NEW YORK: Ride-hailing giant Uber is facing lawsuits from a number of women in the US over allegations of sexual assault and violence, with the plaintiffs accusing the company of failing to address the problems for years.
They say Uber’s management has been aware of the seriousness of the situation since 2014, yet there have been many more cases since then, ranging from harassment to kidnapping and rape of passengers.
The lawsuits were announced by the US firm Slater Slater Schulman on July 13 in San Francisco. According to the firm, it represents around 550 women with claims against Uber and is investigating at least 150 other cases.
Uber initially stated that it could not comment on open legal proceedings. Later, it issued a statement, saying: “Sexual assault is a horrific crime and we take every single report seriously.”
A spokeswoman for the company pointed out that the legal process had been ongoing since February 2022.
Uber and the law firm gave conflicting information as to how many of the 550 women with claims had actually filed lawsuits in court.
Uber recently published the results of its own investigation into the problem, according to which there were reports of 3,824 sexual assaults by drivers in 2019 and 2020 alone.
The company has faced lawsuits in the past. In 2018, Uber settled out of court with two women.
But critics, including the plaintiffs’ lawyer Adam Slater, counter that the company could do far more to ensure passenger safety, including installing cameras inside vehicles, carrying out more robust driver background checks and creating a warning system for when drivers deviate from their routes. – dpa
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