Have you seen those stickers on Uber cars in the window?
Those stickers are actually a requirement for Uber drivers in many cities.
If you’re new to driving for Uber and need to know where to get one for yourself, then you’re in the right place.
What Is an Uber Sticker?
Also called an Uber decal or a trade dress, an Uber sticker is a sticker you put on your back or front window to show that you are a driver for Uber.
With this decal, riders can easily identify your car and your status as a driver.
These stickers feature the Uber logo and are clear and easy to read from outside of the vehicle.
Outside of that, these stickers aren’t that much different from other stickers or decals you’d see on your car.
Uber doesn’t require Uber decals to drive for them.
But, some local regulations do require that you identify your car as an Uber vehicle while ride-sharing.
These decals may not be important to Uber, but they can matter to those in local communities.
The easiest way to see if you need one of these decals is to check with a local Uber Greenlight Hub and see if they can give you answers on local rules.
State rules and guidelines will be available at these offices, too.
These offices are a helpful resource for you as an Uber driver, so take advantage of them if you have a Greenlight Hub near you.
Are Uber Stickers Removable?
Not all Uber decals are removable.
Before you get your sticker, you’ll need to make sure that it is removable before committing to buying one.
That way, if you don’t want to have that sticker up all the time, you have that option.
The stickers that you can get from Uber directly are not removable.
They stick to the glass of your windshields with adhesive, so they are meant to be placed once and then not removed after that.
Uber also provides these stickers for free, so there are pros and cons to getting a sticker from Uber.
Other parties sell stickers and decals for Uber.
Amazon is full of options, including signs and stickers that attach with suction cups instead of adhesive.
With these options, you could hang up your sign or sticker while working and take it down when driving for yourself or when you get home.
Differences Between Uber Stickers and Uber Beacon
Uber is rolling out other options for displaying your driver status as time goes on.
Lately, Uber has introduced a new device called Uber Beacon, an upgrade from the usual sticker.
The Uber Beacon is a hardware device that sits at the front of your car while driving.
It has an LED screen and light surrounding it, making it easy to see from outside of the vehicle.
Also, the beacon can connect to your smartphone and provide data to your riders about how far away they are from their destination and instructions for entering or exiting the vehicle.
Currently, the Uber Beacon is only available in a few large cities in the United States.
But, Uber plans on rolling out more locations as time goes on.
The main difference between the current stickers and the beacon is the info it gives to your riders.
With the beacon, you can automate some of the info sharing that you normally have to do as a rideshare driver.
Since the device gets all the info from your phone, you can focus on the road as the driver.
Plus, the LED screen is easier to read than a sticker at night.
Riders will feel safer getting into a car they can readily identify as their Uber pickup.
Read More:
Uber Lights: Different types of driver identifiers
Does Uber Send You A Sign After Signing Up?
When you sign up to be an Uber driver and get approved, Uber sends out an email with all sorts of requirements you must meet.
These requirements are things like car inspections, insurance provisions, state laws, and trade dress rules.
This email is curated to your location, so the rules in that email are the ones you have to follow.
Uber doesn’t send out a sticker immediately with this email, especially if your city doesn’t require one.
To get a sticker, you might have to request one from Uber directly.
Uber has a place on their website to request trade dresses at no cost to the driver.
When Will My Uber Sticker Arrive?
If you order a sticker from Uber, it shouldn’t take too long to get to you.
For US drivers, it takes between five to seven business days for your decal to arrive.
Australian ridesharing drivers should give Uber about 14 business days for their decals to come.
Do I Need a Sticker for Uber Eats?
Most laws around trade dresses for Uber require that you have a sticker regardless of what Uber service you drive for.
Whether it’s ridesharing or food pickup, you need to have the decal if your city requires it.
These decals are great for identifying drivers.
They give passengers comfort that the car picking them up is from Uber and not a stranger.
Some restaurants require proof that you drive for Uber before handing off food, which a sticker or decal alongside the order in the Uber app can provide.
Uber Sticker Requirements
Many cities where Uber is available require the display of decals.
Because of this, there aren’t many hard rules about what kind of decal to use.
Here are some of the common points many of these cities have in place for their rules:
Is an Uber Sticker Required?
Uber decals are required on a city-by-city basis.
When you get approved as an Uber driver, Uber will email you a list of laws and regulations to follow while driving for them.
One of these requirements is if you need a decal or not and where to place it while driving.
Uber asks that drivers remove their stickers or signs while they are offline.
That way, these drivers can’t use their association with Uber to do things that would reflect poorly on the company.
Most businesses that work with Uber understand and try to follow this policy.
Specific Uber Sticker Requirements
Specifics will vary from city to city.
However, there are some trends that will work for just about any place you’d drive for Uber:
- A removable Uber sticker is required to make sure you can take the sticker down when not driving.
- The ready display of decals is mandated in many cities.
- Full color decals fixed to a hard smooth surface are the standard for most cities.
Failure to comply with the requirements in your area can result in criminal penalties and termination from Uber.
Where to Place an Uber Sticker
An Uber decal should be on the front or rear windshield.
In either case, the sticker should be in the lower left or right corner so that it doesn’t obstruct your view as the driver.
You shouldn’t place your trade dress in any of these locations:
- Any fenders or bumpers of your car
- The hood or trunk lid of your car
- Any body side panel
How to Get an Uber Sticker
While browsing for decals on your smartphone or laptop, you’ll find that there are plenty of places to pick up an Uber sticker.
Both free and paid options are out there for these trade dresses.
Choosing between these options comes down to how much money you want to spend on this requirement.
Free Options
Your free options for decals come from Uber or fellow drivers.
Both of these options let you get a sticker to put in your window, free of charge:
- Uber website: Ordering a decal from the Uber website means you can have a sticker for your car in about a week.
- Printable Uber stickers: Some users have made printable versions of the stickers that satisfy local laws. You’ll have to laminate and hang these yourself, though.
Both of these make great budget options, especially if you’re just starting as an Uber driver.
Paid Options
If you want something fancier, there are plenty of paid options to purchase for trade dresses.
Check out either of these places to load up your cart for checkout:
- Amazon.com: Amazon has plenty of options for decal vendors and car experts to purchase an Uber sticker from.
- Etsy.com: If you want a craftier option, Etsy features all sorts of creative stickers and signs for you to use while driving.
Paid options also tend to feature a better shipping time than Uber’s free sticker.
This is because you can pay for better shipping for these options, while Uber pays a standard shipping fee on all their stickers.
Wrapping Up
While not required by Uber directly, an Uber sticker is needed for many cities to drive for Uber.
These stickers make Uber drivers easily identifiable and easy to see at night as the passenger.
Whether you get a paid or free option, having this sticker means that you have satisfied at least one of the regulations you have to follow as an Uber driver.
