SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (KY3) – Here’s a scam warning if you use ride-share services like Uber and Lyft.
It’s coined as ‘vomit fraud.’ There are several reports across the country about it. A rider reached out to On Your Side, stuck with an $80 cleanup fee and vows she did not get sick.
Trish Curran lives in St. Louis. She was in Springfield to celebrate a friend’s birthday. Then got an unexpected stomach-turning bill.
“We were trying to do the right thing by making sure we were not drinking and then driving. And then this happens,” said Curran.
Curran and her friends were headed to a hotel for the night.
“Got in the car, everything seemed fine. Had a nice conversation with this driver. She told us about her life. Talked about her daughter,” said Curran.
She paid for the ride and tipped the driver.
“About 10 minutes later, I received a chat from support that said the driver reports there’s damage to her vehicle, and you’re the last known person who requested a ride. There were two photos of what looked like to be vomit in the car,” she said.
Her $18 ride jumped to a $98 ding, stuck with a cleanup fee.
“I’m a 45-year-old professional woman. I’m not going to be puking someone else’s car. I’ve asked for the original photos, five or six times to check them out and to see when these were taken. They won’t give them to me,” she said.
She got an email saying ‘no adjustments will be made to this claim.’ That was about one month ago. On Your Side reached…
