# GMaps or Lyft at fault for wrong address?



## Driver2448 (Mar 8, 2017)

This issue happens probably twice a week. I get the request then turn on navigation and use Google Maps for my navigation. Since it shows what lane to be in ahead of time, it's my preferred method to use especially when I'm in Downtown. 

A few times however the app has taken me one or two houses down the way from the rider's actual house. I apologize and explain the mix up in the app after the standard greeting and most have been fine with it, saying that other driver's have had the same problem. 

Today however the address was the actual address and the rider came out of the house two houses down. I then checked my ratings and discovered that I was docked a few stars for the trip. I only did two trips this morning since I got off to a late start so I knew it was them who docked my rating.

Unless this is some scam by the rider in an attempt to get a free trip for navigation problems. It's always been when the pickup request comes in. I've never had a problem with it when dropping off the rider at their destination. 

Lyft's fault, Google's problem, or the rider just attempting to scam for wrong address pickup?


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## Shaggeboxer (Jan 11, 2018)

From my experience, Lyft will often switch to google maps and google maps will use a “dropped pin,” which is essentially latitude and longitude, as opposed to entering an actual location. This happens even if the rider has entered an address. This definitely happens with Uber. I’ve had to stop using google maps with Lyft for reasons I describe in another post so I’m not one hundred percent sure if the problem exists there as well. My answer has been to switch back to the Lyft/uber app once I’m close. It’s always more accurate for this purpose (close proximity), plus riders can share their real time location, which may have changed since they requested the trip and will not update within google maps.

Another possibility is that the riders use their geographic location vs an address to request the ride. Uber/Lyft then essentially guesses the address, if there is one, based on that location. You arrive at what you think is the correct address, but they’re actually two houses down. Happened to me last night. Arrived at the address I was directed towards, got there and realized there is no way this is the address. This is one of the city’s major thruways and there are no houses on this section of it. Lo and behold on the other side of a guard rail is a small residential road with houses maybe fifty feet from the major thruway, and this is where the pickup was meant to occur.


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## LAbDog65 (Nov 29, 2016)

I think some pax just want to scam. I had a ping to a certain address. I went to the address as it was clearly visible from the road. I get a call from pax saying I was at wrong house. When I get to the pax they start complaining about how I can’t read. I show them my phone which proves they put in the wrong address. Then they accuse me of changing it, like I can. As someone once told me, an a...hole has to prove it at least once a day.


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## Mars Troll Number 4 (Oct 30, 2015)

Driver2448 said:


> This issue happens probably twice a week. I get the request then turn on navigation and use Google Maps for my navigation. Since it shows what lane to be in ahead of time, it's my preferred method to use especially when I'm in Downtown.
> 
> A few times however the app has taken me one or two houses down the way from the rider's actual house. I apologize and explain the mix up in the app after the standard greeting and most have been fine with it, saying that other driver's have had the same problem.
> 
> ...


There's a LOT of addresses where the address doesn't 100% line up with the actual location. Usually i can get it figured out in under 2 minutes. And there's a lot that are a little bit messed up here in Orlandoish.

Houses are like the easiest pickups ever, just check the number on the outside before you park. If the customer sees you driving around in circles they will run outside waving their arms at you.

Then you explain that you were looking for their house and the GPS doesn't line up.
.

The house number is always somewhere on the outside of the house... ALWAYS, maybe the mailbox but it's always there.
(that one time out of 1000 it isn't there, well...
"good evening, this is Troll, your uber driver...I'm outside on the street and i can't figure out which house is yours"

Then they explain it to you, or come outside waving their arms at you.. Then you drive up next to them.

Now apartment complex pickups?

Those can be a complete disaster crossed with a donkey, crossed with a cluster of ducklings.

I've been doing this a long time and apartment complex pickups have consistently been the hardest part of the job. THE SINGLE HARDEST!


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## Undermensch (Oct 21, 2015)

Driver2448 said:


> This issue happens probably twice a week. I get the request then turn on navigation and use Google Maps for my navigation. Since it shows what lane to be in ahead of time, it's my preferred method to use especially when I'm in Downtown.
> 
> A few times however the app has taken me one or two houses down the way from the rider's actual house. I apologize and explain the mix up in the app after the standard greeting and most have been fine with it, saying that other driver's have had the same problem.
> 
> ...


There are a couple potential issues:

Rider used "current location" - when inside this is not very accurate so they may very well have requested the pickup for a couple doors down from where they actually were and either didn't notice this or figured "close enough".
Google has the wrong lat/long for the address in their database. You can confirm this by looking up the address in google maps and seeing which house it points to. Lyft uses Google's DB for location searches and maps so if it's wrong for Google its wrong for Lyft too. This can be fixed by the homeowner or even by you (I have fixed it for a couple riders who complained that their drivers always arrive at the wrong house by more than 5 houses)
Lyft and Uber can't send the "address" to Google Maps and Waze as those apps would then have to show you a list of results... instead they send the lat/long to take you too. Google and Waze try to take you to the street that the lat/long is closest to, which is sometimes the wrong street. Sometimes that tries to tell me to pick someone up on the freeway when they are in a house that backs up to the freeway. This wouldn't normally explain being a few houses down except in cases where the houses are on a corner, then it might take you to the wrong street on the corner.


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