Napier’s The Sushi Club waits six weeks for money owed after Uber Eats account hacked

A New Zealand sushi restaurant was left unpaid for nearly six weeks after scammers accessed its Uber Eats account and diverted payments. The Sushi Club experienced issues with payments beginning in February after being targeted by a scam.

Uber Eats Account Hack Impacts The Sushi Club

The owner of The Sushi Club, Leigh, initially reported “really good” communication from Uber. However, she began receiving calls from individuals she believed to be scammers posing as Uber representatives, ultimately leading to the compromise of the restaurant’s email account.

On February 16, scammers altered the account details to redirect order payments to their own accounts. Uber typically processes payments to restaurants on Tuesdays, causing Leigh significant stress as she awaited payment.

Leigh quickly corrected the account information, and Uber processed the payment on February 17. Uber then placed The Sushi Club’s account on hold for investigation.

Despite the account being secured, The Sushi Club continued to fulfill Uber Eats orders for weeks without receiving payment. The total amount owed to the business rose to nearly $3000.

Leigh reported difficulty contacting Uber representatives for updates on the investigation. Unable to resolve the issue, The Sushi Club temporarily stopped accepting Uber Eats orders.

“We couldn’t keep using Uber while we weren’t getting paid, and we were unsure whether we were even going to,” Leigh said.

After numerous attempts to contact Uber, the company contacted Leigh on March 28 to inform her that the account was unlocked and payment would be made the following Tuesday – almost six weeks after the initial hold was placed.

An Uber spokesperson stated the company takes reports of account compromise and impersonation scams seriously and expressed regret for the disruption caused to Leigh and The Sushi Club.

Uber explained that it may implement “temporary safeguards” on accounts while verifying details in cases of suspicious activity, such as unauthorized access or changes to banking information. The withheld payments were released after the necessary security steps were completed.

Despite the issues, Leigh said The Sushi Club plans to continue using Uber Eats due to its popularity, but expressed concern about potential future hacks. “I don’t know what we’re going to do if we get hacked again,” she said.