[Abby28]

Commenting on my experience with Ola/Uber while I stayed in Chennai (2011 - 2016):

Similarities between both the services:

(1) Cab quality - The quality of sedans (interiors, seats etc.) with both Ola/Uber are similar, and I found the cabs to be mostly clean.

(2) Pickup timing (I found both the services to be punctual 8 times out of 10).

Differences i observed:

(1) Driver quality – Off late, i had to raise complaints with Ola support on three occasions (between July to Oct 2017), out of the last 7 trips related to driver behavior (once the driver was drunk , twice they misbehaved/argued and raised their voice on an issue with the route chosen, or when asked to turn off the noisy radio etc.).

(2) Customer support - On none of these instances did the customer support do anything about my complaints (despite them calling me a couple of times to seek information regarding my complaints). Additionally, i was travelling with my family (wife and 1.5 year old son who was unwell) on one of these instances, and I was so pissed off with the driver, i had to terminate the trip mid-way and be stranded on the road with luggage (until another cab could turn up). This was a bitter experience which always pushed me to use Uber if it was available.

(3) Ola Wallet - I'm not a fan of the Ola wallet service, and would certainly recommend people against using it. For eg., when the issue above (2) happened, not only was i charged for the entire trip (despite terminating it off with about 25% of the journey done), the customer support after receiving feedback did not even have the courtesy to issue a refund/take any action with the driver. On another instance, when I booked an Ola in Gujarat (month of Dec. 16, if I remember correctly), the driver called me saying that he has some issue with his car, and will take around 45 minutes to show up. I had a time commitment to fulfill, and the delay was unacceptable, hence he requested me to cancel the trip, which I did. A charge of Rs. 25/- was immediately deducted from my Ola wallet, despite it being the driver’s issue which led to the cancellation. After I reached out to customer care explaining the issue, I was told that the charge would be reversed. Till date, it hasn’t been done.

I would like to note here that on each of the above mentioned issues, I had booked their “Ola Micro/Mini” service; I had no issues with their “Prime” (sedan) service in the last several years.

On the other hand, never had such an issue with Uber (with usage being close to 40% if the time as compared to Ola), with most of my trips being routine affairs (pickup/drop, payment settled, off you go...). So I won't be able to comment on the customer service @ Uber.

(4) Pricing - During peak hours, i always found the pricing of Ola to be cheaper than that of Uber (also given their crazy surge pricing). This is the only point going in favor of Ola. However, seldom have I undertaken trips during crazy surge pricing periods, so this is actually a point i can choose to overlook when comparing the two services.

Weighing the pros/cons of both services, I continue to prefer Uber as compared to Ola.

Hence the decision to vote for “Primarily Uber”.

[heavenlybull]

Definitely Ola for me in Delhi. I only try Uber if I don't get a Ola ride. Driver, cab quality is same, Uber is slightly cheaper.

Love the Ola app - it lets me save emergency contacts with whom my ride details are shared on every trip start. I find this feature very good especially when wife is riding alone and I can track her in real time - safety is always a worry in public transport. I don't see this feature in Uber app - it looks barebones.

[TheHkrish]

Primarily OLA.

Pros of OLA above Uber.
1) They do honour prior bookings, I got OLA cab showing up for OLA even during the infamous OLA and Uber Strike in Bangalore. Got turned down by Uber after the driver had accepted booking twice even before peak traffic started in Bangalore.
2) OLA select gives you Sedans for the price for minis.
3) OLA share works out cheaper if you have OLA share pass.
4) Most important Dedicated customer helpline, where I don't have to get around to write a mail for the delay in cabs.
5) OLAs tracking gives OLA an extra edge.

Pros of Uber above OLA
1) Almost never demanded money, e-payment have been gladly accepted.
2) Their app shows the route driver takes to reach you, so that you can guide them properly.
3) More coupons.

[ThomasZach]

Voted for Primarily Uber

I live in Bangalore and I have found Uber to be cheaper by Rs. 20 to 30 compared to Ola. I fall back on Ola if I get a cab quicker with Ola. This has happened a couple of times for trips from the Airport to home.

From experience, I have found Ola cabs to be cleaner\better kept than Uber cabs in general.

[shamanth]

Some issues with OLA

1. Almost all OLA driver asks for destination, before coming to pick-up.
2. If by mistake you tell them destination, they would cancel telling them the money is not enough for the trip.
3. Some OLA drivers even ask for more money than specified to come and pick-up else they would cancel. OLA is fast becoming local auto/taxi, we will have to bargain to get their taxi pick you up.
4. Many OLA drivers are not even trained to see maps and navigate.

None of these often happens in Uber, But OLA is getting more corrupt and unable to tackle these errant drivers.

[iceman07]

Mostly Ola.

In the area of bangalore i live uber does not show many options often and is highly priced.
Better security with the code to be shared prior to the trip.Is a boon when i book for my parents and have never been charged for "waiting"(cab already arrived when its like a KM away) ever since.
With autos tied up ola provides a lot of options , never disappointing even in odd hours.

[Jaggu]

Have been a Uber user since day 1 in India. Flirted with Ola when they launched, but cab quality, driver quality, ease of use of the app and the customer care experience wise Uber has been the better of the two across states where i have used.

[jacobvarughese]

I regularly use Uber on my business and personal travels (whether inside or outside India)- however, non-India commuters should consider leveraging/using 'Lyft', another popular taxi aggregator service which I find is cheaper than Uber.

Points observed about Uber and Lyft:

a. To change your Indian cellular number to the destination country one(if you have a local SIM), you've to send an email to their customer service and the changes may take a day or two to be effected. Lyft also needed a screenshot of my valid ID (passport/Driver's License) to incorporate the change.
b. Uber or Lyft pool: I'm still unclear on how this works as I chose a drive from San Jose to San Francisco (circa 58 miles/95 kms) and was all alone. To my query, I was told that it's only sometimes passengers get picked-up on this. As a result, it was cheaper than regular, and normal Uber/Lyft cabs- cost me circa 66 dollars.
c. Have gathered from my conversation that some US drivers seem to drive on both platforms, Uber and Lyft- one of them even opined that Lyft has a rigorous background check as opposed to Uber.


Last year, I had a tough time hailing an Uber cab at the Trivandrum airport thanks to the tax union drivers who still haven't got a grip with technology and always seem to be at loggerheads with them. However, upon my return from the US last week I used an Uber cab to head back home.

[sumeet007]

Originally Posted by shamanth

Some issues with OLA

1. Almost all OLA driver asks for destination, before coming to pick-up.
2. If by mistake you tell them destination, they would cancel telling them the money is not enough for the trip.
3. Some OLA drivers even ask for more money than specified to come and pick-up else they would cancel. OLA is fast becoming local auto/taxi, we will have to bargain to get their taxi pick you up.
4. Many OLA drivers are not even trained to see maps and navigate.

None of these often happens in Uber, But OLA is getting more corrupt and unable to tackle these errant drivers.

A friend had a similar experience while taking a ride in Ola y'day in hyderabad to airport. Two Olas refused after asking the destination, the third came, promptly asked the rider to cancel booking, but he would still take him to airport, for the quoted cost, but driver said he will save the commission charged by Ola!!

[shanoj]

It is Uber for me.
1. Better maintained or fairly new cars.
2. Less pricey with lots of promotions including credit card sponsored ones.
3. More customer friendly, was able to reverse 'cancellation charges' multiple times.
4. Can get upgraded to an UberX while booking for an UberGo.
5. Better app.
6. Better service; you don't have to request for A/C to be turned ON, it is done by default.

[mathuranuj]

I prefer Uber over Ola. The cars are much better maintained and cleaner that Ola's. The drivers are more courteous and polite. There have been many instances where the Ola drivers refused the journey as they did not want to go from airport to my home.

[libranof1987]

Originally Posted by jacobvarughese

I regularly use Uber on my business and personal travels (whether inside or outside India)- however, non-India commuters should consider leveraging/using 'Lyft', another popular taxi aggregator service which I find is cheaper than Uber.

While in the US, I was a very regular Lyft user. In fact, I rarely used Uber over Lyft.

Reasons being:

- the drivers are more fun: they like when you sit on the co-pilot seat and chat. A Uber driver told me that they prefer passengers to sit at the back to give it a more professional look
- water/snacks, charging cables in the car. The charging cable has come in handy, I've not taken anyone up on their offer for water/food.

b. Uber or Lyft pool: I'm still unclear on how this works as I chose a drive from San Jose to San Francisco (circa 58 miles/95 kms) and was all alone. To my query, I was told that it's only sometimes passengers get picked-up on this. As a result, it was cheaper than regular, and normal Uber/Lyft cabs- cost me circa 66 dollars.

The way UberPool works in the US is, the first person who boards a cab more or less decides the course of the journey. Uber will only match co-passengers that are within 5 min/2 miles of where your pickup/drop location is. And I believe, only if that pickup happens to be on the fastest route to the first person's destination. Very optimum.

[dailydriver]

Originally Posted by shanoj

Better service; you don't have to request for A/C to be turned ON, it is done by default.

This is one gripe I have with UberGo and Ola Mini/Micro cabs in Bengaluru. Unless you specifically ask for it, not many drivers switch on the AC voluntarily. This may be a singular experience of mine, but unlike Bengaluru, both Uber and Ola cabs that I used in Chennai and Hyderabad invariably came with AC running.

[pjbiju]

Originally Posted by heavenlybull

...

Love the Ola app - it lets me save emergency contacts with whom my ride details are shared on every trip start. I find this feature very good especially when wife is riding alone and I can track her in real time - safety is always a worry in public transport. I don't see this feature in Uber app - it looks barebones.

There is a "Send Status" option in Uber that lets you send a link to the current ride and the receiver can track the status in real time.

[gopalnt]

Sorry for the long post, but I thought I could share this so that others will be aware when booking through Ola.

Booked an Ola cab rental for my father. I gave him the OTP and the ride started as per the time. 15 minutes into the ride, I got a message saying that the ride has been cancelled. But I didn't cancel it. So, I called on the mobile number that Ola sent me as driver details. The person who took it said that he is just the owner of the vehicle and he is not the driver. He said he will ask the driver to speak to me. The driver called me and I asked him why did he cancel the ride midway. Even though he has cancelled the ride, he was still taking my father in the cab. He said that he has problems in getting money from Ola so he cancelled the ride so that to force my father to pay cash to him and not use Ola money. I asked him that if he didn't like Ola money, he should have told me before taking my father. Seems that he didn't enter the OTP that my father gave to him so that he cancel the ride at a later time. So at that point of time, I was not able to track the cab in Ola app, because the driver had cancelled it. I told the driver what he is doing is not correct and he cannot force me to pay cash. The driver said that is what he can do and he forcefully dropped my father in the middle of the road and went away.

I raised this concern in the Ola app and within minutes, I got an email saying that my concern is resolved. I then called Ola customer care and they said they are not able to talk to the driver. I told them that it is a serious security issue that a driver can take someone for a ride without making the passenger know whether the OTP has been entered or not, cancel the ride and then no one will be able to know where the cab is going. Ola said they cannot take any responsibility for the driver's actions.

Friends, be careful when you take a ride with providers like Ola. And especially, if you are booking a ride for anyone else. I have learnt a lesson today that I should ask the driver to enter the OTP before he starts the trip, so that he cannot cancel the trip after that. I wanted to share this with all of you, so that you can also take precautions. It is just astonishing to see the drivers coming up with new ideas to cheat passengers.