Cape Town – Uber drivers have blamed the cab-hailing service's cash payment option for the death of a Zimbabwe-born driver who was shot dead in Philippi, but the service has distanced itself from the murder.
Uber, which used to only take in-app credit card payments, introduced cash payments in May last year.
Drivers, who fear for their safety, say they have been against the cash payment system from the beginning.
They have drawn up a list of so-called “no-go areas” after a colleague, Tawanda Ndhlovu, 35, was shot dead after dropping off a customer in Philippi on Sunday last week.
“I won’t go there,” an Uber driver, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said yesterday.
“You see, with this incident that has happened now, it has scared all of us. We need money, but my life and family are more important. It’s not worth it – especially at night,” he said.
“For instance, if someone requests an Uber from town to Delft at night, and it’s a cash trip, I can’t do that because it’s dangerous.”
The driver, who is also from Zimbabwe, said his colleague was attacked because “gangsters think we have lots of money”.
“We don’t want these cash trips. Uber must make a plan for those (customers) who do not have bank accounts so they can be able to pay without having to use cash. Cash is a risk.”
Several Uber drivers attended Ndhlovu’s memorial service on Monday.
Uber spokeswoman Samantha Allenberg described Ndhlovu’s death as “tragic”.
“The incident did not happen on the Uber platform and there is no evidence to suggest this terrible crime is in any way related to Uber. Crime is an unfortunate reality in South Africa and we are always looking to improve the safety of our app.”