Indian Student Stranded in US After Lyft Driver Cancels Ride, Flees With Luggage

Shreya Verma, a student at Harvard University, took to social media to share her experience.

Shreya Verma. 

(Photo: Shreya Verma/LinkedIn)

An Indian student was left stranded on the road in the United States' Boston after a cab driver abandoned her and fled with all her belongings.

The incident: Shreya Verma, who is a student at Harvard University Graduate School of Design, took to LinkedIn and other social media handles to share her experience. She said that she was on her way to the Logan International Airport to catch a flight to India to meet her family when her Lyft driver suddenly cancelled the ride, fled with her luggage and left her stranded.

Verma said that the incident occurred after she noticed that she had forgotten to bring her headphones, after which she asked the driver to return home so that she could retrieve them. However, when she returned with the headphones, she saw that her driver had cancelled the ride and all her luggage was gone with him.

"Yesterday, at 6 PM, I booked a ride to Boston airport. Shockingly, after loading my luggage, the driver abruptly canceled, leaving with all my belongings, including my passport, VISA, OPT/EAD Card, and vital document, electronics, resulting in a devastating loss of $30,000," she said in a message posted on 17 December.

"I have been actively seeking assistance from Lyft customer service, but unfortunately, crucial driver details remain elusive, compounding the challenges I am already facing."

Shreya Verma

She further said that she had contacted the Cambridge Police Department and The Corporation of the City of Cambridge, but did not have enough information about the driver.

"The mandated legal procedures, involving subpoenas, court orders, and search warrants, are proving to be time-consuming and emotionally taxing," she said.

What Lyft said: Meanwhile, Lyft took cognisance of the incident and replied to Verma's post on LinkedIn saying that they are working on resolving the issue.

"Hi Shreya, thank you for ongoing support as we work to resolve this. We're in contact with the driver and working swiftly to get this solved," the company stated.

Lyft CEO David Risher also personally reached out to Verma saying, "Very sorry you're going through this, Shreya. That's absolutely awful. Our team is on it."

The incident has prevented Verma from flying to India and meeting her family, especially at a time when her father is suffering from cancer.