Drunk man accidentally takes $1,600 Uber from West Virginia to New Jersey

After a night of drinking, Kenny Bachman called an Uber to take him to his home in the New Jersey suburbs of Philadelphia. There was just one problem: he wasn’t in the Philadelphia area. He was in Morgantown, West Virginia, more than 300 miles away from home.

The cost of the ride: $1,635.93.

“I just woke up,” Bachman told NJ.com. “And I’m thinking, ‘Why the f— am I in the car next to some random-ass dude I don’t even know?”

Bachman said that by the time he realized what was happening, he was already a couple of hours into the five-hour trip. He decided to complete the trip rather than asking the driver to turn around.

According to NJ.com, surge pricing was in effect, almost doubling the fare. Bachman made things even worse by accidentally ordering an upscale Uber XL instead of a conventional Uber.

Bachman complained to Uber, but Uber insisted that the driver had taken him to the destination he requested. Bachman ultimately paid the fare.

“Once the ride ended and I saw how much it was when I was like ‘Alright, this is insane, that’s just crazy,” Bachman said.

He says he gave the driver five stars and even gave the driver cash to cover the cost of tolls on the way home.

https://arstechnica.com/?p=1268199