Woman sues Uber after alleged sexual assault by driver

Driver overcharged her $60 when she demanded to be let out

A Seattle woman has sued Uber, claiming a driver sexually assaulted her during a ride in 2018.

Daniel Swinford, the woman’s attorney, said his client began recording her Uber driver when the man began asking her if she was single and if she “liked single”.

“My client got very uncomfortable with where the conversation was going,” Mr Swinford told KIRO 7 news. “And it prompted her, rightly so, to start recording.”

The video shows the driver reaching back to touch the woman, saying “seeing how you look so nice”, according to Mr Swinford.

A Seattle police report includes a claim that the driver overcharged the woman $60 after she demanded he let her out immediately after he began touching her.

“She had to go through treatment,” Mr Swinford said. “And our claim is for damages to compensate her for the pain and suffering and the economic damages she sustained.”

Uber released a safety report in December that revealed there were nearly 6,000 reports of sexual assault involving passengers and drivers across the two-year span examined, 2017 and 2018.

In Chicago, another Uber driver was convicted of sexually abusing a passenger and was tried on charges that he had attempted to hire someone to “hurt or silence” the woman.

The Chicago Tribune reported that Ahmed Tawfeeq, 29, had been found guilty in November of criminal sexual abuse, attempted sexual assault, promoting prostitution, aggravated battery and unlawful restraint while working as an Uber driver.

Tawfeeq was arrested after he picked up a woman on 16 June 2017 and began making unwanted sexual comments to her, including asking if she’d be interested in becoming a prostitute.

Prosecutors said Tawfeeq turned off the Uber app after the drive and sexually abused her in a parking lot while she begged him to stop.

Uber began using a PIN system in the US and Canada this month, which is designed to improve the safety of riders by ensuring they’re getting into the correct car.

Under Uber’s “verify your ride” PIN system, a rider will receive a PIN number shortly before their driver arrives. The passenger tells the driver the PIN, and only after the driver enters the number can the ride begin.