Skift Take

Prices for ride-hailing services will one day have to reflect the real cost of doing business — from realistic fares to local rules and regulations — and when that happens consumers won't be as nearly in love with them as they are now.

The U.S. ride-hailing price wars wage on as Gett announced it’s guaranteeing New York City riders better fares than Uber by asking them to compare receipts.

Gett, the surge-free on-demand car app in 57 cities around the world including London, Moscow and Tel Aviv, says its fixed rate will be cheaper than Uber in almost every case. Starting today, Gett’s new “Better fares than Uber or your money back” campaign encourages riders to watch their Uber receipts and compare fares against Gett’s. If they find a Gett fare is higher than Uber’s for the same origin and destination they can email Uber receipts to Gett to receive ride credits.

“Gett provides similar services to Uber, but also gives consumers the option to book cars immediately or pre-book the ride in advance, said Gett CEO Shahar Waiser in a statement. “Many riders are also tired of paying exorbitant rates due to surge pricing. Gett is the only black car app in New York City that offers $10 rides anywhere below 110th Street and 24/7 surge-free fares.”

Any excitement Gett generates around the campaign if it expands it beyond New York City may be short-lived as Uber dropped it’s prices in 80 U.S. cities last Saturday (New York fares remain unchanged). In China, both Didi Kuaidi and Uber have offered drivers numerous incentives and riders millions of free rides and India is also on deck to feel more heat from Uber in the coming year.

Lyft and Didi formed an alliance to take on Uber in Asia late last year and other Asian ride-hailing apps have merged to challenge Uber head-on. Companies like Ola and GrabTaxi offer Lyft riders traveling overseas access to rides through Lyft in an attempt to keep Uber’s progress in Asia from swelling further.

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Tags: gett, ride-sharing, uber

Photo credit: The Gett app in New York City. Skift

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