Uber has vehemently repudiated claims that the app shows users there are cars in the area when that is actually not the case, according to The Guardian.
Recently research has emerged on Vice’s Motherboard from the Data & Society Thinktank that argues that Uber uses “phantom cars.” These phantom cars supposedly appear to show numerous drivers in a user’s vicinity when there may actually be none.
Within the report, an Uber customer-support representative told the thinktank that the app “is simply showing that there are partners on the road at the time.”
The representative continued to say “this is more of a visual effect, letting people know that partners are searching for fares. I know this seems a misleading to you but it is meant as more of a visual effect more than an accurate location of drivers in the area. It would be better of you to think of this as a screen saver on a computer.”
However, Uber UK has fired back saying that the cars are real, but are slightly time delayed for the safety of the drivers and to prevent a cluttered screen. Uber UK says it does strive for the most accurate representation of drivers in a user’s area.