Uber launches new feature to ensure safe trips for teens

Uber is helping parents feel more at ease and in control when their teenagers need a ride or order food on UberEats through a new feature.

The company recently launched teen accounts across the state of California, where parents can create an account for their child between the ages of 13 and 17. 

Here, teens can request rides or order food while the parents have access to supervise their children. These accounts allow parents to track their child’s rides and even set the spending limits for UberEats orders, according to a press release from Uber. 

According to Uber, “a parent or guardian can invite their teen to create an account through their Family Profile in the Uber app. The teen will then receive a link to download the app, create their new teen account, and complete the mandatory safety onboarding process. After that, teens can start requesting trips and ordering meals on their own.”

Parents can rest assured that their teen is safe during their Uber ride with features such as: 

• Live trip and delivery tracking: Parents can follow along and get real-time updates
• PIN Verification: Teens will give drivers a unique PIN before getting in the car
• RideCheck: Uber will monitor if a ride goes off course, stops unexpectedly, or ends early
• Audio Recording available on trips: Users can record audio of their trip through the app
• Expanded communication: Parents can contact the driver at any time
• Only highly rated, experienced drivers and couriers
• Spending limits: Parents can set the budget and spending limit
• Teen-friendly UberEats: Items that teens are not old enough to buy are filtered out

“Teen accounts are built with transparency in mind so that there are no surprises for parents, teens, or drivers,” said Mariana Esteves, Product Manager at Uber. “We’re thrilled to offer this innovative feature to families in more cities across the US, with key safety features built into the heart of the experience. Whether their teen is getting a ride to an internship or heading home after soccer practice, parents will receive real-time notifications and can follow along with live trip tracking every step of the way. We’re committed to helping keep teens safe and getting families moving.”

Uber partnered with Safe Kids Worldwide, a global nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting children from preventable injuries, when creating these new accounts.

“As part of our work, we were able to provide advice and expertise to Uber to help ensure teens have a safe experience from pickup to drop off. By providing parents with safe alternatives to help their teens get around, we hope this will help create more equitable solutions for families facing barriers to transportation,” said Safe Kids Worldwide President Torine Creppy.

For more information on Uber’s teen accounts click here.