Oct 25 (Reuters) - Lyft ( LYFT ) agreed to pay a $2.1

million civil fine to settle U.S. Federal Trade Commission

charges it misled prospective drivers about how much money they

might earn working for the ride-hailing company.

A proposed settlement was filed on Friday in San Francisco

federal court, and requires a judge's approval.

The case stemmed from advertisements that Lyft ( LYFT ) placed in

2021 and 2022 to address a driver shortage it referred to

internally as a "supply crunch," as growing access to COVID-19

vaccines boosted demand for its services.

According to the FTC, Lyft ( LYFT ) deceived drivers about how much

they could make per hour by featuring hourly earnings based on

the top 20% of drivers, which meant most drivers were unlikely

to earn the advertised pay.

Lyft's ( LYFT ) ads also featured "earnings guarantees" that misled

drivers into believing they would receive bonuses, leading to

tens of thousands of driver complaints, the FTC said.

"It is illegal to lure workers with misleading claims about

how much they will earn on the job," FTC Chair Lina Khan said in

a statement.

The settlement also requires Lyft ( LYFT ) to base claims about

driver pay on typical earnings, back up those claims with

evidence, and make the terms of its earnings guarantees clear.

Lyft ( LYFT ) did not admit or deny wrongdoing in agreeing to settle.

In a statement, the San Francisco-based company said it was

committed to clearly communicating earnings prospects to drivers

before they sign up, and to following FTC best practices.

The FTC voted 3-2 in favor of the settlement.