Alarm sounded in Saratoga Springs over fake ride-sharing drivers

Saratoga Springs leaders have a message for all visitors: beware of fake Uber or Lyft drivers and taxi cabs.

The city is seeing a significant number of people pretending to be these drivers, picking up passengers, Saratoga Springs Mayor Ron Kim said.

City officials don’t know who these fake drivers are, and they don’t know where they could be taking you, they said.

Thankfully, there have been no reports of someone getting hurt – but you’re unintentionally putting yourself in danger by getting into one of those fake ride-sharing cars or taxis.

The difference between the real ones and the fake ones are subtle.

The fakes will have an Uber sign or a “U/L” sign for Uber or Lyft on the roof of the car, but that’s it.

If you’ve ever taken a real Uber or Lyft, you know the logo and name will be displayed in the windshield and there will be some sort of driver identification.

The fake signs are very different from the font of the real Uber and Lyft sign, and the logo.

It’s all being done during the city’s busiest season, Kim said.

There have been no reports of anyone getting hurt so far, but Kim said he wants visitors to know the dangers, because he doesn’t want it to get to that point.

Meantime, Dillon Moran, the commissioner of Accounts for Saratoga Springs, is advising people to schedule with a ride-sharing app before getting into any car.

You can use the app to see who the driver is, the make and model of the car, and the license plate number.

Learn about protocols city taxi cabs have in place to keep people safe by watching the video of Tessa Bentulan’s story.