Lyft Power Drivers Bonus and Commissions Update
Starting next week (Monday, August 18, 2014), Lyft will start taking commissions of 20% of the fare and Prime Time tips. If a driver works 15-30 hours a week, they will get a bonus of 5% or get to keep 85% of their ride earnings. Below is a summary of the commission chart:
- Drive 0-15 hrs per week, keep 80% of ride earnings
- Drive 15-30 hrs per week, keep 85% of ride earnings
- Drive 30-40 hrs per week, keep 90% of ride earnings
- Drive 40-50 hrs per week, keep 95% of ride earnings
- Drive 50+ hrs per week, keep 100% of ride earnings
The one catch is that acceptance rate needs to be 90% or higher for the week. This will prevent drivers from just signing online whenever possible to boost their hours beyond 50 hours so that they can keep 100% of their ride earnings whenever they drive.
This is a huge departure from the commission structure previously. They are also taking 20% of PTT, which is more inline with Uber’s pay schedule of taking their commission on the entire trip fee, including the surge pricing.
Even though PTT has the word tip in there, it is not a tip. It’s a ride surcharge for when drivers are very busy. Lyft will not be taking commission on any tips you receive and according to the Lyft announcement, tips has been on the rise due to more exposure of the tip button on the ride receipt and final email bill sent to passengers. Hopefully this will slightly offset the commission on PTT.
Another downside to the announcement is that the lower pricing seemed to be here to stay. In most markets, Lyft slashed prices by up to 20%. For part time drivers who drive 30 or less hours a week, we may see lower earnings as we will be making 15-20% less. Hopefully the higher demand and more PTT will offset the lower prices.
Three months ago, we announced that drivers would keep 100% of their earnings for spring. We extended that timeline into summer and added a $1 bonus as we built out the best way to reintroduce commissions, which are necessary to grow the business and ramp up driver support.
Starting next Monday, Aug. 18, commissions will return with a new program called Power Driver Bonuses. Commissions will be 20% or lower — and the more you drive, the more you’ll earn back.
Prime Time + More Tips
To help support the new Power Driver Bonuses, commissions will also be included in the Prime Time portion of rides. You will now see Prime Time reflected in the total price of the ride rather than as an extra tip. Rest assured: You’ll continue to receive 100% of tips passengers leave you — and thanks to the redesigned button, tips are on the rise!
We’re working on additional improvements to make tipping even easier, as well as other driver upgrades like our $5 no-show fee and improved driver summaries.
A Growing Movement
We appreciate everything you do to nurture Lyft in your neighborhood, and we’ll continue paying it forward by investing in the future of this movement. You’re now part of a family that’s more than 60,000 drivers strong — twice the population of Liechtenstein — and bringing safer, friendlier transportation to nearly 70 cities and counting.
You can read more about it here: http://community.lyft.com/2014/08/11/commissions-update-introducing-power-driver-bonuses/
Have more questions about Uber or Lyft? Head on over to our Rideshare Driver Training Course! Driver Promotions- New Uber Drivers will get up to a $800 bonus after signing up: Sign up for Uber.
- New Lyft Drivers will get up to $800 if you sign up here using this link.