When money comes back, how much, and how long it takes.
1. What this covers
This policy explains when Swift refunds a fare, how much comes back, and how you get it. It forms part of the Rider Terms of Use and the Driver Terms of Use, and is issued by soSwift Rides, operating in Aba, Abia State, Nigeria.
It applies to money that passed through Swift: wallet payments, and card or USSD payments taken by our payment provider. It does not apply to cash.
2. The one rule that decides everything
Swift can only refund money it actually holds.
On a cash ride you pay the driver directly and nothing passes through Swift. There is nothing for us to send back, so a cash ride cannot be refunded through the app. If a cash ride went wrong, report it — we will look into the driver, but the money is between you and them.
Wallet, card and USSD payments are held by Swift until the trip settles. Those are refundable. Cash is not.
3. When a full refund is due
- Your driver cancels the ride.
- You cancel before a driver has committed to the ride.
- No driver ever accepts, and the request expires.
- A scheduled ride is not picked up by any driver and Swift cancels it.
- You were charged twice for the same trip, or charged for a trip that never ran.
Nothing is charged at all if you simply do not pay: once a driver accepts, you have 10 minutes to pay, and after that the booking is released with no charge. There is no refund to process because there was never a payment.
4. When a partial refund is due
Within 15 minutes of a scheduled pickup, a driver has already arranged their day around your ride. So a cancellation inside that window goes to them for a decision first.
- The driver agrees to release it
- You get 70% of the fare back. The remaining 30% recognises the slot they gave up — without it, agreeing would be a pure loss for the driver and nobody would ever agree.
- The driver has not answered yet
- Your ride carries on as normal until they do. You are notified either way.
- You withdraw the cancellation
- Nothing changes and no money moves. A later cancellation starts fresh rather than inheriting an old refusal.
5. When no refund is due
- You asked the driver to release the ride, they refused, and you cancelled anyway. Overriding a committed driver forfeits the fare — and where Swift is holding the money, 50% of it goes to the driver for the time they lost.
- The trip was completed as booked. Not liking the route or the traffic is not grounds for a refund, though you should rate the trip and report anything that went wrong.
- You did not show up for a ride the driver waited for.
- The ride was paid in cash.
- Your account was closed for breaking the Terms of Use.
6. How the money comes back
- Paid from your Swift wallet
- The refund goes straight back into your wallet, automatically, as soon as the cancellation is settled. You will see it in your wallet history with a reference beginning SWX-, showing the fare and any shortfall applied. This is usually instant.
- Paid by card or USSD
- Sent back automatically to the card or account you paid with, as soon as the cancellation is settled. You do not have to ask, and there are no account details to give us — the money returns the way it came. Every refund gets a reference beginning SWR-.
- If we cannot send it back that way
- Occasionally a charge is too old to reverse, or your bank refuses it. Then we ask you for an account to transfer it to instead, on the same SWR- reference, and pay it by hand.
- Paid in cash
- Not refundable through Swift. See section 2.
The amount is worked out by Swift from the trip itself, under the rules above. Nobody — you or us — types a figure in, which is why a refund cannot come back wrong in either direction.
7. How long it takes
- Wallet refunds
- Immediate. If your balance has not moved, contact support with the SWX- reference.
- Card refunds
- Sent the moment the ride is cancelled. Card networks are slow to show a reversal — allow up to 5 to 10 working days before treating it as missing.
- USSD and bank refunds
- Sent immediately and usually credited within 24 hours.
- Refunds paid by transfer instead
- Where an automatic reversal was refused, we pay within 5 working days of receiving your account details.
- Declined claims
- You are told, with the reason, on the same SWR- reference.
One claim per trip. Chasing the same refund twice updates your existing claim rather than opening a second one against the same money.
8. Wallet top-ups
Money you add to your Swift wallet is yours to spend on rides. A completed top-up is not refundable to your bank account on demand — it is a balance, not a deposit.
If a top-up is charged to you but never appears in your balance, that is a failed top-up, not a refund. Every attempt is kept with a reference beginning SWF- precisely so it can be found. Send us that reference and we will fix it.
9. Drivers: declined withdrawals
This is not a refund, but it is the same question from the other side.
Your withdrawable balance is debited when you request a withdrawal, not when the transfer lands. If a request is declined or cannot be completed, the full amount is returned to your balance and you are told why. Quote the SWD- reference.
The minimum withdrawal is ₦500, and we only pay into a bank account whose name matches your verified identity.
10. Disagreeing with a decision
If you think a refund decision is wrong, reply on the same reference or email support@swift.com.ng. Tell us the reference, what you expected, and why. A person looks at every one.
We keep what was true at the moment a claim was made — the fare, what was paid, the driver’s decision, and your own account of it — so a claim settled weeks later is judged on the facts as they stood, not on how the trip looks now.
11. Changes to this policy
When this policy changes, the version number changes and the app asks you to read and agree to the new one. The version in force when you booked is the one that applies to that trip.
12. Reaching us
Email: support@swift.com.ng
WhatsApp: +234 913 413 4951 (7am – 9pm, every day)