if you never pay for uber again, who ultimately absorbs the loss/your gain ? i hope it is not the poor driver who is trying to make a few bucks.
I'd think it would be the company. If they were holding drivers liable for all losses, they wouldn't make it far. And Uber makes a lot off everything regardless, so they can sustain the hit. That said, this seems extremely shady and brings about ethical issues.
Perhaps the method is on cracking Uber accounts and then buying a ride via an unsuspecting Uber customer. If that was the case, then it's just the Uber client who is losing money unsuspectingly.