If you didn’t already have enough reasons to be wary of Uber, there’s more. The taxi service app has a new practice of offering auto leases to drivers at predatory prices.

Uber claims its “vehicle solutions program” is meant to help get drivers on the road. But critics say Uber is herding drivers with bad credit into predatory loans that can keep them in cycles of debt.

Combined with the precarious employment status of its drivers, Uber’s loan system is a recipe for worker exploitation. Uber expects 100,000 drivers to take up its loans this year in the U.S. alone, with countless more across the world. And experts say its “awful” lease terms may be causing more harm than help to drivers struggling to earn a living.  

Tell Uber to stop pushing its drivers into auto loans and leases above market rates.

Uber is infamous for unexpectedly changing its fares, leading to slashed incomes for its drivers. And because drivers are forbidden from forming unions, there’s no way they can stand up for themselves.

But when drivers owe Uber monthly payments for the cars they’re leasing, slashed fares can lead to a cycle of debt. One U.S. driver explained that “it got to the point that I would drive just to meet my payment.” Drivers end up taking home nothing in earnings after the loan payments are automatically deducted from their Uber earnings.  

We can’t sit by and allow Uber to trap its own drivers in cycles of debt, keeping them on the road just so they can scramble to make the payments they owe to their employer. Uber shouldn’t be allowed to charge its drivers loan fees and interest above market rates.