Accounts manager is charged more than £500 for Uber trip home after work’s Christmas party when she falls asleep – and wakes up to find the driver has gone WRONG way round the M25
- Ashleigh Cooper was quoted £200 for 40-mile journey from central London
- But the driver ended up taking an 89-mile route to Gillingham in Kent
- Charged her £529.77 after working round the southern half of the M25
Ashleigh Cooper (pictured) was horrified with the huge bill
A woman getting a 40 mile trip home on Uber following a Christmas party was taken 84 miles and charged nearly £530.
Ashleigh Cooper had been out in London celebrating her work’s Christmas party when she ordered an Uber to take her back.
The accounts manager was quoted around £200 for the journey from St James’s Park, in central London, to Gillingham, Kent, which should have been 40 miles long.
But her driver ended up taking her on a 89 mile route, arriving via the M25. At one point she fell asleep and woke up alone in the car at a petrol station while the driver refuelled.
When she eventually arrived home she received a whopping £529.77 showed the route heading west before almost working round the entire southern half of the M25.
Horrified, she got in touch with Uber’s customer services to request a refund for the journey on Friday, December 13.
Pictured: The route that the Uber driver took Ashleigh Cooper on while taking her home to Gillingham in Kent
The 27-year-old said: ‘I knew it would be past an hour, it was really dark and I don’t drive in London, I don’t know the area so it was only by length of time.
‘I wouldn’t have accepted that journey if it came up on the quote. The first thing I did the next morning was take it up with Uber and I finally got call back four days later.’
While Uber admitted their driver took her on the wrong length journey, they said they were unable to offer a refund for the journey and instead offered her £275 in Uber credit. They also said she would need to take it up with Transport for London (TfL).
Ashleigh added: ‘After all the bad customer service, I want compensation. Their ‘compensation’ offer of Uber credit to use for future rides is insulting.
‘I don’t understand; I paid by card, I have never had Uber credit, I wanted to get paid back the way I paid.’
She has also criticised the cab-hailing app for not looking after females travelling solo on their service.
The Uber driver took the accounts manager the wrong way around the M25, even stopping to fill up on petrol
She added, ‘Me and my friends have taken Ubers from London home before and it was over £100.
‘I don’t use Uber that often, I would have got the train normally. I don’t want to use them again.’
Ashleigh has been trying to get a response from TfL since she was instructed to take her query up with them.
The Uber app records every trip and sends riders a receipt with a map of the route taken.
The app also includes a feature which allows users to record feedback on the route taken once the journey has been completed.
Last month, Uber was stripped of its licence to operate in London, an agreement which allowed it to operate in Medway, Gravesend, Dartford and Canterbury.
The firm launched an appeal and as such, its users are still able to use the app to hail cars during the appeal period. An Uber spokeswoman said: ‘We are always happy to review a trip if there are concerns about the route taken, and provide a fare adjustment where appropriate.’ TfL has been approached for comment.