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Strange reason this news presenter was refused an Uber

By Jo Abi|

Nine News reporter Jo Hall found herself stranded on a Melbourne street, her hands full, after she was rejected by an Uber driver on her way to a dinner party on Sunday night.

"I've never had an experience like that at all," Hall tells 9Honey. "I was standing on the street holding a pot plant and a bottle of Piper-Heidsieck? champagne which was in a box."

When her Uber driver approached, she saw him wind the window down and thought he was going to offer to help her with her packages.

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Jo Hall Nine News Melbourne rejected from uber ride
Hall, pictured with her Nine colleagues Peter Hitchener and Chris Kohler. (Instagram)

"He wound down his window and didn't say hello, nothing, he just asked, 'Is that alcohol?' I said, 'Pardon, what are you talking about?'"

She quickly realised he was pointing to the champagne box.

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Jo Hall Nine News Melbourne rejected from uber ride
Hall realised the Uber driver was pointing to the champagne box. (Instagram)

"Then he said, 'We don't take passengers with alcohol.' I said, 'I'm sorry, I've been in Ubers many times before with a bottle of wine for a dinner party,' and he said, 'No, we don't take passengers with alcohol.'"

Hall asked the driver if this was an Uber policy or perhaps a religious or cultural reason, in which case she would have offered to place the alcohol in the boot.

At this point the driver drove away, leaving her to order a second Uber which arrived quickly.

This time, the driver did jump out of the vehicle to give her a hand.

Jo Hall Nine News Melbourne rejected from uber ride
Hall asked the driver if this was an Uber policy or perhaps a religious or cultural reason. (Getty)

"I told him what had happened and he said that it was really bad and I should report the driver, but when I looked on the app the booking had been cancelled so I couldn't see his information. I wasn't charged a fee."

When the first Uber driver left her on the street, Hall texted her girlfriends, all of whom work in media, with the incident a hot topic at the dinner table that evening.?

Jo Hall Nine News Melbourne rejected from uber ride
Uber has escalated the incident and Hall is hoping to better understand the driver's reasoning. (Instagram)

Hall spoke with Nine Radio host Dee Dee Dunleavy on 3AW the following day, with listeners calling in to suggest possible reasons why the driver refused to transport her.

Some of them suggested it could be due to the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.

Uber also contacted the show, telling Dunleavy the driver had suggested the packages Hall was holding were "too big" for the vehicle.

Hall has since been contacted directly by Uber.?

"I did get an email from Uber last night saying they were escalating this," Hall shares. "If this is bound to happen again I definitely won't be walking with a bottle like that, I'll put it in a bag ?or something."

9Honey has contacted Uber for comment.?

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