Lyft is cracking down on late passengers. The ridesharing company quietly updated the support page with new wait times charged per minute, a policy that has been in place since December 2022, according to Lyft spokesperson Katie Kim (through TechCrunch).
Waiting time charges begin two minutes after a driver arrives at your location or five minutes for Lux Black and Lux Black XL rides. If a driver reaches your location in advance, the waiting time fee will not be charged until two minutes after your scheduled pick-up.
Lyft doesn’t specify how much it will charge per minute and doesn’t list potential charges on its website. It just says that charges “vary by location” and that “additional waiting time charges may apply to your trip depending on how busy it is.”
Although Lyft’s support page says it charges “per minute,” a screenshot of the fees from a Twitter user suggests that you may be earning per second fees. As shown in the screenshot, the user was charged 58 cents to make the driver wait an additional 49 seconds. The surcharges do not apply to shared, accessible, assisted and car seat rides. This gives people more time to get into the vehicle if they need it.
Lyft says riders with disabilities who need more time can submit a waiver including for waiting time charges, and that it will refund any “earlier waiting time charges” upon request. The company also doesn’t charge waiting time if your ride is canceled and you pay a cancellation fee, though it’s unclear what will happen if the driver cancels.
