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I got an e-mail the other day that I had been targeted for a Lyft promotion where I could, once I get two more 5 star rider ratings (you can find your UBER rider rating here btw) then Lyft would give me $50 in ride credits. Sounds sweet right. Well, not so fast.
Lyft has one nasty little catch for those who are not constantly using the service. Lyft credits, be it from a 1st time rider or other ways, expire 30 days from issue. Uber credits, on the other hand, give you at least 90 days to use them. So much more user friendly. I have never had an Uber credit go unused but can tell you I have had many Lyft ones go away. Frustrating.
Lyft has other issues I do not like. Their GPS or locator service is worse that Uber’s and they are so aware of this that they give their drivers the choice of their software or to just use another to find their way to where you are going. Sad.
Another thing I have found is that I much more frequently than Uber have drivers cancel on me. Often after I have waited a long time for them to come get me before they do so. Then the nearest Lyft driver is no where to be found or all of a sudden I find Lyft has surge pricing going on. Ah, yes, maybe this is the reason why the driver canceled on me.
If we as riders cancel after a few minuets then we can still get charged for the ride. There is NO instant credit for us when a driver does this to us. And even if there were those credits, you guessed it, would expire in 30 days. Joy?
Lyft did have a prominent place on my phone home screen – well not on page one, but page two at least with other travel icons. Now it is not even there and I am one more canceled ride or issue from just uninstalling the app. If Lyft wants to be as big as Uber one day, they had better step up and fix what is broken – fast! – Rene
Advertiser Disclosure: Eye of the Flyer, a division of Chatterbox Entertainment, Inc., is part of an affiliate sales network and and may earn compensation when a customer clicks on a link, when an application is approved, or when an account is opened. This relationship may impact how and where links appear on this site. This site does not include all financial companies or all available financial offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed, or approved by any of these entities. Some links on this page are affiliate or referral links. We may receive a commission or referral bonus for purchases or successful applications made during shopping sessions or signups initiated from clicking those links.
I drive and am a passenger for both. Drivers do not cancel just to get a surge later on. passengers can cancel up to 5 minutes for free also. if a driver is over 10 minutes away it does not make sense for them to pick you up, ive had people cancel all the time and I get no $ for the time and miles spent. the surge areas change every few minutes so you cant know beforehand and reach the destination in time also.
lyft treats their drivers much better and allow the option to tip. youre complaining about lyft giving you $50 in free rides because they expire in 30/days? For rides who use it often its not a problem and it wouldnt be feasible to let it last longer than that because thay could last a year for some. just be happy to get free rides in thr meantime. lyft also lets you select a different payment option at the end of the ride if it is only $5 for example, so you can save the $10 ride for later. with uber you have to use the $20 free credit even for a $4 ride.
I hate the Uber does not let use my free rides/credits at my own discretion. I had a bunch of credits and had to use Uber for a business travel. I was shocked to see that all the rides I had were free since Uber had applied my credits to all the rides that I was doing for my company which I was supposed to expense and get them to reimburse me. I could not expense anything since I had not spent anything on my Uber rides. I don’t want to create a separate Uber account for when I use the app for business trips but rather just select the credit card I want to pay. Very stupid!!!
Echo your sentiments. Starting to use Uber last year, referral credits, first time bonuses, etc. have all worked flawlessly, and when I have had an issue, Uber customer service immediately and competently resolved it(lost service in BFE and ride didn’t charge correctly).
Contrast with LYFT who sent an e-mail when they opened in my city offering 3 rides, yet they didn’t show up in my account and CS refused to honor them. This was after I referred many people to LYFT as I love competition in the marketplace and didn’t want Uber to get too big “Ok, well I have an e-mail I can forward you that your marketing and promotion team at LYFT sent me from a LYFT e-mail address, would that help?” “No, we can’t take e-mails. If you’d like I can give you $5 off your next ride.” App uninstalled, haven’t used them since, badmouth them to everyone I know, closed my account, mark their e-mail as spam. What I like to call “E-solitary Confinement”.
So crazy how the left hand(CS) doesn’t know what the right hand(marketing) is doing. The lost business for them…well it’s their fault and I hope their investors suffer for having poor processes.
I tried Lyft for a month because of one of those 5 star promos. What a disappointment. I wasn’t able to use any of the earned credits due to travel – details that were NOT included in the promotion. The deceptive promotions are why I now boycott Lyft and give all my business to Uber.