Why Being an Uber Driver in Cancun Puts You in Serious Danger

I love it whenever Uber is available when we are traveling, this is for several reasons.

It’s easy to use, I don’t have to worry about figuring out the local currency when I very first arrive, and I know exactly how long the wait will be. This makes a 3 am arrival a hell of a lot easier to navigate.

But most of all it makes me feel safer and more trackable. Taxis overcharge and scam tourists all over the world. When you’re unfamiliar with a new place, it can be hard to know who is a legit, registered taxi and who is not.

It’s particularly important in places like Mexico City, where I had read that taking an Uber over a taxi was a good way to avoid getting express kidnapped. Express kidnapping is whereby a fake taxi driver will pull a gun on you, drive you to a cash point, and force you to take out and give them all your money before driving off and leaving you stranded. Call me crazy, but I didn’t fancy risking that.

Not only all these things, but it also ensures that you pay a fair price, a metered price.

I was delighted when we arrived in Cancun to see that they had Uber there because I had read that taxis in Cancun are insanely over-overpriced. It’s a license to print money and the taxis there charge tourists whatever the hell they feel like.

We stood outside the bus station and ordered an Uber. We got a message that asked us if we would mind not being picked up outside of the bus station. They asked us to be out of sight of the taxi rank. Could we go to a side street around the corner, please? They also said, should anyone ask us who we were waiting for, we should say that we were waiting for a friend.

A strange request, but harmless we hoped.

When the Uber arrived, the driver asked if one of us could get in the front seat and for us not to wear masks so it looked like she was picking up a friend and not offering a taxi service.

At our confused faces, she went on to explain that she had to keep these measures in place so that none of the taxi drivers would find out that she was an Uber driver.

It turns out, being an Uber driver in Cancun puts you in serious danger.

As taxi drivers here charge tourists between five to ten times the price they charge locals, they aren’t happy with Uber drivers undercutting them and allowing tourists to pay the true cost or the local price.

So much so that as soon as an Uber driver becomes known, they are targeted and have had their cars vandalised. Many have had their wing mirrors or windscreens smashed in, and in several cases, drivers have been physically attacked and assaulted.

The thought of her being in this kind of danger broke my heart. Her name was Nancy and she was the nicest person. We chatted a lot, half in English and half in Spanish depending on which one of us was struggling with a word or sentence.

She said that she dreams of going to Spain and I said that I loved Spain so, she asked why and one of my reasons was that the food is good. She asked

“Is it spicy?”

“No, not really”

“Then it’s NOT good!”

That’s the most Mexican response I’ve ever heard, just brilliant! We laughed.

She told us how much she hates to see tourists being exploited and that she thinks it’s incredibly unfair to overcharge people who are already here to spend money in the local economy and are guests in your country.

She believes everyone should be treated with the same courtesy and respect regardless of where they are from.

I couldn’t agree more!

Thank you for reading! Hearts and tips are always welcome and your support is very much appreciated.

This story was originally published on Medium

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