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USA Today
8 hours ago
- Business
- USA Today
Uber sexual assault case: Judge questions app's role in passenger risk
The federal judge overseeing more than 2,300 lawsuits seeking to hold Uber UBER.N liable to passengers who were sexually assaulted or harassed by drivers dismissed some key claims in the nationwide litigation. U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer in San Francisco rejected some fraud and product liability claims on Tuesday. His decision addressing 20 "bellwether" Uber cases could be a template for similar cases against the San Francisco-based ride-sharing company. A trial is scheduled for December 8. Lawyers for passengers did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Wednesday. Uber and its lawyers did not immediately respond to similar requests. Passengers said "Designated Driver" ads promoting Uber as a safe alternative to drunk driving should have disclosed that intoxicated people, especially women and especially late at night, faced an elevated risk of sexual assault by drivers. The passengers also said app notifications containing Uber drivers' names, photos and "star ratings" should have disclosed drivers' prior misconduct and criminal histories. In case you missed it: Uber is trying to help older Americans' transportation troubles. Will it work? In his 37-page decision, Breyer dismissed fraud claims based on ads saying "Don't drink and drive, call an Uber" and "Stay safe tonight. Use Uber." The judge said reasonable consumers would view those ads merely as encouragement to use Uber, rather than drive drunk. But he also said Uber's handling of app notifications "could form a deceptive scheme to obfuscate the risk of serious harm" when women accepted rides from drivers with histories of misconduct. Uber said it did not intend to fraudulently withhold information, and no passengers claimed they relied on the app notifications. Breyer also dismissed claims that Uber's app was defective because it failed to prevent high-risk pairings of drivers and passengers. The judge previously dismissed some other claims in the bellwether cases. He refused to dismiss product liability claims based on the app's lacking a feature to match passengers with drivers of the same gender. In its U.S. safety report for 2021 and 2022, Uber said it received 2,717 reported incidents of the most serious categories of sexual assault and misconduct. Uber also said only 0.1% of the more than 1.8 billion U.S. trips in those years had reported safety incidents, mainly about "minor" issues such as complaints about driving or verbal arguments. The case is In re Uber Technologies Inc Passenger Sexual Assault Litigation, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, No. 23-03084. Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by David Gregorio
Economic Times
12 hours ago
- Economic Times
US judge dismisses some claims in Uber sexual assault lawsuits
The federal judge overseeing more than 2,300 lawsuits seeking to hold Uber liable to passengers who were sexually assaulted or harassed by drivers dismissed some key claims in the nationwide District Judge Charles Breyer in San Francisco rejected some fraud and product liability claims on decision addressing 20 "bellwether" Uber cases could be a template for similar cases against the San Francisco-based ride-sharing company. A trial is scheduled for December for passengers did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Wednesday. Uber and its lawyers did not immediately respond to similar said "Designated Driver" ads promoting Uber as a safe alternative to drunk driving should have disclosed that intoxicated people, especially women and especially late at night, faced an elevated risk of sexual assault by passengers also said app notifications containing Uber drivers' names, photos and "star ratings" should have disclosed drivers' prior misconduct and criminal his 37-page decision, Breyer dismissed fraud claims based on ads saying "Don't drink and drive, call an Uber" and "Stay safe tonight. Use Uber."The judge said reasonable consumers would view those ads merely as encouragement to use Uber, rather than drive he also said Uber's handling of app notifications "could form a deceptive scheme to obfuscate the risk of serious harm" when women accepted rides from drivers with histories of said it did not intend to fraudulently withhold information, and no passengers claimed they relied on the app also dismissed claims that Uber's app was defective because it failed to prevent high-risk pairings of drivers and refused to dismiss product liability claims based on the app's lacking a feature to match passengers with drivers of the same judge previously dismissed some other claims in the bellwether its US safety report for 2021 and 2022, Uber said it received 2,717 reported incidents of the most serious categories of sexual assault and also said only 0.1% of the more than 1.8 billion U.S. trips in those years had reported safety incidents, mainly about "minor" issues such as complaints about driving or verbal case is In re Uber Technologies Inc Passenger Sexual Assault Litigation, US District Court, Northern District of California, No. 23-03084.
Time of India
15 hours ago
- Business
- Time of India
US judge dismisses some claims in Uber sexual assault lawsuits
Academy Empower your mind, elevate your skills The federal judge overseeing more than 2,300 lawsuits seeking to hold Uber liable to passengers who were sexually assaulted or harassed by drivers dismissed some key claims in the nationwide District Judge Charles Breyer in San Francisco rejected some fraud and product liability claims on decision addressing 20 "bellwether" Uber cases could be a template for similar cases against the San Francisco-based ride-sharing company. A trial is scheduled for December for passengers did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Wednesday. Uber and its lawyers did not immediately respond to similar said "Designated Driver" ads promoting Uber as a safe alternative to drunk driving should have disclosed that intoxicated people, especially women and especially late at night, faced an elevated risk of sexual assault by passengers also said app notifications containing Uber drivers' names, photos and "star ratings" should have disclosed drivers' prior misconduct and criminal his 37-page decision, Breyer dismissed fraud claims based on ads saying "Don't drink and drive, call an Uber" and "Stay safe tonight. Use Uber."The judge said reasonable consumers would view those ads merely as encouragement to use Uber, rather than drive he also said Uber's handling of app notifications "could form a deceptive scheme to obfuscate the risk of serious harm" when women accepted rides from drivers with histories of said it did not intend to fraudulently withhold information, and no passengers claimed they relied on the app also dismissed claims that Uber's app was defective because it failed to prevent high-risk pairings of drivers and refused to dismiss product liability claims based on the app's lacking a feature to match passengers with drivers of the same judge previously dismissed some other claims in the bellwether its US safety report for 2021 and 2022, Uber said it received 2,717 reported incidents of the most serious categories of sexual assault and also said only 0.1% of the more than 1.8 billion U.S. trips in those years had reported safety incidents, mainly about "minor" issues such as complaints about driving or verbal case is In re Uber Technologies Inc Passenger Sexual Assault Litigation, US District Court, Northern District of California, No. 23-03084.
Los Angeles Times
2 days ago
- Automotive
- Los Angeles Times
Uber traders shrug off robotaxi risks as stock powers to record
Uber Technologies Inc. investors are brushing aside potential threats from self-driving competition to bet that the company has plenty of room to expand in the near term. Uber shares have rallied 60% to a record this year as partnerships with robotaxi startups like Alphabet Inc.'s Waymo and growth in new markets have given bulls reasons to cheer after the stock underperformed in 2024. The advance has made Uber the seventh-best S&P 500 performer in 2025. 'They've done a great job expanding their addressable markets by adding things like grocery, convenience, alcohol,' said Jamie Meyers, senior equities analyst at Laffer Tengler Investments Inc. Such moves, however, haven't fully assuaged concerns about long-term risks from robotaxi services like Waymo, which is operating independently in three cities — San Francisco, Phoenix and Los Angeles — and in partnership with Uber in Austin and Atlanta. Tesla Inc. is going it alone and began testing a similar offering in Austin last month. Reports on Waymo and Tesla's robotaxi plans have triggered selloffs in shares of Uber and smaller rival Lyft Inc. in recent months. 'There's this view that's somewhat percolated across the investor base that regardless of what the competition looks like, they own the relationship with the consumer in terms of mobility,' said Matt Stucky, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management's chief portfolio manager of equities. 'I would question that quite a bit just in terms of the path forward for the company.' Uber didn't respond to a request for comment. The San Francisco-based firm has for years been investing into new areas across its core ride-hailing and delivery businesses in the US and abroad, helping fuel revenue growth that's expected to be 15% in 2025. It has also entered into more than a dozen partnerships with car manufacturers and technology developers around the world. David Wagner, portfolio manager at Aptus Capital Advisors, likes Uber's strategy of partnering with self-driving rivals and remains bullish, though he doesn't expect the stock to push much higher in the near term with few catalysts on the horizon. 'The market finally started to recognize that we'd rather take kind of this aggregator approach and reward that company,' he said. Roughly three quarters of analysts tracked by Bloomberg that cover Uber have buy-equivalent ratings and the remainder are neutral. But the run-up in shares has the stock trading roughly in line with the average price target at about $98. Canaccord analyst George Gianarikas acknowledges that Uber's strategy of embracing a variety of self-driving services may well prove to be successful, but sees the risks as too great to ignore. 'An alternative scenario is also plausible: a new world dominated by a few AV behemoths that control the value chain,' he wrote in a research note late last month. 'We remain flexible and are open to either outcome, but given the uncertainty and potential for rapid disruption, see neutral as the appropriate near-term rating.' Reinicke writes for Bloomberg.
Time of India
10-06-2025
- Automotive
- Time of India
Uber partners with AI firm Wayve for autonomy trials in UK
Uber Technologies Inc has tapped AI firm Wayve to launch public road trials for Level 4 autonomous vehicles in the UK, according to a joint press statement on Tuesday. Industry body Society of Automotive Engineers classifies vehicle autonomy in six levels, ranging from Level 0 to Level 5. Level 4 driverless vehicles have high autonomy but are restricted to an area. A human driver can assume manual control in case of an emergency or system failure. Alphabet had launched its L4 Waymo One in Arizona in December 2018, while Volvo and Baidu collaborated a month before that for this endeavour. The Uber-Wayve deal makes the UK largest market where the cab hailing platform intends to pilot autonomous vehicles. These trials will combine Wayve's Embodied AI platform with Uber's global mobility network. Discover the stories of your interest Blockchain 5 Stories Cyber-safety 7 Stories Fintech 9 Stories E-comm 9 Stories ML 8 Stories Edtech 6 Stories
