Lyft-owned Freenow raises UK ride fees from July
Key Points
- Freenow is raising UK passenger fees from 15 July 2026.
- A new £14.40 cancellation fee applies to taxi trips from Heathrow.
- Airport fees now apply to taxi trips, not just private hire vehicles.
- The taxi cancellation fee rises from £5.80 to £6.40, and the CCZ fee from £1.50 to £2.00.
- It is Freenow's first major UK fee change since Lyft's 2025 takeover.
Freenow is raising fees for UK passengers from 15 July 2026, in its first major pricing change since Lyft completed its acquisition of the ride-hailing firm in July 2025.
The updated fee policy raises the taxi cancellation fee from £5.80 to £6.40 and introduces a new £14.40 cancellation fee for taxi trips from Heathrow Airport, which Freenow says reflects the airport parking charges drivers may incur alongside the standard cancellation fee.
The private hire (PHV) cancellation fee stays at £6.00. Both charges apply when a passenger cancels two or more minutes after a driver accepts the request, and neither applies if the driver has not yet moved towards the pickup point.
The £10 fee for cancelling a pre-booked trip less than 60 minutes before the scheduled time remains unchanged.
Airport fees extended to taxis
The policy applies airport fees to taxi trips for the first time, having previously charged them only on private hire vehicles.
Stansted carries the steepest increase, with the pick-up fee rising from £10 to £13 and the drop-off fee from £7 to £10. London City’s pick-up fee climbs from £7 to £10, while Southend rises from £7 to £8 in both directions.
Heathrow, Gatwick and Luton pick-up fees hold at £8, £8 and £7 respectively. Freenow notes that airports set parking fees and that it has no influence over their value.
Freenow is also raising its Central London Fee for private hire trips from £1.50 to £2.00. The company applies the charge to trips that start or end in the Congestion Charge Zone to help drivers cover the congestion charge.
The updated policy extends the waiting fee to taxis. A waiting fee applies to private hire trips for every minute after the first two minutes, and now also applies to fixed-fare taxi trips from Heathrow after the first three minutes.
Freenow charges the fee per minute at a value shown in its app, and the taxi service fee stays at £2.00.
First fee change under Lyft ownership
Lyft completed its $197 million acquisition of Freenow from BMW Group and Mercedes-Benz Mobility on 31 July 2025, marking its first expansion outside North America.
Freenow operates in nine European countries and more than 150 cities, and at the time of the deal Lyft said there would be no immediate changes to the customer experience.
Freenow had not responded to a request for comment at the time of writing.
