Surprise charges and overpayments are some of the most frustrating problems for Lyft users.
Look at the comments section of our article on how to contact Lyft customer service to see dozens of complaints about duplicate charges, overcharges, or rides that never occurred.
The good news is that you can report overcharges and request a refund from Lyft, but you have to know where to go in the Lyft app or at help.lyft.com.
What you need to know
- Use the Help section at the bottom of every ride receipt to report payment problems
- Pending charges labelled ‘temporary authorization holds’ typically disappear once the transaction is processed
- Other common surprise charges are fees, Lyft Pink charges, or a price that was higher than the upfront estimate
- Report suspected fraud to your cardholder first
How to get help with payment problems in the Lyft app
Follow the steps below if you have an issue with an overcharge, duplicate charge, fraudulent ride, or other payment issues.
In the Lyft app, Tap Menu (☰) > Ride history > Find the ride and tap on it > Scroll to ‘Help’ > Select the best matching item
You can dispute the fare or report another issue about the charge. After you report the issue, a chat with Lyft customer service will begin.
The Help button beneath each ride receipt is the best place to dispute charges
Helpful pages at help.lyft.com
Lyft explains payment policies on these pages at help.lyft.com.
- Lyft’s guide to charges and payments
- Payment authorizations (temporary holds)
- Cancellation policy for passengers
You can contact Lyft with each of the pages above. Scroll to the contact button at the bottom of each page and follow the on-page steps to report an issue with a charge.
- Our complete guide: How to Contact Lyft Customer Service
Legitimate charges from Lyft that might look unusual
Many legitimate charges from Lyft might be unexpected or even appear suspicious at first glance.
Before contacting Lyft, check to see if the charge could be explained by one of the reasons below.
Temporary holds: Payment authorization
A duplicate charge from Lyft could be a temporary payment authorization.
Lyft places a temporary hold on your payment method to confirm that it has enough funds to pay for your ride.
The temporary authorization will disappear after your payment provider processes the transaction, or it may appear as a refund after 5-7 days.
Temporary payments appear as ‘Lyft TEMP AUTH HOLD’ on your payment account transactions.
Temp auth hold charges typically settle within a day
You might see a pending charge when you create an account, request a ride, update your payment method, change your destination or add a stop.
One charge from Lyft after taking many rides
By default, you will only be charged once for all the Lyft rides you take in one day. So if you took many rides during a day, one big charge means all the rides were lumped together into one payment.
To change your payment frequency, go to Menu > Payment > Payment frequency. You can choose to pay after every ride or once for all the rides you do in a day.
Price higher than the upfront estimate
Lyft offers upfront pricing, but the price may increase if you encounter unexpected heavy traffic or add a stop.
If you still think Lyft charged too much, use the Help section of the ride receipt and select Dispute ride fare or charges.
Lyft fees
Lyft charges cancellation fees and damage fees. Cancellation fees are typically $2–$10, and damage fees are $20, $30, $80, or $150.
Go to the trip receipt and scroll to the help section to dispute a fee. Read more about the Lyft cancellation fees.
Lyft Pink: A $9.99 monthly charge
Lyft Pink is a monthly membership that costs $9.99 per month. An unexpected charge of $9.99 could be a Lyft Pink subscription you forgot about. More about Lyft Pink here.
Lyft Cash
Lyft Cash is another recurring payment that could lead to surprise charges.
In the Payment area of the app, there’s an option to add Lyft Cash to your Lyft account and a separate option to turn on auto-refill. Auto-refill could explain an unexpected charge.
Check to see if auto refill can explain a mystery charge
Family or friend took a ride on your card
Many people share account logins and credit cards. If there’s a surprise charge on your card, think if someone else who shares your card might have taken the ride.
Illegitimate charges: Fraud on your Lyft account
Although many surprise charges are a misunderstanding about Lyft payment practices, fraud does happen.
These activities on your Lyft account could indicate fraud
- Receipts for a trip you didn’t take
- Charges for trips you didn’t take
- Notifications from Lyft about a ride that you aren’t on
- Your account info was updated without your knowledge
Suspect fraud? Contact your cardholder or bank
If you believe someone is fraudulently using your credit or debit card to use Lyft, contact your cardholder first to report the fraud.
It’s important to secure the account first to prevent further fraud.
Most credit and debit cards offer fraud protection and 24/7 customer service. It’s much easier to quickly notify your cardholder than to report issues to Lyft.
After contacting your bank or cardholder, you can report the issue to Lyft in the ride receipt or at help.lyft.com.
Will Lyft give you a refund? What to expect
Illegitimate charges or fraud are likely to be refunded if you promptly report the issue to Lyft and follow up with details.
However, Lyft is less likey to offer a refund for legitimate charges from fees and recurring memberships.
The best way to start the process is to use the Help tools in the ride receipt or the contact buttons at the bottom of the support pages at help.lyft.com.
Still not getting a refund after contacting Lyft? You can initiate a chargeback with your credit card company.
A chargeback is nearly guaranteed to get your money back, but you should only use it if it was genuinely an illegitimate charge and Lyft refuses to take action.
Related Lyft Topics
Helena says
December 25 at 4:14 am from an address 165 Pierce Street in Daly City. For SFO at 4:27. My charge was 45.82 + 3.00 fee, plus a tip of 8.79. Total of 57.61. My question is why do I have bank statement from Lyft on the 25th for $28.46 and another charge for $8.79. With a pickup from somewhere on 1698 Bryant St, Daly City. (1624051611320340706) the Driver name is Christopher. I do not want to go to the paper/or police with this information. There should be a better way to alert your company when there is problem like this if you want to keep your customers.
Tony Newman says
I was charged $73.73 for a ride I never took!!! These people are fraudsters!
Joseph morga says
Ride was confirmed for 9 dollars but when I received text after ride it was 26 dollars why ?
Kelly Buettler says
I took the same route, same time, same weather, same traffic, same pick up and same drop off. My first fare was $26.85, my second fare 2 days later was $36.69???? How is that???
DougH says
Prices change based on supply and demand. If there’s not a lot of drivers around, or if a lot of passengers need rides, prices go up
margaret newkirk says
My niece took a lyft that was 48 dollars and then was billed for 93 dollars. Lyft refused to refund the money. I have advised her to instigate a charge back, but everyone should be advised to take a screen shot of what they say the rid will cost.,
Victoria says
I recently had the same issue. The estimate was $45 then I was charged $80 then they put am additional $69 on hold after they charged me the $80. I will never use them again. Fraud+Fraud-Fraud
REGINIA BLACKBURN says
I’ve been charged $20 for a
Lyft scooter never requested then charged another $20 for “hold”
Please give me my full refund
DougH says
Try to contact Lyft using the methods in this article. Go to the trip receipt and scroll to Help to report the issue
Larry hill says
I put $45 on my lyft account but every time try to use it it says my account is locked