# First night driving only for Lyft and...OMG!



## Ben105 (Feb 27, 2016)

So Lyft hasn't been very lucrative for me since I started driving a few months ago. Though tonight I thought I'd try driving only for Lyft from 9p until 3a trying to get the guaranteed minimums. Up until tonight, I ran both apps simultaneously.

I actually was receiving pings pretty regular (never has happened before in my area). Usually I can sit on Lyft for 30 minutes to an hour (even during busy weekend evenings) and not get a single ping. I don't know if it's because my rating pushed 4.9+ (people have said that Lyft prioritizes higher-rated drivers) or if it's because I turned off Uber and just let Lyft ping, but I rarely sat for more than 7-10 minutes.

Anyway, people are always asking me what my craziest ride was and I really didn't have an answer until now. My previous one was being a personal chauffeur for a drunk guy in the middle of a rainstorm in the middle of the afternoon as he went from bar to bar, to a casino, to Applebee's, to his girlfriends place of work and his ex-wife's place of work.

But tonight I had thought I had a close call when a couple entered my car. Everything seemed fine. They asked me to stop at Walmart for a moment and I did. No problem. Leaving the Walmart parking lot, while I was on a main street, the guy asked me to unlock the door immediately. I was like, "What?" I didn't know why they wanted to open the door in the middle of the road for. Then I heard the girl throwing up. After I dropped them off, I checked the car and she managed to throw up all outside the car without hitting the door or back-splashing on the exterior. I breathed a sigh of relief (but I should have taken it as an omen).

Then I pick up another couple down the street from where I picked up the puking couple. Everything seemed normal until the girl said that they were going to hook up in the back of my car. I told them, "No they weren't!" They kept it cool until I almost got to their destination when I noticed she was sitting on his lap without any panties on. They were in his mouth. EWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW! I kicked them out 1 minute later in the front of their apartment complex (not the front-door service I normally give). (I should have called it a night at that moment, but I pressed my luck!)

At shortly before 1a, I picked up a girl and a guy (friends, but nothing more) from outside a bar. I asked them how their night was and the girl said that they had to cut it short because the guy wasn't feeling well. I thought, OMG, not again. We had to round a traffic circle (our city has no need for them, but since they are in vogue, they're putting them everywhere), and that's all it took. The kid started throwing up all over himself, the back of the front seat, the door, his seat, and the floor below. I couldn't pull over fast enough. I rolled down the window, but he didn't care. He just sat there, pushed his chin to his chest and threw up. His friend didn't bother to help him at all. She never got out of her seat. I got out, got paper towels, helped him outside of the car and clean up and got him back in the car to finish the ride. They both apologized and she asked me if she could tip through the app (first time Lyft rider) and I said yes. She tipped me a mere $7 for her friend puking all over my car.

I promptly had to go to the nearest gas station, report the incident to Lyft (they don't make it as easy as Uber does, btw), take tons of pictures, and clean up what I could (leather seats, door jam, and door). I'll take it to get detailed in the morning.

It's been an hour or so already and no word from Lyft. Hopefully, it won't be a regular Lyft ticket where it takes days to a week to get a reply. Anyone know how long they take to respond to this and how much they give for the cleaning fee?

I thought Lyft pax were the Target shoppers and Uber were the Walmart people? LOL

Where did I go wrong! 

Oh, what a night!

Plus I lost out on two hours of guaranteed hours because I had to stop shortly after 1a when my plan was to work until 3a for the guaranteed $30/hour.

Oh, well!


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## Adieu (Feb 21, 2016)

Scott Benedict said:


> So Lyft hasn't been very lucrative for me since I started driving a few months ago. Though tonight I thought I'd try driving only for Lyft from 9p until 3a trying to get the guaranteed minimums. Up until tonight, I ran both apps simultaneously.
> 
> I actually was receiving pings pretty regular (never has happened before in my area). Usually I can sit on Lyft for 30 minutes to an hour (even during busy weekend evenings) and not get a single ping. I don't know if it's because my rating pushed 4.9+ (people have said that Lyft prioritizes higher-rated drivers) or if it's because I turned off Uber and just let Lyft ping, but I rarely sat for more than 7-10 minutes.
> 
> ...


Dunno, Lyft charged $150 for a leather seat scratch and somd dirt easy enough.... 1-1.5 hours. Used the help menu that generates a browser window with a contact support button.

Like with cancels and charge changes, the first response autonatically tries to clarify & double-check which ride it was and demands more substantiation....that's just to discourage some % of people. Attach an extra pic or three, give ride start pickup endtimes (from browser lyft page that has tinestamps), if you're short kn pics send the less advantageous ones it's ok, and add a screenshot of the ride map with tinestamps....Done.

Just as easily as they seemedto blow you off before, they'll do a 180 and charge the pax. Goes straight into quick-payable totals.

Oh, and start cleaning soon as you got some extra pics.


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## Adieu (Feb 21, 2016)

PS that sucks but heck, might just be karma...why kick out pax who just took her panties off? Especially if in his lap so not on your seats?

Night driving has some gnarly stuff...panties ain't no big deal.

You'll see torn-off fake nails, hallucinating pax, mega belligerent pax, self-professed murderers, etc.... Panties? Lol. Send her here next time, I'm all 100% for no-pan girls


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## Adieu (Feb 21, 2016)

Do NOT wait till morning, btw


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## SacTownDood (Apr 22, 2016)

Something in the air this weekend in Sac, I got a puker last nite (was able to pull over ) and one tonite who got to use the bags I now carry. They should get you some cleaning Kash in about a week if you doc everything like adieu said.

Carry bags and if you see a pax who you think has any chance of hurling, remind them of the steep clean fee and offer them a bag (pull over warning preferred of course). I told tonites group that if a drop hit my floor or seats it was 250. The boyfriend kept that bag tight around her mouth lol. Result: clean car, nice cash tip from the boyfriend.

Lyft only gave me 100 for the puker I had in Jan.


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## Adieu (Feb 21, 2016)

SacTownDood said:


> Something in the air this weekend in Sac, I got a puker last nite (was able to pull over ) and one tonite who got to use the bags I now carry. They should get you some cleaning Kash in about a week if you doc everything like adieu said.
> 
> Carry bags and if you see a pax who you think has any chance of hurling, remind them of the steep clean fee and offer them a bag (pull over warning preferred of course). I told tonites group that if a drop hit my floor or seats it was 250. The boyfriend kept that bag tight around her mouth lol. Result: clean car, nice cash tip from the boyfriend.
> 
> Lyft only gave me 100 for the puker I had in Jan.


$100? A *WEEK* later?????

Did you, perhaps,misfile it to the wrong support section???

It's "a passenger caused damage to my car" that worked for me

In all honesty the scratch was puny at best, O just sent it in cause pax loaded me skyhigh with luggage, had a filthy child seat, made me wait to pick up his kid while his new wife moaned about what a chore kids were and how she wished they were cats instead....guy managed to get like 30 minutes out of a $10 airport fare that left my car filthy inside and out, and had the gall to BRAG how this would be cheaper than a SINGLE spot on a shuttle... And then tipped me **$1***.

J expected a shot at like $50, and a long one at that


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## Ben105 (Feb 27, 2016)

She didn't just take off her panties. You needed to read between the lines. She was sitting on him and there was penetration.


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## Adieu (Feb 21, 2016)

Scott Benedict post: 1041691 said:


> She didn't just take off her panties. You needed to read between the lines. She was sitting on him and there was penetration.


...and if you had a dashcam, you'd probably be civilly and criminally liable for the mess.

That or be able to charge them a brain bleach fee. Lol.

But daaaaaang, what do you drive, an Escalade or something????

The idea of two people over the age of 12 being able to have sit-down sex in most sedans is absurd


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## Ben105 (Feb 27, 2016)

LOL. No Escalade. I have a Honda CRV. She was quite flexible. 

Perhaps if I had had a dash cam, it would have prevented the whole thing. 

Just a couple of rides earlier a rider was telling me a story of another driver where something similar had happened. I said that that had never happened to me. Most all of my rides had been uneventful. Another bad omen.


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## Adieu (Feb 21, 2016)

FuzzyWuzzy said:


> Penetration?
> 
> Are you really that clueless as to what is occuring in your backseat, about 18 inches from your head?
> 
> Wise up, grow a pair, and be more proactive.


Like, seriously...watch out before you get squirted on :-/

I thought you meant he slipped her a finger or something, but playing BangLineCRV....uh, panoramic mirror time?

$10-20 @ AutoZones/Napa/O'Reilly/Etc

+$4 for side mirror fisheyes...rearview for supervision, sides for driving


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## Ben105 (Feb 27, 2016)

Wasn't looking for sympathy. Just wanted to tell my crazy lift night. All DNA removed. Checked with black light. Lol


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## Adieu (Feb 21, 2016)

Scott Benedict said:


> Wasn't looking for sympathy. Just wanted to tell my crazy lift night. All DNA removed. Checked with black light. Lol


Pax came....pax went... Paz conquered


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## Curved (Apr 7, 2016)

Don't forget to tip for your horney hideaway on wheels.


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## BostonBarry (Aug 31, 2015)

Scott Benedict said:


> So Lyft hasn't been very lucrative for me since I started driving a few months ago. Though tonight I thought I'd try driving only for Lyft from 9p until 3a trying to get the guaranteed minimums. Up until tonight, I ran both apps simultaneously.
> 
> I actually was receiving pings pretty regular (never has happened before in my area). Usually I can sit on Lyft for 30 minutes to an hour (even during busy weekend evenings) and not get a single ping. I don't know if it's because my rating pushed 4.9+ (people have said that Lyft prioritizes higher-rated drivers) or if it's because I turned off Uber and just let Lyft ping, but I rarely sat for more than 7-10 minutes.
> 
> ...


For vomit/damage you can call Critical Response Line. You'll still need to email pics and wait for them to approve fee, but at least you can talk to a live human immediately and have the Damage Team notified immediately.


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## Ben105 (Feb 27, 2016)

Where do I find the Critical Response Line? I sent in the report last night with pics. I followed up this morning with additional pics and the receipt for cleaning, still I've heard nothing but crickets.


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## Ben105 (Feb 27, 2016)

Actually I found the line, but vomit doesn't qualify according to Lyft's site.


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## BostonBarry (Aug 31, 2015)

You can call. They will just write up your report and hand it off to Damage Team. Since you've already emailed this one, just remember for future.


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## Ben105 (Feb 27, 2016)

Thanks. I wish they wouldn't take their sweet time answering. It's not a general account question. I also don't like that you can't report an issue with a specific ride like you can with Uber. It was not an easy task on your phone to figure out how to send them a report. When I put the info in, it did bring me to the critical response team, but since it wasn't an emergency, accident, or safety issue, I clicked the contact support button at the bottom. Now I'm in the wait game.  I hope they cover my costs. It cost $120 to clean up, steam clean, shampoo, disinfect, and deodorize. That was with a 20% discount because I'm a monthly member.


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## Manotas (Dec 2, 2015)

Hope you got paid and Lyft doesn't screw with your money and time (as in actual penetration)...
Anyway, after I read about your crazy night now I'm even more convinced about my rule of not driving late nights


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## Ben105 (Feb 27, 2016)

LOL Thanks! I've still not heard from Lyft and we're on day 2.


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## ipv321 (Jan 25, 2016)

What a horrific ordeal. I have to say I have in three months and over a combined 700+ rides, when I've driven late at night, I've never had anything as crazy as this. I did have one woman vomit outside the window all over the side of my car - took photos, submitted them to uber along with a $45 carwash receipt, and Uber paid me $50 that afternoon. NO WAIT WHATSOEVER. *Please keep us posted on the response time for Lyft*.


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## Ben105 (Feb 27, 2016)

Crickets....

Still waiting.


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## Jimmy Bernat (Apr 12, 2016)

That is terrible I'm sorry about that . 
I had 2 girls fingering each other in the back of my car once and a couple make out lol nothing too crazy . I like the interesting stories 
I am around 1500 rides between lyft (1000) and uber (450) and no puke yet . I pay very close attention and keep gallon FREEZER bags ready to go at night . I've had a few customers that were just slurring and I kindly hand them the Ziplock bag and say hey just in case , and let them know that Lyft Uber will charge them up to $400 for Vomiting but if they make it all in the bag they're all good . 
I've had two people puke in the bags and one girl dry heave in it for 10 minutes .
I plan on ditching the after 1am driving very soon as I just don't think the hassle is worth it and I should count my blessings I haven't had a puker in my car yet 

My good friend drives too and accidentally picked up the wrong pax and that pax puked in his car so he got nothing 

I spoke with one other driver while I was a pax who told me about a puke incident and that it took Lyft till Tuesday to approve her claim and it happened on Friday . I guarantee they'll take care of you Lyft support is a little on the slow side if it isn't a safety issue . I bet they'll even hook you up with some of that hourly guarantee if you push the issue about having to quit working for the night because of the puke 

If you're going to work late nights get Good Quality Gallon or 2.5 gallon Freezer bags . You can also order the Airline barf bags , my next plane trip I plan on snaggin a few of them as they're kinda pricey lol


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## Ben105 (Feb 27, 2016)

I used to say how lucky I was not to have a puker and then I had two!

I don't usually work the closing hours, but the hourly guarantees at $35/hour was too good to pass up. Unfortunately, I didn't get it because of the puker.


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## Jimmy Bernat (Apr 12, 2016)

Well hopefully you get a good Puke Settlement from Lyft . I know an interior detail usually costs around $100 I've heard most people get 150-200 for puke claims


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## Ben105 (Feb 27, 2016)

It cost me $120 to clean the inside, plus my time, and my loss of wages.


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## 7Miles (Dec 17, 2014)

At least you get paid from Lyft/Uber . Since I switched to taxi, we don't have pricing like that.
Last night I picked up a drunk Native American guy who told me to drive him 10 miles to some woman who will "suck him dry" because it's his birthday. And she will pay for the ride. Anyways, he paid for the ride and left his business card - his photo half naked on a horse with some spear. What the heck is his job description ?
Same day I picked up two very young chicks, they were visiting Chris Brown small concert and got drunk and seems like we're getting drunk even more. They were not sure what hotel they stayed in , one of them started throwing up while sitting in my taxi car outside of the car on the street. I tried to take puking girl out , she pushed me away . Like don't touch me. If it was guy , I would pulled him out but I didn't want any problems so let her puke as long as she doesn't spill it inside. Double standards I might say


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## Ben105 (Feb 27, 2016)

They finally replied late yesterday evening and gave me $130 for my trouble.  I didn't get my guarantees or anything for not being able to drive.


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## johny456us (Apr 5, 2016)

Yeah, I always had the impression, before being a driver, that Uber passengers are Wal Mart and Lyft are Target quality. And that has not been the case for me. I'd say they're all pretty equal aside from a couple schizophrenic people I had with Uber. I've had far more convos in Lyft. 

That sucks you didn't get your guarantees with Lyft. I haven't tried their guarantees in LA yet cause they were just 20-25 here, and don't count towards your power driver bonus so their guarantee was basically what I can make on my own with the PDB. Uber had 35/hr here in la for like 20-30 hours last week, but I only did 15hrs of it. I got $28/hr after their commission, PLUS $150 for hitting 40 trips, looking back at it again I actually averaged $42/hr and I only had to average 1.5 rides per hour, so when I had 4-5 rides one hour and then just 1 the next hour, I'd still get the full bonus. Lyft requires 2 rides per hour, which can be impossible with them sometimes. I'm definitely leaning more towards Uber now, I never thought I would be.


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## Jimmy Bernat (Apr 12, 2016)

Damn maybe it's Cali thing but in Denver the Lyft pax are awesome compared to the Uber pax 

I'm pretty shocked they only gave you $130 did you protest that amount ? You should have been given $200 min


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## Ben105 (Feb 27, 2016)

They said they will only compensate expenses to clean and nothing more.


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## uberdriverfornow (Jan 10, 2016)

Best thing to do if you have an issue is to immediately start recording. Record both the stains/problems and the passenger walking away. This way there is no dispute. Because we know if that stain was there BEFORE the pax got in they wouldn't have rode with it.


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## Jimmy Bernat (Apr 12, 2016)

Scott Benedict said:


> They said they will only compensate expenses to clean and nothing more.


What a bunch of jack wagons


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## Ben105 (Feb 27, 2016)

Yep. I lost out on at least 70 bucks, plus I couldn't drive that Sunday morning (another busy time) while the car was being detailed. It took them over an hour to detail it, plus my hour cleaning up what I could.


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## macchiato (Sep 29, 2015)

The reason they give is that they charge the passengers that amount. Uber will flat out charge the passenger $200 unless they dispute the charges. With Lyft, I was only able to get $100 (I asked for more to cover the detail cost and Lyft paid out $50 more). The second time it happened they only gave me $90. Good thing I was close to my house so I could clean and dry everything before bar close to continue to drive that evening.


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## Ben105 (Feb 27, 2016)

There was no way I could go out and drive afterwards and that's why I should have gotten more. I lost out on rides no fault of my own. If the pax hadn't puked, I would have been still out their. As a direct result of their actions, I lost out money and time.


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## djangoswango (Mar 10, 2015)

barf bags - I hope you all invest.


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## Andrew Thun (Oct 27, 2015)

Best Barf/Bodily fluid bags in the biz. the pax don't even have to hold them open!

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00BDVIVLU/?tag=ubne0c-20


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## BostonBarry (Aug 31, 2015)

I have a trash barrel. You miss that target you deserve $200 fee


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## Danatee (Apr 14, 2016)

Andrew Thun said:


> Best Barf/Bodily fluid bags in the biz. the pax don't even have to hold them open!
> 
> http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00BDVIVLU/?tag=ubne0c-20


I bought these my second day of driving. 
Havent had a need to pass one to a pax yet. No complaints there.


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## eman1122 (Aug 26, 2015)

Luckily, I've never had a pax blow chunks in the inside of my car. Once a pax threw up outside of the window, but not inside (knock on wood).

I did have a couple I picked up a while back. They were drunk and obviously arguing. Turns out the guy was pissed that his girl called him by some dudes' name. Anyway, he thought she should make it up to him by giving him a mic check. She protested but he kept insisting. After a while she was about to give in so I said that if she does to make sure she swallows and not leave a mess. 

Apparently, the guy didn't like my comment. I didn't care at that point. I'm not the rolling brothel buddy. Take that mess to the local Motel 6. I dropped them off and I immediately saw the one star ding, so I rated him likewise.


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## Kembolicous (May 31, 2016)

Yeah, the first ride of the night, as soon as I leave the house for the Lyft Prime Time, at 250 %, I get a trip north to just about the county line. 13 dead head miles. Pick up this couple, they get in, we start rolling. Male pass says he has the quicker way. I say OK, I'm game, turns out he was lost. They start going at it in the back seat, then the girl hurls, me and the male pass were both shocked. I finally unload these two asshats, shut the app off, to go get the car cleaned up at home. I get home, check it out, and nothing in the floor, thank God. Thinking back on it, I did not she her back there, even though she sat in the middle. Now I know that the sound I heard was her gagging at that golden moment. But because of going out to the The sticks to get these bums, 13 deadhead miles to get them, 14 deadhead back, and then miss out on the surge pricing. This was a big night in town and the profits could have been great, but the night turned in to an average money night, when it should of been excellent. I will not turn the app on again until I get close to the surge pricing. And something needs to be done about deadhead miles, too much lost cash on dead miles.


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## Slim Pete (Nov 21, 2014)

Kembolicous said:


> Yeah, the first ride of the night, as soon as I leave the house for the Lyft Prime Time, at 250 %, I get a trip north to just about the county line. 13 dead head miles. Pick up this couple, they get in, we start rolling. Male pass says he has the quicker way. I say OK, I'm game, turns out he was lost. They start going at it in the back seat, then the girl hurls, me and the male pass were both shocked. I finally unload these two asshats, shut the app off, to go get the car cleaned up at home. I get home, check it out, and nothing in the floor, thank God. Thinking back on it, I did not she her back there, even though she sat in the middle. Now I know that the sound I heard was her gagging at that golden moment. But because of going out to the The sticks to get these bums, 13 deadhead miles to get them, 14 deadhead back, and then miss out on the surge pricing. This was a big night in town and the profits could have been great, but the night turned in to an average money night, when it should of been excellent. I will not turn the app on again until I get close to the surge pricing. And something needs to be done about deadhead miles, too much lost cash on dead miles.


dude, did you even collect the $250 fee from Lyft?


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## Kembolicous (May 31, 2016)

Slim Pete said:


> dude, did you even collect the $250 fee from Lyft?


No, as it turns out, when I got home to take pictures and start cleaning, there was no mess there. What sounded to me was her vomiting, was just her, in my opinion, was her gagging, dry heaving, due to her performing a pornographic on that guy. Damn people. I gave him a 3 star. I know the jerk gave me a one star. If someone vomits, will Lyft pay me directly, or do I have to use a detail shop? Damn, $250 would be a better night profit than driving!! If someone vomits I would rather get it cleaned up, and get back out there for the rest of the night.


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## Slim Pete (Nov 21, 2014)

Kembolicous said:


> No, as it turns out, when I got home to take pictures and start cleaning, there was no mess there. What sounded to me was her vomiting, was just her, in my opinion, was her gagging, dry heaving, due to her performing a pornographic on that guy. Damn people. I gave him a 3 star. I know the jerk gave me a one star. If someone vomits, will Lyft pay me directly, or do I have to use a detail shop? Damn, $250 would be a better night profit than driving!! If someone vomits I would rather get it cleaned up, and get back out there for the rest of the night.


You don't have to go to a shop. You can do the clean up yourself. Lyft pays you directly. Send them pics, as many as possible, covering all areas that need cleaning. I heard Uber gives 200 while Lyft gives 250. Not sure as I've never had a puker - YET.
you definitely should have given him 1 star. I know for a fact you can still mail Lyft support and ask them to change his rating to 1. I had done it once before when I gave a girl a 5, then noticed she left behind an open container of beer in the car. Wrote to Lyft briefly explaining why, and they responded that they changed her rating to 1 and that I'd never be paired with her again. You know, you can also have that person's rating of you REMOVED. Lyft does so. Write and explain why, they will remove that rating.


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## Kembolicous (May 31, 2016)

Slim Pete said:


> You don't have to go to a shop. You can do the clean up yourself. Lyft pays you directly. Send them pics, as many as possible, covering all areas that need cleaning. I heard Uber gives 200 while Lyft gives 250. Not sure as I've never had a puker - YET.
> you definitely should have given him 1 star. I know for a fact you can still mail Lyft support and ask them to change his rating to 1. I had done it once before when I gave a girl a 5, then noticed she left behind an open container of beer in the car. Wrote to Lyft briefly explaining why, and they responded that they changed her rating to 1 and that I'd never be paired with her again. You know, you can also have that person's rating of you REMOVED. Lyft does so. Write and explain why, they will remove that rating.


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## Kembolicous (May 31, 2016)

Great, didn't know I could change a pax rating. I thought that if you gave them a 3 star, you would never be paired with them again. The next day I get an email from Lyft, to call this jackass, because he left his glucose testing kit in the car. ( if he is diabetic, should he be out getting drunk?) No kit, he probably was upset at my low rating on him, and wanted to vent about it. Hope I never see him or that cheap broad again.


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## BostonBarry (Aug 31, 2015)

Diabetics can drink (my fiancé is type 1) as long as they keep their blood sugar in check. Damage fee is UP TO $250. They evaluate the pictures and take into account any detailing you had done then charge appropriately.


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## SuckA (May 4, 2016)

Never drive past 12am! Ever!
Smart people make their money before the drunks(druggies) start leaving the bars.


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## Kembolicous (May 31, 2016)

:


SuckA said:


> Never drive past 12am! Ever!
> Smart people make their money before the drunks(druggies) start leaving the bars.


I see your point, but around here, if I didn't drive after midnight, it would be useless. I stay in driver mode till 3 am. Before 12 it is usually just short runs, which is ok if there are several of them. All the better paying runs have been after midnight. After 3, or 3:30 is when I call it quits. I had a rider doing a drug deal at 4 one night, keep changing drop off point, which means they were chasing the guy with the dope, that keeping moving. They had me drop them off at the Shell station and I was happy to do it. I don't need to get into the middle of a dope deal gone bad, and the shooting starts. However, I will say that the dope buying guys were really nice, mannered, and polite.


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