Uber has pledged to provide $10,000 worth of free rides to the New Zealand Red Cross in a open-ended partnership deal announced today.
Uber's New Zealand general manager Oscar Peppitt said the deal would benefit the charity's Meals on Wheels service in Auckland and Wellington, and would help provide critical transport during emergencies.
"This partnership is actually a huge step for us...our aim is to support the Red Cross in a number of different ways across the things that they do and also to raise funds to help them continue their work."
Uber operates surge pricing during times of high demand, which automatically increases fares to encourage more drivers on to the road to meet the high demand.
Under the deal, Uber would also donate its service fee (20 per cent of the total fare) to the Red Cross when operating during emergencies, Peppitt said.
Emergencies would be gauged on a case-by-case scenario, but severe storms were an example, Peppitt said.
During last December's Sydney Siege, Uber received criticism when its surge pricing automatically kicked in as people tried to flee the CBD. The company later apologised and reversed course, offering free rides out of the city centre and refunding those hit by higher prices.
The Meals on Wheels arrangement had yet to be fully ironed out, but as part of the partnership Uber would provide volunteers with safe and affordable transport options, Peppitt said.
"The New Zealand Red Cross facilitates the delivery of 500,000 meals in New Zealand every year - that's a big, big logistical operation."
The deal is a permanent commitment to the Red Cross, Peppitt said.
Uber currently has 1000 drivers on its books across Auckland and Wellington and was looking to expand into Christchurch, he said.
Red Cross spokesman Matthew McCracken said the charity was going through an extremely busy year with the Nepal earthquakes and Whanganui floods and the support came at an ideal time.
Uber had offered the Red Cross staff in Auckland and Wellington $100,000 worth of free rides per year, he said.
"For an organisation like us, we've got about 450 staff, so we do travel around a fair bit and that obviously helps us cover the cost."
By Brendan Manning of the New Zealand Herald
