Most Australians who use rideshare services like Uber are familiar with the process of rating their driver at the end of a trip. However, a significant number of passengers remain unaware that the judgement is a two-way street: drivers are actively rating them too.
The Hidden Scorecard: How Drivers Rate Passengers
From the moment you click your seatbelt until the car door closes, your behaviour is being assessed. This passenger rating can have real-world consequences, influencing whether your future ride requests are accepted promptly, cancelled mysteriously, or simply take much longer to arrive.
To avoid the pitfalls of a poor rating, understanding the criteria drivers use is crucial. According to workplace trends specialist Professor Gary Martin, most ratings are shaped by a few fundamental, common-sense behaviours.
Drivers immediately notice if a passenger is ready and waiting at the pickup point. A polite greeting, a sincere thank you, and appropriate, light conversation can all work in your favour. Remember, the driver's car is both their workplace and a personal asset, so actions like slamming doors or leaving rubbish behind will negatively impact your score.
Other major faux pas include pressuring the driver to speed, demanding unofficial shortcuts, or arguing over the chosen route. Drivers are also highly observant of what you bring into their vehicle.
Beyond Transport: A New Era of Customer Accountability
Muddy shoes, food spills, strong odours, or visible signs of intoxication are all noted and rarely viewed positively. While addressing these concerns doesn't guarantee a five-star passenger rating, it significantly improves your odds.
This system challenges the long-held mantra that 'the customer is always right.' That principle often allowed ample room to scrutinise service providers but left little space to question customer behaviour. Consequently, pushy, rude, and disrespectful actions frequently went without consequence.
Love them or loathe them, rideshare platforms and their reciprocal rating systems are quietly shifting this dynamic in a very practical way. This trend is less about the act of transport itself and more about behaviour, mutual expectations, and how people treat those providing a service.
The Future of Feedback: Ratings Beyond Rideshare
It is not difficult to imagine this model of customer ratings expanding into other service industries. Airline travel, for instance, could easily adopt a similar framework where passengers are rated on their conduct during a flight.
The concept could be applied just as effectively to gyms, where members might be discreetly rated on how they share equipment, treat staff, and adhere to basic rules. The precedent already exists on short-term accommodation platforms like Airbnb, where hosts routinely rate guests.
Viewed through this lens, rideshare passenger ratings appear less as a quirky app feature and more as a harbinger of a broader shift in commercial interactions. It prompts an uncomfortable question many would rather not confront: how would your everyday behaviour as a customer be rated?
Professor Gary Martin, CEO of AIM WA and a specialist in workplace and social trends, highlighted these developments in his commentary. As this feedback culture grows, the power dynamic between service provider and consumer continues to evolve.
