to use the Uber PIN verification feature
You can opt-in to the PIN code feature by navigating to your app settings and tapping “Verify Your Ride.” From there, you can choose to use the PIN verification feature on every trip or only during evening trips (9 pm – 6 am). See a video explaining the feature works HERE.
Once enabled, you will receive a four-digit PIN code in their app while the driver is en-route to the pickup location. When the driver arrives, you can verbally provide the PIN to the driver before getting into the vehicle. After the driver enters the correct PIN, the trip can begin. The interesting bit of it is that when the feature is enabled, a trip cannot start until the correct PIN is entered into the driver’s app.
According to Aaron Tindiseega, the Uber Country Manager for Uganda, the opt-in safety feature will help to ensure that users are getting into the correct Uber before the trip begins.
“This It is a great example of how tech can help make travel safer than ever before, and will support our efforts to continue to prevent incidents as we work to set the standard for ride sharing safety. While I’m proud of the progress we’ve made, when it comes to safety, we know our work is never done.”
