Uber banned more than 1,250 riders for not adhering to its mask policy, app says

Uber has removed more than 1,250 riders from its platform for not adhering to its mask wearing rules, the company says. And it is expanding its tools to identify those who are intentionally defiant moving forward.

The ride hailing giant announced Thursday that it has begun rolling out its Mask Verification feature across the United States and Canada. The feature was first announced earlier this month. And it requires you to take a selfie with a mask on before your next ride if a driver flags you for not wearing a face covering amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

Heeding the advice of health officials, Uber kicked off its "No Mask. No Ride" policy in May, in a bid to curb the spread of the outbreak while better protecting drivers and riders. Now, the app sends you a reminder to put on a mask when you request a trip.

In a new blog post, Uber doubled down on its rules and offered a status update on how its mask mandate is going.

"When we say 'No mask. No ride' we mean it," Uber titled the blog post. "Over 1,250 riders in the US and Canada have been removed from the Uber platform because of their failure to comply."

Not only can drivers report you for not wearing a mask, they can turn you down for a ride, Uber says. The app will ask you to take a selfie with a mask on before you can request another car.