Everything to know about Uber Rewards in Australia

Uber has launched its Australian loyalty program for Uber and Uber Eats users. Is it just a marketing tactic or can it deliver genuine rewards for Uber customers? We take a look.

Whether you’re Ubering all over town or an Uber Eats devotee, you may be intrigued to know ‘Uber Rewards’ can let you earn points with every eligible dollar spent on rides with Uber and orders with Uber Eats.

What is Uber Rewards

Uber Rewards is a loyalty program offered by Uber to users of both its ridesharing app and Uber Eats. It allows users to accrue points in exchange for their Uber trips and food delivery orders.

Uber Rewards is a multi-tiered system, with users starting at the ‘Blue’ tier and potentially progressing through to the ‘Gold’, ‘Platinum’, and ‘Diamond’ tiers if they build up enough points.

How does Uber Rewards work?

If you have signed up for Uber Rewards, you will begin accruing points in line with the dollars you spend through the Uber and Uber Eats apps. When you join up, your initial membership level will be determined based on how much you have spent with the company in the previous six months.

The earn rates are as follows:

• earn 1 point per eligible $1 on UberPool and UberEats
• earn 2 points per eligible $1 on UberX, UberXL, Uber Comfort and Uber Assist
• earn 3 points per eligible $1 on Uber Premier

Your points will automatically be added to your account at the end of any Uber rides or Uber Eats orders you make. Uber says points are not earned on dollars spent on:

• taxes, levies, fees, tolls and surcharges
• tips to delivery-partners or driver-partners
• cancellation fees
• portions of trips covered by a promotional value
• portions of trips covered by another user through split fare
• external trip fees such as damage or cleaning fees
• taxi, bike, and scooter rides

Other types of trips may also be ineligible, and you can see Uber’s full terms and conditions for details.

How do I join Uber Rewards?

Joining Uber Rewards is easy. Just select the Uber Rewards option from the Uber app menu, accept the terms and conditions, and you can start to earn reward points. It’s free to join, and because you already have an account with Uber, no further verification or proof of identity is required to sign up for Uber Rewards.

It’s worth pointing out that you can earn points on transactions in countries outside of Australia where Uber operates. However, you’ll only be able to access rewards and redeem benefits in Australia.

What can you get with Uber Rewards?

Uber Rewards is a tiered system that spans Blue, Gold, Platinum and Diamond levels of membership. Your membership level is determined by your last six months of spend with Uber and orders with Uber Eats at the time of enrolment. Users reach Gold membership level after earning 1,200 points, Platinum membership level after 4,000 points, and Diamond membership level after 7,500 points.

When a minimum of 750 rewards points have been accrued in the Gold tier or above, your rewards points may be redeemed. The rewards you can earn vary with your level of membership. For example, from Gold, you can get a 10% off one Uber Comfort trip each month up to $30. Platinum and Diamond members may be entitled to priority pick-ups at airports, depending on driver availability. Each month Diamond members will automatically receive a promotion for up to 50% off one Uber Premier ride to the maximum value of $30.

Unused offers do not roll over to the following month, and points expire after 12 months. Uber gives the example that points earned in January 2020 would have expired by 1 February, 2021.

Do loyalty programs like this offer value to consumers?

According to Lifehacker, assuming you only used Uber Pool and Uber Eats, you would need to spend at least $1,200 annually – or about $100 each month, across the Uber and Uber Eats apps in order to reach the Gold membership level at which reward benefits can be redeemed. So, you need to be quite a fan of Uber or Uber Eats for rewards to be worthwhile.

Uber Rewards is one of many, many loyalty programs available to Australians. Perhaps because they are so common, they have come under intense scrutiny from the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC).

In a major report on customer loyalty schemes, the ACCC has raised a number of issues and concerns reported by consumers regarding loyalty schemes – although not necessarily specific to Uber’s offering – including expiry and redemption of points.

The report also noted that restrictive redemption opportunities were another customer concern, whether this was due to a lack of reward options or prohibitively high point requirements.

With this in mind, you may want to consider whether or not your current Uber and Uber Eats usage would earn enough points in a 12-month period to allow you to reap any significant benefits from the rewards program.

Of course, Uber isn’t the only rideshare provider attempting to woo and retain users with rewards and points. Competitor service Ola allows Velocity Members to earn one Velocity point per $1 spent on Ola rides, and two points per $1 spent on rides to and from eligible airports. In the food delivery arena, customers of Uber Eats’ challenger, Menulog, can earn Velocity points on online orders. Terms and conditions apply.

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Main image source: Delbo Andrea/Shutterstock.com

Original article by James Hurwood.

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