Parents are being offered a way to keep track of their kids’ movements while escaping the daily drudgery of driving them around, thanks to a new family-oriented service from Uber.
Research by Censuswide, commissioned by the ride-hailing giant, has revealed that UK parents of teenagers estimate they spend a full eight days a year ferrying their children to various activities and commitments. What’s more, over half the 2,000 parents surveyed (59%), said they have been known to abandon their own journey plans in order to cater to their offspring’s transport needs.
Journey notifications, driver credentials, and live tracking
But now there is an alternative to this source of family pressure and conflict. The Uber Teen service, launched at the end of November 2024, means that teenagers aged between 13 and 17 years old are now permitted to run their own Uber accounts, as long as they are set up by their parents or carers.
The service notifies parents via the Uber app whenever their teen books a ride, so no unexpected or inappropriate travel can take place. Another safety feature intended to reassure parents their kids will remain safe is that only “highly-rated and experienced” drivers are able to accept the Uber Teen fares. Parents can also scrutinise driver credentials and follow the progress of their child’s journey in real time.
Previously launched in pilot form in the USA and Canada, the Uber Teen service was developed in collaboration with ParentZone, a parenting organisation and family safety advocate. Vicki Shotbolt, the chief executive of the campaign group, has described the offering as “an efficient way for teens to travel independently”.
“Full transparency and peace of mind for parents, teens and drivers”
Uber Teen is now due to be rolled out in cities across the UK over the coming months. Marking the advent of the new service, Uber’s UK general manager Andrew Brem said: “Uber is thrilled to help busy families across the UK get around safely and easily. Teen accounts were developed to provide full transparency and peace of mind for parents, teens and drivers.”
Conveniently, the advent of Uber Teen coincides with another initiative aimed at young people: a student discount scheme priced at £2.49 per month. In addition, a new ride-sharing function called XShare, that claims to save users up to 20% per journey, is being trialled in Bristol, in the southwest of England.
