Rides and deliveries
Cancellations and Refunds
This policy covers cancellations, no shows, fees and refunds for Oak Ride rides and Oak Drop deliveries. Every fee here is shown in the app before it is charged, with the reason, and can be disputed.
Rides: rider cancellations
| When you cancel | Fee |
|---|---|
| Before a driver accepts your fare | None |
| Within 2 minutes of the driver accepting | None |
| More than 2 minutes after acceptance, driver en route | $5, paid to the driver |
| After the driver has arrived and waited 5 minutes (a no show) | $7 or 25% of the agreed fare, whichever is lower, paid to the driver |
| Scheduled ride, more than 1 hour before pickup | None |
| Scheduled ride, less than 1 hour before pickup | $7, paid to the driver |
If the driver is more than 10 minutes later than the arrival time shown when you booked, you may cancel for free at any point before pickup. The whole cancellation fee goes to the driver; Oak keeps none of it.
Rides: driver cancellations
Drivers may cancel without penalty before accepting a fare, or after acceptance if the rider is unreachable, the pickup is unsafe, the rider violates the Community Guidelines, or there are more passengers than seatbelts. A driver who cancels after acceptance for any other reason more than three times in a rolling 30 days receives a warning; repeated patterns lead to reduced matching priority and then deactivation. Drivers never receive a fee for a cancellation they initiate. If a driver cancels after you have waited more than 5 minutes past the promised arrival, you receive a $5 ride credit.
Rides: refunds and fare adjustments
Because the fare is agreed before the ride, most trips need no adjustment. Request a review from the receipt within 30 days if:
- You were charged for a ride you did not take or that was cancelled
- The route was significantly longer than necessary without your agreement and extra charges resulted
- Tolls or waiting time were charged that did not occur
- The driver asked you to pay outside the app or ended the ride early
- The vehicle or driver did not match the app
We review the GPS route, timings and both statements and respond within 5 business days. Refunds go back to the original payment method within 5 to 10 business days depending on your bank. Where the driver was at fault we recover the amount from the driver's payout; where not, Oak absorbs it.
Cleaning and damage fees
If a rider causes a mess or damage that needs more than a wipe down, the driver may request a fee within 48 hours with photos taken before cleaning. We assess the photos and charge the rider: $20 for minor messes (spills, mud, trash), $80 for significant messes requiring professional interior cleaning, $150 for bodily fluids, and the documented repair cost up to $250 for damage. The rider is notified with the photos and may dispute within 7 days. The full fee goes to the driver.
Oak Drop deliveries
| When | Fee or refund |
|---|---|
| Sender cancels before a courier accepts | No fee |
| Sender cancels after acceptance, before pickup | $5 to the courier |
| Sender cancels after pickup | Full delivery fee; the courier returns the item |
| Courier cannot collect because the item is unavailable or prohibited | $5 to the courier |
| Courier cancels before pickup | No fee to sender; sender gets priority re matching |
| Delivery not completed through courier fault | Full refund of delivery fee plus any claim under the Oak Drop Delivery Terms |
| Oak Plus membership | Cancel any time effective next billing date; no partial month refund; a membership cancelled within 48 hours of first purchase with no deliveries made is refunded in full |
Driver plan fees
Plan fee refunds are covered in the Driver Agreement, section 3.
Disputing a fee
Every fee appears on the receipt with a Dispute button. Disputes are answered within 5 business days. If you disagree with the answer, the Dispute Resolution policy applies.