Uber offering up to $30 off a package trip

Uber Australia is trying to attract more customers with a new and unusual one-off deal. See how it works.

It’s an unusual way to give an Uber discount — but the rideshare company is appealing to Aussie singles to help them offload their ex’s belongings.

As part of National Singles’ Day on Saturday, Uber is offering 50 per cent off all Uber Package trip fares (up to a maximum of $30 off) booked between 9.30am – 9pm AEST.

Uber Package is a same-day, on demand delivery service that allows customers to send non prohibited items below 20kg in weight, and valued at $100 or less.

It is available in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide, Gold Coast, Canberra, Newcastle, Geelong, Hobart, Darwin, Cairns, Sunshine Coast, Townsville and Wollongong.

Uber ANZ Head of Rider Operations Margarita Peker said the decision to offer the discount comes as a new survey conducted by Uber Package found more than a third of Australians would rather wait on hold with a customer service team for two hours than meet their ex to return their belongings.

A further 37 per cent of Australians claimed they do not return these items as they simply never want to see or speak to their ex again.

Uber is trying to lure more customers with a one-off deal.

“Breakups are tough at the best of times, but having to return your ex partner’s belongings can be even more awkward,” Ms Peker said.

“For those itching to return said items and without having to face their ex, the good news is Uber is offering a discount off our no-contact delivery solution.”

The move to lure more Australian customers to try Uber Package comes as the courier and parcel delivery sector is seeing stiff competition as demand for faster deliveries grows.

Australia Post holds the lion share of parcel deliveries across the country alongside its company StarTrack.

Other parcel delivery providers like Sendle have seen fast growth from small businesses who need more effective delivery options to meet their e-commerce orders since Covid-19 lockdowns saw many Australians start side hustles.

Sendle has also integrated with Shopify in Australia and offers an environmentally sustainable packaging option with official B Corp status, showing its methods have a high social and environmental performance.

In March, it was revealed DHL paid more than $140 million for 24 hectares in Western Sydney, where it plans to build four warehouses.

The fast growth of Uber in Australia has seen international tech giants put their stamp on the local economy in just a few short years.

Amazon Australia also recently launched free next-day delivery for some Prime members living in Sydney and Melbourne.

Jarden analyst Ben Gilbert recently said Amazon’s website has grown more than 20 per cent in the past year, while rivals eBay, Ozbargain and Gumtree have seen hardly any growth.

If such trends continue, he predicted Amazon will overtake eBay as the top retail website in Australia based on online visitors.

“Amazon.com.au [is set to] overtake eBay as the No.1 retail site in Australia in the next 12 months, based on the current run-rate,” he said.

“The local site continues to materially outperform the broader market, aided by increased capacity and a move to next-day delivery in Sydney [and] Melbourne.”

Originally published as Uber offering up to $30 off a package trip