To think Uber cars should all have working seatbelts?

[Uberdodgy]

Before Xmas we went down to London for a couple of nights with the kids. Went by train, booked a hotel.

On arrival at a major station we booked an Uber. But the moment we started to approach the assigned car, it took off like a bat out of hell, turned the phone off so we couldn't check why, and circled the block twice before vanishing. Confused, we ordered another - and as I was doing that, it came through that we'd failed to turn up, so were charged almost £7. Irritating, but the guy who came was great so we figured a bad apple, and we'd dispute the fee later with Uber.

That evening we booked an Uber to get from the hotel to the Kew light trail - and the driver did the exact same thing, but this time a lucky red light blocked his getaway. My husband started knocking at the doors, and I took my phone out and started to film. Magically, as soon as I did that the doors opened and a clearly irritated/embarrassed driver let us in. We realised that this must be a known blag.

Next morning we had to get from outer SW London to Leavesden, for the Harry Potter tour, and decided to risk an Uber again as we didn't know any local firms. A car arrived without issue, but when my 10 year old tried to do up her middle rear seatbelt, it wouldn't connect, and the driver said, "Oh, it's broken, don't worry," and started up. We told him to stop, as we weren't driving almost an hour, on motorways, with our child not strapped in. He said, "Well, swap so she has your seatbelt?" We said no thanks and got out.

He then charged us. We messaged Uber, explain what had happened, and their response was that they would credit us the charged money to use on another trip, and ensure that this driver never picked us up again. I asked if they were really saying they were okay with other people using someone whose car wouldn't even pass an MOT, and the response was that they were very concerned to hear of our experience and assured us they would make sure he didn't pick us up again, but if he did to let them know so they could remove the charge for refusing. And that was it.

So we now have two credits, from two bad experiences, where we were unable to use the service... and can only use that money on other trips with Uber. Not very tempting, right now! Probably goes without saying that we used a firm the hotel reception recommended to get us up to Leavesden. Cost twice the Uber fare, but the peace of mind was worth it.

We've used Uber several times before in large cities, and had nothing but positive experiences. So is it a London Uber issue, or simple bad luck?

I have never been happy with Uber. Gone black to black cabs or equivalent

We've given up on Uber in London as they're almost as expensive as black cabs now.

It was actually twice as much, almost, to get to Leavesden in a standard minicab as it was with Uber - Uber were £52 and the minicab £90. But a seatbelt is definitely worth the extra!

It also made us nervous - if they were happy to drive us around in a car with such a glaring safety issue, how likely were they to keep tabs on less obvious, but equally serious, maintenance issues? I would never use a London Uber again now.

When we got back, and got a local taxi firm (the one we usually use) and told the driver about the driving away scam, he told us that's actually a recognised blag - some drivers will do it with several customers, one after the other, apparently? He said he thinks it's probably because we presented as tourists - picked up from a main line station to go to a hotel, or from the hotel to Kew's light trail. So they expected us not to be that familiar with London or, quite possibly, the UK.

The scamming was annoying, but not as worrying as the completely bemused reaction to our saying 'no' to a car without a full complement of seatbelts. On a motorway! And all that driver needed to do was only accept jobs with 3 passengers or fewer, too.