A woman has raised concerns after the Uber ride she ordered was hijacked by another taxi firm - and she has no idea how it happened.

Alice Vinten was waiting for an Uber to pick her up from her home in Southend on Saturday.

She recalled: “As I saw the car was approaching my road I went outside to wait.

“I hadn’t paid much attention to the make of the car the Uber app said was coming - a mistake I won’t be making again.

“I saw some headlights were coming up the road - slowly like they were looking for an address - and then when the car got to me I saw that it was a taxi and the driver nodded at me so I got in.”

At this point, Alice assumed she had got into the Uber she had ordered.

She added: “I then got a call on my mobile.

“It was the guy from Uber who said he was outside my house.

“I asked the driver of the car I was in if he was an Uber and he got almost confrontational saying ‘No I am a licensed taxi thank you very much’.

“I wanted to ask how he had picked me up by mistake, but as he had already been standoffish I didn’t.

“Luckily I had some cash on me to pay him at the end of the journey but then was also charged £5 by Uber for not turning up to my taxi which was fair enough.”

Uber has refunded the cancellation fee as a good will gesture and would like to remind customers of the importance of checking their vehicle’s details before getting in the car.

It is unclear how a taxi managed to intercept an Uber passenger.

Alice added: “I’m concerned that a taxi driver has somehow been able to intercept my Uber order.

“Twice in the last few months I have been confronted by angry taxi drivers, telling me I shouldn’t be using Uber.

“I know there’s a serious dislike of Uber drivers by taxis - but customers should not be dragged into the middle of it. It’s not our issue.

“As a female who often gets taxis alone, late at night, I have never had an issue with Uber.

“It’s my choice to use them and it’s unacceptable for taxis to be trying to trick people into using them instead.”