I had a Lyft ride today where the driver had a check engine light on, ran 3 stop signs at full speed, and had their high beams on the entire time. I tipped him well.
My quandary is should I report this person as a terrible driver, or give them a pass because we're all struggling to make the ends meet? This was in a pretty dense neighborhood.
Was anyone waiting at the lights? Were other drivers in small cars that could be blinded by the high beams?
Struggling to make ends meet isn’t an excuse to be a danger to other people.
One of these day he'll kill someone, and that someone could be the sole breadwinner of a struggling household. Struggling to make ends meet is really no excuse for dangerous driving. Besides, that check engine light isn't a good indicator of someone's financial status. They can be oblivious, not willing to take time out to have it checked, know what's the issue is but chose to ignore it, or simply not care about maintenance of the car.
I'd say report it.
The question is even more fraught than you might have considered.
What if you report them to your rideshare company and they do nothing?
As a passenger of a private vehicle where you observe or experience dangerous behaviour, are you required or obligated to report the behaviour to the police?
What if that driver came to collect your teenage child?
I don't envy your situation, but their income is not your responsibility, your personal safety is.
