It's terrible news for Lyft drivers if they lose their accounts. This is irritating, but unfortunately typical, of the business world. It frequently occurs unexpectedly, and the reasons behind it are often unclear.
Even worse, Lyft is notorious for being unable to provide an explanation for why a driver was suspended. It's frustrating to be able to log in and provide rides one minute, and then get the dreaded "Your account has been deleted" notification the next.
There are a number of precautions you may take to reduce the likelihood of having your Lyft account deactivated. This post will guide you through the most prevalent reasons why Lyft drivers have their accounts disabled.
If you want an easy way to try to get reactivated with minimal effort, Driverly can help you. There are so many ways Driverly helps gig workers and rideshare drivers. One of their most popular resources Driverly Premium Members get is their Reactivation Services. They'll help you through the entire appeal process and handle it for you. Sign up now to become a member!
Policy for Deactivation in Lyft
Getting your Lyft account disabled may happen for a variety of reasons. It's true that Lyft may terminate your account at any time, but they typically only do so if you've done anything to violate their rules of service or endanger a passenger.
They'd rather not turn off drivers, since it would mean fewer employees to service customers and a lower bottom line. Here are some of the most frequent triggers for deactivation from Lyft, along with advice on how to prevent or address them.
1. You violated a traffic regulation
If you are pulled over for a criminal offense while working for Lyft, the company will immediately terminate your account.
A traffic infraction may be anything from a small infraction like speeding or disregarding a stop sign to a major infraction like leaving the scene of an accident or jeopardizing the safety of your passengers.
2. You carried drugs or alcohol
When it comes to Lyft drivers being impaired by drugs or alcohol, the company maintains a strict "zero tolerance" policy. If you get behind the wheel of a Lyft vehicle while under the influence of drugs or alcohol, the company will immediately and permanently deactivate your account.
If a customer reports you for drunk driving, the company will immediately terminate your service.
3. Travelers involved in drug use
It becomes tricky here since in certain places it's not against the law for passengers to have open containers or consume alcohol while riding in a car. It is against Lyft policy for passengers to have open containers of alcohol on Lyft trips, regardless of state restrictions.
It's doubtful Lyft will find out if you're carrying a single customer, but it may be a problem for Shared Lyft journeys. You should always err on the side of caution and prohibit alcohol use in your car. You should also never condone the usage of any illegal substances in your car.
Naturally, this does not apply to a passenger who is taking a doctor-prescribed medicine.
You use outdated records
4. Expired documents
Outdated paperwork is a leading cause of accounts being terminated. You cannot be a Lyft driver if your car registration or driver's license is not updated. You must keep your Lyft profile up-to-date with any changes to your registration, insurance, or driver's license.
5. Your car doesn’t pass standards
In order to be a Lyft driver, your automobile must be in compliance with the company's specifications. The maximum age for a car varies per city, but is never older than 15 years.
It is possible that Lyft may terminate your account if they discover that your vehicle is too old to continue being used.
6. You carried a minor
Lyft does not allow its drivers to transport passengers under the age of 18. If a minor is being transported without a responsible adult, the vehicle will be disabled. Even if they have the Lyft app and the means to pay, you cannot lawfully transport children without a paying adult passenger aged 18 or older.
7. You broke Lyft's non-discrimination policy
Some of the no discrimination policy pointers include the following:
Differentiating by racial background, ethnicity, or national
Religion
Gender
Physical or mental impairment
Disorders in health
Marital status
Differences in sexual orientation
In the event that a passenger reports you for discrimination, Lyft will immediately terminate your account.
8. You refused to transport a service animal
If a customer requests your ride and you turn them down because they have a service animal, you are breaking the law and Lyft's regulations. It may be difficult to confirm whether or not an animal is a service animal, but the law generally requires that you do so.
9. You made sexual comments or advances toward the passenger
Lyft is dedicated to delivering safe trips for all passengers. If you make sexual remarks or approaches toward a passenger, your account will be terminated. This includes reaching out to the passenger after you’ve ended the journey.
10. You texted while driving
Texting while driving is against the law in most states and is against Lyft’s safety rules. Lyft will terminate your driver account for risky driving if a passenger complains about you doing this.
How to Reactivate your Account?
If you’ve been deactivated by Lyft, you may follow these steps to reinstate your account.
Find out why you’ve been deactivated
Reach out to Lyft support to discover why you’ve been deactivated. Until Lyft finishes looking into a claim, you may not know what exactly happened.
Collect evidence for an appeal
If you feel Lyft’s decision to deactivate your account is unfair, you may assemble information to offer in an appeal. Relevant material can include a record of your driving rating, incident reports, and so on to back up your claim.
Appealing a Lyft deactivation
It is possible to contact Lyft and request reconsideration of your deactivation if you believe it was unfair.
The Appeals Process
You may immediately file an appeal after receiving the final decision on your deactivation. Depending on how fast Lyft reviews your appeal, this might be a lengthy process.
Even though there isn't much detail on Lyft's appeal procedure online, you should definitely call Lyft support right away to find out what you need to do. You may reactivate your account in one of two ways.
Contacting customer service
Contact Lyft's customer service and explain why you think your account was suspended unfairly. Here's when things like dash cam videos, driver evaluations, and accident records come in handy.
Be careful to let people know if you've provided a lot of rides while maintaining, say, a 4.9-star rating.
Visiting Lyft Hub
Second, you may visit the Lyft hub in person, which is strategically placed around the United States and Canada. You may check up on your regional Hub and talk to a Lyft professional.
Use Driverly
Driverly can also help with Lyft reactivation. They will handle the entire appeal process for you so you don't have to. You can gain access to Driverly's Reactivation Services by signing up to be a Driverly Premium Member.
Check out this video with more mistakes to avoid when driving for Lyft so you can prevent your account from getting deactivated and start earning more.
Conclusion
The thought of your Lyft account being deactivated might make your stomach turn, but there are things you can do to get it back online. To that end, we hope this tutorial clarified the process of deactivating your Lyft account for you.
Avoiding deactivation is, of course, preferable to dealing with it after the fact. Good drivers who treat their passengers with dignity and who don't break Lyft's rules seldom get their accounts deactivated.