Lyft Adds Safety Feature For Minneapolis Drivers Amid Surge In Carjackings

Minneapolis rideshare drivers will now have a new safety feature implemented when picking up passengers.

According to FOX 9, Lyft's new safety feature will require Minneapolis riders to provide an additional form of ID if they use anonymous payment methods like prepaid cards, gift cards, Venmo or Paypal.

This new safety feature is being implemented after a rise of carjackings has begun in the city. Since August, over 40 rideshare drivers have reported carjackings or robberies while working in Minneapolis.

A city-wide alert was issued by the Minneapolis Police Department warning rideshare drivers about the dangerous encounters.

Rideshare drivers cannot decipher which ride could be a carjacking or robbery because each incident follows the same pattern. A ride request is made from a stolen phone and when that driver arrives, a group of armed individuals block the exit, approach the driver and demand the driver's valuable items. Oftentimes, those armed individuals will also steal the rideshare driver's vehicle, FOX 9 reported.

Not all rideshare drivers have been assaulted, but police say some have been injured, including being pistol-whipped during the incidents.

A news release states that the new safety feature will help minimize these incidents because usually anonymous payment methods are linked to fraud.