On one side, drivers are suing Lyft for not protecting them from assault from passengers, and on the other, passengers are suing the ride-hailing company for not protecting them from drivers.
According to the filing, the suits range from physical to s****l assaults on both sides. And just to be clear, these are not class action lawsuits. A TechCrunch report claims that the company is facing a total of 17 cases in courts from Arizona, California, and Connecticut to Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and more.
The law firm representing many of the victims, Peiffer Wolf Carr Kane Conway & Wise, reportedly said they wanted a jury trial and would be looking for compensation. Although, they are yet to specify what the financial implications would be for the company.
Lyft was accused of not putting proper safety measures in place to prevent assaults, and after they happened, it did not do enough by way of response.
Also read:
– Lyft creates a media arm to make money from ads
– Uber train and bus launches in the UK
– Instagram ‘premium’ is coming as Meta announces working on paid features.
Tracey Cowan, a partner at the law firm, further revealed that the lawsuit was to ensure that the same thing does not happen to anyone else and force Lyft to sit up. He mentioned that the company should take precautions like background screening of drivers, crosschecking info provided, and providing dashcams seriously.
In response, the company has reiterated its safety policy while claiming that assault cases are rare.
“We’re committed to helping keep drivers and riders safe. While safety incidents on our platform are incredibly rare, we realize that even one is too many. Our goal is to make every Lyft ride as safe as possible, and we will continue to take action and invest in technology, policies and partnerships to do so,” its spokesperson said via an email.
This news comes just days after the report that Uber is taking pre-emptive measures to stop assaults and other dangers by integrating a private security firm’s services in its main app. Given the financial compensations that arise after safety lapse lawsuits, prevention is better than cure.
For your daily dose of tech, lifestyle, and trending content, make sure to follow Plat4om on Twitter @Plat4omLive, on Instagram @Plat4om, on LinkedIn at Plat4om, and on Facebook at Plat4om. You can also email us at info@plat4om.com and join our channel on Telegram at Plat4om. Finally, don’t forget to subscribe to OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL.
