There’s a Twitter thread going viral about a really terrible Lyft experience…
Passenger has scary Lyft ride, jumps out
A Twitter user with the handle @katlynskye24 shares her Lyft experience on Saturday June 17, 2023, in Washington D.C., which made her fear for her safety. Here’s how she described the ride on Twitter, where she feared she was being kidnapped, or something:
- “My driver missed numerous turns, prolonging my ride. In the midst of D.C. traffic, he almost hits a car and slams on his breaks, stopping about a foot from the car in front of him.”
- “I’m very annoyed at this point and say ‘Are you okay today?’ His driving as a whole was very shaky and distracted. We continue driving and I notice he navigates off the Lyft platform to input an address into his own GPS.”
- “I noticed and pulled up my requested destination into my GPS and watched as he took me in the opposite direction. I was notified via text by Lyft that I was not heading towards my destination with a link included in case I needed help.”
- “I called out to my driver numerous times that he was taking me the wrong way. He ignored me. ‘My turn is left not right.’ ‘Sir, you’re going the wrong way.’ ‘Hello, sir?!’”
- “I finally said “Hello can you hear me?” Screaming at this point. In response he laughed and said “Sorry, I don’t speak English.” He did, in fact, speak English and had been the entire car ride.”
- “At that point I’m panicking and decided to unlock the car door to try and jump out as he was turning a corner at a slower speed. He began breaking and I jumped out of the car and started running in the opposite direction to where I knew I was supposed to be headed.”
- “I walked the rest of the way as I did not want to get back in another car with a stranger.”
Lyft bans passenger for jumping out of car
Following this incident, the passenger wrote a complaint to Lyft, detailing what happened. When she submitted the complaint, she was told she’d receive a phone call within five minutes, but that didn’t happen. Instead, the next morning she woke up to an email from Lyft, stating that her account had been deactivated. Here’s what the email stated:
“This email is to notify you that your account has been deactivated due to alleged safety violations on the Lyft platform. Specifically, we received a report that alleged you jumped out of the car while the vehicle was in motion. We will be unable to service your needs as a rider on the Lyft platform any further. The decision is final.”
She responded to the email by reiterating her point, and explained that she feared she was being kidnapped. The response?
“I would like to extend a sincere apology for any inconveniences this situation might have caused. The decision to deactivate your account has been reviewed and will remain final. We appreciate your understanding and cooperation in this matter.”
Finally this morning (after the post went viral), she received a competent response from Lyft, apologizing for the situation, recognizing the gravity of what happened, and reinstating her account. Per the email:
“I am so truly sorry to hear about this driver’s behavior. Safety is our top priority, so to hear anything like this is something we take very seriously.”
“This sort of behavior by a driver is completely unacceptable and is something we absolutely do not tolerate in the Lyft community. Please know that the concerns you have brought to our attention have been investigated and I have personally followed up with this driver to take the appropriate and necessary actions.”
My take on this terrible Lyft situation
This customer service is so beyond bad, though at the same time, I can’t say I’m surprised? That’s not an excuse, just a reality…
The passenger did absolutely everything right here. I can only imagine how scared she must have been in this situation, and nobody should be subjected to this. This situation sounds scary, the driver sounds creepy, and I hope that the driver’s intentions weren’t as bad as where my mind is going…
When ridesharing platforms started, it seemed like they consistently had great service, especially from drivers. Over the years, that has gone downhill quite a bit, and that’s especially true in situations where you require any support. I’ve found customer service with both Lyft and Uber to be inept. And those are in fairly minor situations, which don’t in any way compare to feeling like you’re being kidnapped.
It’s not an excuse, but I can see how a situation like this could play out. Simply pout, customer service people from ridesharing platforms aren’t well trained, and aren’t really given the tools they need to do their jobs in serious situations like this.
If a driver reports a serious safety issue, the passenger may get punished. If the passenger reports a serious safety issue, the driver may have some issues. There’s not really any process for there to be a trial here, and it seems that in general the ridesharing companies side with drivers. Furthermore, since there’s typically not any evidence of what happened, it’s one person’s word vs. another person’s word.
While it’s pretty clear who is at fault here, I should mention that ridesharing drivers often deal with rude and disrespectful passengers as well. I’ve seen my fair share of videos on YouTube from ridesharing drivers, where they show how some passengers behave.
You’ll often see passengers behaving horribly, yet threatening that they’ll get the driver fired by making up lies. For that matter, I imagine some passengers just make up lies to get a free ride. That’s not the case here, but just a general observation, as I don’t want to somehow suggest that drivers are always in the wrong.
Bottom line
A woman took a Lyft in Washington D.C. on Saturday, and had a terrible ride. The driver drove horribly, headed in the wrong direction, and ignored the passenger’s questions. The passenger feared she was being kidnapped, so ended up jumping out.
She then filed a report, only to get banned from the platform for jumping out of the car. She explained she thought she was being kidnapped, and Lyft responded by saying the decision was final.
What do you make of this Lyft situation?
Membership is free and takes no more information than commenting as a guest. Earn status points for good contributions, and see fewer ads as your status grows.