During periods of excessive demand or scarce supply, when there are far more riders than drivers, Uber increases its normal fares with a multiplier whose value depends on scarcity of available drivers. This so-called surge pricing uses microeconomics to calculate a market price for riders and drivers alike. The goal of surge pricing is to find the “equilibrium price” at which driver supply matches rider demand and riders’ wait time is minimized. Studies show that surge pricing achieves what it was designed to do: it brings more drivers online, and it allocates available rides to those who value them more.

Yet surge pricing has a major image problem. Hardly anyone has a good thing to say about it, and far too many people equate it with price gouging. This is a huge headache for Uber. Its key differentiator is flexibility and the convenience it provides riders, and surge pricing is essential to delivering these benefits.

Concerns about surge pricing stem from the way in which it is structured and also from how it is explained to consumers. These factors lead to rider dissatisfaction and lots of bad press. But fixing these problems is possible. Here are four actions Uber can take to solve the major problems associated with surge pricing.

1. Cap the surge multiplier at a reasonable number and communicate the cap clearly. The surge multiplier at the heart of Uber’s pricing is a black box. No one (outside Uber) knows how it is calculated or how high it can go. Riders have expressed outrage at having to pay inflated prices when the multiplier starts rising beyond 5X. Media reports from Sweden suggest that Uber has tested multiplier values as high as 50X.

For the company, an open-ended cap on the multiplier is counterproductive for two important reasons. First, it creates the impression that Uber is out to exploit riders by extracting every single dollar it can. Second, the open-endedness generates uncertainty. Even though Uber has gotten better at notifying riders when and to what degree surge pricing is in effect, the fact that there’s no known ceiling is a PR problem and a customer relations issue. Even some drivers feel embarrassed by huge rate hikes.

The solution is simple. Uber should choose a reasonable cap, say 5X (beyond which there is evidence that consumers start becoming upset), and clearly communicate that the surge price will go no higher. Such a policy would go a long way in assuaging consumer angst and media criticism.

2. Reduce the volatility of price fluctuations. Uber riders have vociferously complained that surge prices fluctuate wildly from one moment to the next. Delaying a ride by only five minutes could result in paying either twice as much or a fraction of the amount. One study reported that surge prices changed every three to five minutes. Others have pointed out that surge prices are highly location-specific. Prices may be several times higher in one neighborhood than an adjoining one a few blocks away. When prices are so volatile, many consumers simply stop trusting the company, because they don’t know when to pull the trigger, or whether they are getting fleeced.

To solve this problem, Uber needs to reduce the frequency of its price changes. Fewer and more predictable price changes, such as higher prices during rush hour or on weekend nights and normal prices in late mornings and early afternoons, will make the experience more predictable and comforting for riders.

3. Market the beneficial consequences of surge pricing to riders. Many riders only see the high price they are paying, failing to account for the significant benefits received in exchange. To deal with customers’ price-focused decision calculus, savvy marketers clearly explain the benefits customers are getting for the price they pay.

Take a major supermarket chain like Kroger. On each customer receipt, it prints a detailed accounting of savings with manufacturers’ coupons, in-store promotions, and customer loyalty programs. The “You saved $X today” ends the customer’s shopping transaction on a high note.

Such explanations are even more important when higher surge prices are being charged. Going the extra mile and using an end-of-trip text to explain that “Because of the surge price, you had to wait 30 minutes less this evening” or “It would have taken you 45 minutes to reach your destination had you taken a taxi, but it only took you 20 minutes today because you used us” would go a long way, clarifying the value of surge pricing to riders and changing their minds about its usefulness.

4. Rebrand the surge pricing concept. The phrase “surge pricing” is descriptive and accurate, but it originates from economic thinking rather than a marketer’s imagination. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines surge as “to suddenly increase to an unusually high level.” Where customers are concerned, this is not the best thing for any price to do. Is it any surprise that most people associate surge pricing with price gouging?

A potential solution here is to move away from this name. Surge pricing needs to be replaced with a term that describes the method’s benefits to riders rather than the velocity with which prices increase. Labels such as convenience pricing (after all, it reduces wait time), certainty pricing (it provides certainty about getting the service and what the rider will pay), or even priority pricing (it gives priority to riders who really need the service) are all more accurate and customer-focused names for this pricing method. The “surge” label needs to go.

Uber’s surge pricing offers a good example of how technology and economics have combined to create a sophisticated pricing approach — but without adequately bringing customers into the equation. After all, it is riders who choose Uber over a taxicab or a bus, experience the service, and pay the asking price. So it is vital that their assessment of the approach be considered carefully. Just because technology allows speed and continuous price change does not mean this is the best thing to do.