If there was one reason to choose Uber over a regular taxi, it would be the fact that Uber relies on credit cards for payment, meaning that users won’t need to bring cash with them which in turn reduces the chances of them being robbed by the driver, at least as far as cash is concerned. However interestingly enough it seems that Uber is looking to start testing cash payments and India will be its chosen market.Apparently the reason behind testing cash payments is because in some parts of the world, using cash to pay for goods and services is still seen as “tradition” and in order to court these customers, companies such as Uber will have to appeal to their sense of tradition, even if it seems like it might be an outdated form of payment.
According to Siddharth Shanker, GM of Uber Hyderabad, “Tradition dictates that cash plays a big role for Indian consumers. As a data-driven technology company that has seen strong growth in India we feel this is the right time to explore the extent of this predisposition when it comes to our service.”
At the moment the cash payment trial will only be limited to within the city which has a population of about 3.6 million. Users within the city will have the option of choosing to pay by cash when requesting an Uber ride and will also not be required to have a minimum balance on their accounts.
However these users will still need a valid Uber account which means that a credit card will still need to be on file, it’s just that these users will now have the option of paying by cash or credit card.
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