# FATHERS: TEEN DAUGHTERS USED UBER AND MEGABUS TO RUN AWAY FROM HOME TO LOUISIANA



## BurgerTiime (Jun 22, 2015)

*FATHERS: TEEN DAUGHTERS USED UBER AND MEGABUS TO RUN AWAY FROM HOME TO LOUISIANA*

Email

Video: EMBED <click
http://abc13.com/video/
Kids accused of using Uber and Megabus to runaway from home. (KTRK)
Parents Demand Change in Ubers Policy

By Tracy Clemons
Updated 52 mins ago
CYPRESS, TX (KTRK) --
Two Cypress families are demanding changes to two major transportation providers: Uber and Megabus.

They say their two young teen daughters - 13 and 14 years old - were able to use both to run away from home last month.

The girls took an Uber from Cypress to downtown Houston, bought two Megabus tickets to New Orleans and rode on out of town.

To protect their identity, their fathers asked us not to show their faces or use their names. The fathers, identified as father one and father two, said somebody should've noticed the girls were too young to travel alone and stopped them.

Megabus and Uber said there's only so much they can do.

"Ultimately the responsibility lies with us as parents. But we can't be there all the time. We have to sleep," father one said.

While they were sleeping, an Uber driver picked up their 13 and 14-year-old daughters from a gas station at Cypresswood and Fairfield Place Drive around 5:52am on February 12.

"If the Uber driver had insisted on speaking with a parent or seeing some ID, they would've never gotten out of the neighborhood," added father two.

Instead, the Uber driver drove them 32 miles to the Megabus depot where they bought tickets to New Orleans.

"Between Houston and New Orleans, you have two of the worst cities in the country for human trafficking and we've got a 13-year-old and a 14-year-old that are out there on their own," father two explained.

The 14-year-old's father used her email info to check for an Uber account. The email confirmed she had an Uber account and where the two girls were located.

Friends checked buses and they sought leads on Facebook. The parents eventually got on the road to find them.

"They had gotten spooked, read our Facebook posts, knew we knew they were going to New Orleans, and decided to get off the bus in Baton Rouge," said father one.

After hours of looking in Baton Rouge, they found the girls in a Burger King near the campus of LSU that same night.

Megabus.com released the following statement:

_"It is Megabus.com policy to allow passengers 17 and older on the bus. Anyone under the age of 17 must be accompanied by an adult. In this particular situation, the young ladies were asked how old they were by a Megabus.com employee and they responded 18 years of age. Therefore, they were permitted to travel. The safety of our passengers, employees and fellow road users is our top priority."_

The fathers contend the girls do not look 18, and that they look their age.

Uber directed us to their Terms and Conditions that include the following: _"You must be at least 18 years of age, or the age of legal majority in your jurisdiction to obtain an account." _

After ABC13 asked questions, Uber deactivated the account.

"The other side of it is what are you going to do to prevent this kind of stuff in the future?" the fathers asked.

These dads believe prevention starts with more training for drivers and policy changes to require ID. They say it needs to be focused on looking and identifying troubled situations, whether it's underage or illegal activity.


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## SEAL Team 5 (Dec 19, 2015)

BurgerTiime said:


> *FATHERS: TEEN DAUGHTERS USED UBER AND MEGABUS TO RUN AWAY FROM HOME TO LOUISIANA*
> 
> Email
> 
> ...


I know how these fathers feel. Back in the early 90's when my kids were young they stole some Nike Air Jordan's from an athletic shoe store and got caught. I blamed Nike for making the shoes really cool and desirable. 
Gimme a break, fathers blaming others for the actions of their children. These fathers need to look at why their young teens decided to leave home.


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## uberdriverfornow (Jan 10, 2016)

SEAL Team 5 said:


> I know how these fathers feel. Back in the early 90's when my kids were young they stole some Nike Air Jordan's from an athletic shoe store and got caught. I blamed Nike for making the shoes really cool and desirable.
> Gimme a break, fathers blaming others for the actions of their children. These fathers need to look at why their young teens decided to leave home.


Parents don't teach morals and respect nowadays. They think the kids are going to get it from watching the Kardashians or Lady Gaga, the worst role models of our generation.
Ridiculous.


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## BurgerTiime (Jun 22, 2015)

uberdriverfornow said:


> Parents don't teach morals and respect nowadays. They think the kids are going to get it from watching the Kardashians or Lady Gaga, the worst role models of our generation.
> Ridiculous.


The worst


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## SEAL Team 5 (Dec 19, 2015)

uberdriverfornow said:


> Parents don't teach morals and respect nowadays. They think the kids are going to get it from watching the Kardashians or Lady Gaga, the worst role models of our generation.
> Ridiculous.


So, Sir Charles was right when he said "I am not a role model".


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## TwoFiddyMile (Mar 13, 2015)

The most incriminating fact revealed by the article is the 14 year old HAD HER OWN ACCOUNT!!!!

We have beaten a dead horse regarding minors riding on the accounts of non minors.
THIS IS A GAME CHANGER.
It's game over when Uber is stupid enough to let an obvious minor set up a stand alone account.

I hope the fathers have the wherewithal to obtain good lawyers and sue the ASS off Uber.


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## Fuzzyelvis (Dec 7, 2014)

BurgerTiime said:


> *FATHERS: TEEN DAUGHTERS USED UBER AND MEGABUS TO RUN AWAY FROM HOME TO LOUISIANA*
> 
> Email
> 
> ...


Well they had to have a credit card or the information to open or use an account. So how did they get that? From Dad???

How many broke ass uber drivers will turn down a 32 mile trip? And honestly, I have a hard time telling a 13 year old from an 18 year old these days. I barely look at my damn pax anyway, other than to see if they give off any dangerous vibes.


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## TwoFiddyMile (Mar 13, 2015)

Fuzzyelvis said:


> Well they had to have a credit card or the information to open or use an account. So how did they get that? From Dad???
> 
> How many broke ass uber drivers will turn down a 32 mile trip? And honestly, I have a hard time telling a 13 year old from an 18 year old these days. I barely look at my damn pax anyway, other than to see if they give off any dangerous vibes.


It's not on the driver's conscience, it's on Reiser LLC. THEY activated minors. Doesn't matter how the fraud was enacted, Reiser LLC is going to be held liable.

#troof


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## Fuzzyelvis (Dec 7, 2014)

TwoFiddyMile said:


> The most incriminating fact revealed by the article is the 14 year old HAD HER OWN ACCOUNT!!!!
> 
> We have beaten a dead horse regarding minors riding on the accounts of non minors.
> THIS IS A GAME CHANGER.
> ...


How is it obvious? I've set up accounts for many things and I don't recall ever being asked my age. Plus I could lie.

Why does a kid have a credit card?



TwoFiddyMile said:


> It's not on the driver's conscience, it's on Reiser LLC. THEY activated minors. Doesn't matter how the fraud was enacted, Reiser LLC is going to be held liable.
> 
> #troof


That's like saying YouTube is responsible for letting minors see certain videos. They ask your age, that's all. If someone lies what are they supposed to do?


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## TwoFiddyMile (Mar 13, 2015)

Fuzzyelvis said:


> How is it obvious? I've set up accounts for many things and I don't recall ever being asked my age. Plus I could lie.
> 
> Why does a kid have a credit card?
> 
> That's like saying YouTube is responsible for letting minors see certain videos. They ask your age, that's all. If someone lies what are they supposed to do?


Possibly you should study up on Murican law, you've been here long enough.
Just because the account was set up fraudulently by a minor doesn't mean Uber won't be held liable for not detecting the fraud.
When we were kids, many of us set up accounts with Columbia Record Club. Minors, fraudulent accounts.
The liability for said fraudulent accounts fell on Columbia Records.
They went out of business for these shady tactics.

And...
These AINT records and cassettes. This is illegal transport of minors without parental consent.
This is a world of trouble for Reiser LLC.
Oorah.


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## Fuzzyelvis (Dec 7, 2014)

TwoFiddyMile said:


> Possibly you should study up on Murican law, you've been here long enough.
> Just because the account was set up fraudulently by a minor doesn't mean Uber won't be held liable for not detecting the fraud.
> When we were kids, many of us set up accounts with Columbia Record Club. Minors, fraudulent accounts.
> The liability for said fraudulent accounts fell on Columbia Records.
> ...


How does the child have a credit card without parental consent? Seems implied to me. I bet these kids have been using Uber for a while, and the parents loved it because they didn't have to pick them up from soccer practice. NOW they're upset.

Do taxis check IDs? I know buses don't. I traveled in a bus, taxi and airplane out of the country on my own as a minor and so long as my tickets were in order no one cared how old I was. Unless it's CLEARLY a child, as opposed to a teenager, I don't think it's illegal in my town. If it is, every Metro bus driver has a problem.

Columbia Record Club just wasn't able to get payment from the kids is all that I recall. It just cost them too much money in the end.


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## TwoFiddyMile (Mar 13, 2015)

I don't transport unaccompanied minors without a specific contract like my previous company had with the city school district. If I see "appears around 18" and there's no bond protected company contract involved, I keep rolling.
You are not a man. Not that women can't be accused or guilty of crimes against minors- but sadly that's mostly a man's world (not what Mr. Brown was singing about).

As stated in the mega thread about unaccompanied minors, many states have laws forbidding transport unless bonded contracts are involved.
Check your state, perform your due diligence.
Uber won't do well in a case where they are allowing minors to create accounts and everyone knows this.
It's a litigators field day.


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## Jagent (Jan 29, 2017)

Walmart sells Uber cards now. You can also buy a prepaid Visa. Uber has no idea who pax are. ..


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## freddieman (Oct 24, 2016)

well........did the kids tip?


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## Trebor (Apr 22, 2015)

It was a 32 mile trip, 5am, into the heart of the city where my next trip would of very of likely of been to the airport, another 20 miles. Times are tough. I really can not blame the Uber driver for this one. Personally, I would of turned the other cheek and taken it.

Source: Happened in my city.

These parents would of complained if their kids were left outside of school and Uber drivers refused to pick them up. #youcantwin

Besides the parents, (why they are hiding their faces) Megabus is at fault here. They should of checked the i.d. since anyone under 18 must have a legal guardian. If your riding the bus, it should be standard practice that the i.d should match your ticket right?


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## everythingsuber (Sep 29, 2015)

Drivers are in between a rock and a hard place with minors. Let's say a driver refused to take them and left them stranded somewhere they were vulnerable. That could end badly. Once the minor has the account the driver is admonished of any responsibly of asking questions.


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## BurgerTiime (Jun 22, 2015)

everythingsuber said:


> Drivers are in between a rock and a hard place with minors. Let's say a driver refused to take them and left them stranded somewhere they were vulnerable. That could end badly. Once the minor has the account the driver is admonished of any responsibly of asking questions.


That's not your problem. Taking them puts you in one. You have a choice. You make the the decisions as the driver. 
It's your car, your time, your "gig" and your life.


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## Happyhead (Sep 4, 2016)

If uber wasn't around they would of taken a cab. I blame the parents on this one, they need to take responsibility. Back in the day, growing up I knew kids who would run away when they couldn't get their way of if they had terrible living conditions and they made it seem all glorious and of course the thought had crossed my mind. However, I'm telling ya my mother would of KICKED MY A$$!!. My parents were tough on us and I hated it then but if they hadn't been I probably would of been wild.


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## Strange Fruit (Aug 10, 2016)

Minors ride all the time. Why is this news? Check a different thread here and you can find a parent who is offended by the no minor rule cuz that's how their kids get around.

And leaving home isn't a moral issue, or a question of todays Kardshian role models. This is a story about one individual instance. Nobody knows anything about it.


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## Michael - Cleveland (Jan 1, 2015)

everythingsuber said:


> Drivers are in between a rock and a hard place with minors. Let's say a driver refused to take them and left them stranded somewhere they were vulnerable. That could end badly. Once the minor has the account the driver is admonished of any responsibly of asking questions.


I don't buy that... all it takes is a call to 911 to alert them to 'minors in possible danger'. I'd happily sit parked and waiting until the police showed up.

I do have to observe that this is nothing new. In 1973 or 1974, when I was around 15, I was able to buy train ticket from Philadelphia to Chicago (all I could scrounge up the money for) and then hitch-hike from there to Madison, WI. No one then would have ever thought to blame Amtrak...

However, I do think it's perfectly ok today to ask transportation companies to put procedures in place to back up their stated policies for transporting minors.

Oh - and as far as requiring minors (or anyone) to show ID to Uber drivers... hell no!
The last person I want my teenage daughter showing her ID (full name and address displayed) to is an Uber driver! Let Uber verify Uber pax account info (age verification) and issue a digital Uber ID that pax can have on their phone.


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## SmokestaXX (Dec 17, 2016)

I wonder if the uber driver's account was deactivated?


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## Linesider (Nov 4, 2015)

uberdriverfornow said:


> Parents don't teach morals and respect nowadays. They think the kids are going to get it from watching the Kardashians or Lady Gaga, the worst role models of our generation.
> Ridiculous.


Parents have been saying that kind of thing forever. It's that rock and roll music, that Elvis Presley with his obscene hip movement and on and on.

Times change. Kids do stupid things. I know I did.


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## UberwithStuber (Jan 18, 2017)

Fuzzyelvis said:


> How does the child have a credit card without parental consent?


Stolen card...?


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## 2Peaks (Sep 19, 2016)

Crazy Uber advocates here. I'll bet you all advocate Pool rides too.

Read the post. The fathers did accept "ultimate responsibility". They question why there isn't better enforcement on the TNC side. 

Kids with cards. Yes, it happens frequently now. It's how the parents pay for the Amazon Prime, Pandora and other accounts. Getting a hold of parent's accounts these days isn't that unusual.

The driver is a greedy piece of crap. Yes, you can tell if a 13 year old isn't 18. They don't act the same. They don't talk the same. And at 5:00 in the morning they aren't going to look like an 18 year old. And use a simple rule, if they look 18 ask for I.d.. I ask. Usually they tell me they forgot the I.d.. 

I asked a kid one time. He said he forgot it. He was kind of embarrassed and asked me to wait. He went in, and yep, he was 18. He told me I saved him because he was going to need his wallet. Public Service! 

Uber pays lip service to the under 18 and over rule.


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## PrestonT (Feb 15, 2017)

2Peaks said:


> Crazy Uber advocates here. I'll bet you all advocate Pool rides too.
> 
> Read the post. The fathers did accept "ultimate responsibility". They question why there isn't better enforcement on the TNC side.


Because we aren't nannies for their teens, that's why.

Teens have been running away from home since I was a kid and long before that. These fathers need to look in the mirror. Both Uber and MegaBus were just tools. They didn't cause the issue of the kids leaving home.


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## SmokestaXX (Dec 17, 2016)

Linesider said:


> Parents have been saying that kind of thing forever. It's that rock and roll music, that Elvis Presley with his obscene hip movement and on and on.
> 
> Times change. Kids do stupid things. I know I did.


4real!!! Adults do stupid shit too. Stop trying to find a reason to justify everything.



UberwithStuber said:


> Stolen card...?


Clearly people are stuck in the 19th century...smh



PrestonT said:


> Because we aren't nannies for their teens, that's why.
> 
> Teens have been running away from home since I was a kid and long before that. These fathers need to look in the mirror. Both Uber and MegaBus were just tools. They didn't cause the issue of the kids leaving home.


Seriously...2 kids running away 2gether says problem at home to me.


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## Buckiemohawk (Jun 23, 2015)

Jagent said:


> Walmart sells Uber cards now. You can also buy a prepaid Visa. Uber has no idea who pax are. ..


That's going to be even worse for the drivers. I can imagine the car jackings and such that will happen


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## 2Peaks (Sep 19, 2016)

PrestonT said:


> Because we aren't nannies for their teens, that's why.
> 
> Teens have been running away from home since I was a kid and long before that. These fathers need to look in the mirror. Both Uber and MegaBus were just tools. They didn't cause the issue of the kids leaving home.


Who said you have to be a nanny? But if you saw an injured person on the roadside would you just drive on because nobody asked you to be a medic?

Reading comprehension 101 ... The parents did look in the mirror!

Yes, Uber was a tool. So is the liquor store "just the tool" for drunk driving?

It's simple: Don't give minors a ride. What a concept!


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## PrestonT (Feb 15, 2017)

2Peaks said:


> Who said you have to be a nanny? But if you saw an injured person on the roadside would you just drive on because nobody asked you to be a medic?
> 
> Reading comprehension 101 ... The parents did look in the mirror!
> 
> ...


No, the liquor store is not a tool, selling alcohol to minors is a violation of law. Do you propose we ID everyone that looks under 25, because I will tell you that there are 14 year olds that you'd swear are 18. Ubering minors is a gray area. And as far as megabus, runaways have been taking buses for decades. It's even cliche.


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## ErkanAk (Jul 1, 2016)

SEAL Team 5 said:


> I know how these fathers feel. Back in the early 90's when my kids were young they stole some Nike Air Jordan's from an athletic shoe store and got caught. I blamed Nike for making the shoes really cool and desirable.
> Gimme a break, fathers blaming others for the actions of their children. These fathers need to look at why their young teens decided to leave home.


I dont think fathers dont know why their daughters left home. Borderline personality disorder is so common emotional problem that you cannot understand teens' behaivors with adults' logic.


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## SEAL Team 5 (Dec 19, 2015)

ErkanAk said:


> I dont think fathers dont know why their daughters left home. Borderline personality disorder is so common emotional problem that you cannot understand teens' behaivors with adults' logic.


Quick fix. My dad used to make my brother and I go pick out the belt that he would whoop us with when we misbehaved. The fear of God has a very strange way of making unruly teens behave. I know it's not politically correct to knock some sense in your kids, but it would of been allot less politically correct if these fathers were identifying their teenage girls in a morgue instead of through the Uber app.


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## 2Peaks (Sep 19, 2016)

It's easier to become a parent than an Uber driver. That should tell you something, because look at quality of some drivers.


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## ErkanAk (Jul 1, 2016)

SEAL Team 5 said:


> Quick fix. My dad used to make my brother and I go pick out the belt that he would whoop us with when we misbehaved. The fear of God has a very strange way of making unruly teens behave. I know it's not politically correct to knock some sense in your kids, but it would of been allot less politically correct if these fathers were identifying their teenage girls in a morgue instead of through the Uber app.


I agree about the fear of god that most of humans still need to have, but new age teens say it is science fiction pretending many arguments. Unfortunately i am one of the fathers whose daughter is suffering from BPD. Not only me she is also complaining about it because It is not easy to deal with it. Some of teens like Katlyn Nicole Davis finds easy way ending their life. In this case i think it is better to complaint about uber or megabus than blaming or beating kids. At our time, everbody needs therapies or to go to places like Katmandu to understand people can be happy with having nothing.


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## 2Peaks (Sep 19, 2016)

Michael - Cleveland said:


> Try reading my post before berating it. I said I would not want my teenage daughter showing an Uber driver an ID with her full name and address on it. Would you? I don't know what country you're from, but here in the US 'teenager' does not mean 'minor'; My teenage daughter was a college student... and more than a few 18 & 19 year old adults use Uber & Lyft (and are not required to get their parent's permission to do so).
> 
> well, it has a way of making 6 year olds behave... it also has a way of making 14 year olds runaway from home.


What? Uh, when my daughter was in university she was smart enough to know to be safe. And as an 18 year old she could ride Uber. But, when she was 16, I wouldn't want her riding an Uber so the driver asking for ID would be a double safeguard for you. And as the poster said, the bad guy will find your daughter again with or without her ID. You are making excuses, not reasons.


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## Michael - Cleveland (Jan 1, 2015)

2Peaks said:


> when she was 16, I wouldn't want her riding an Uber so the driver asking for ID would be a double safeguard for you.


Great - you take that risk. I've met too many weird drivers that I'm not going to encourage my daughter to help them stalk her.


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## PrestonT (Feb 15, 2017)

Michael - Cleveland said:


> Great - you take that risk. I've met too many weird drivers that I'm not going to encourage my daughter to help them stalk her.


It seems like you are debating a point you seem to agree with.....


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## Michael - Cleveland (Jan 1, 2015)

PrestonT said:


> It seems like you are debating a point you seem to agree with.....


hehe... it's seems you're calling me out on something I said that you agree with!


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## PrestonT (Feb 15, 2017)

Michael - Cleveland said:


> hehe... it's seems you're calling me out on something I said that you agree with!


It's unfortunate that we can't trust Uber drivers or any other strangers with our teen daughters, but that is what it is in 2017 USA. On the other hand, if you've ridden on a public bus, certainly in Las Vegas, there are FAR more dangers lurking there for a young lady. It honestly is a difficult decision. We can't lock them in their closets and we can't always be there to supervise them or drive them somewhere when they need or want it. The best we can do is coach them to be wary and defensive, and I think it would be unfair of me as a father to demand that every Uber driver ID any female passenger that looks under 25. That's what it amounts to in order to prevent teens from ridesharing.

There are a couple of high school guys I'll take over to the nearby shopping center for their lunch ocassionally, but I wouldn't be comfortable picking up girls from the same HS. At some point, especially based on very informative discussions like this thread, I'm going to need to re-evaluate my willingness to pick up ANY kids from the high school.


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## Michael - Cleveland (Jan 1, 2015)

PrestonT said:


> We can't lock them in their closets .


What? When did that change? Heck, I had a hard enough time getting her out her damned closet (no, not that way - "not that there's anything wrong with that", hehe). I was fortunate... good kids who learn early to accept responsibility, earn the right to take responsibility and tend to make good decisions. Still, even good kids (and adults) do stupid things. But I'll be damned if I'm going to help a maggot try to take advantage of any one's kid.

I pick-up high-school kids all the time (a lot of kids here use Uber/Lyft to get to/from private schools)...
but I won't give a ride to under-age females without speaking with a parent.
(well, unless it's it's a 5.x or higher surge on an XL ride - hey, I admit it - I can be bought).
All it takes is one false accusation from a ticked-off angry teen girl to ruin your life.


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## Jermin8r89 (Mar 10, 2016)

BurgerTiime said:


> *FATHERS: TEEN DAUGHTERS USED UBER AND MEGABUS TO RUN AWAY FROM HOME TO LOUISIANA*
> 
> Email
> 
> ...


I wander how this goes into ubers lost and found regulations?

I wander if uber support sent test to driver asking "This parent lost their child in your car have you found them?" Uber support would say something stupid to driver

1 time uber support asked me " Have you seen this man"? No picture or name. Lol


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## tohunt4me (Nov 23, 2015)

BurgerTiime said:


> *FATHERS: TEEN DAUGHTERS USED UBER AND MEGABUS TO RUN AWAY FROM HOME TO LOUISIANA*
> 
> Email
> 
> ...


I DIDNT DO IT !

I may have safely returned teen daughters home from the bar they NEVER should have been at to begin with. I may have not charged their mother the puke clean up fee out to f kindness.



BurgerTiime said:


> *FATHERS: TEEN DAUGHTERS USED UBER AND MEGABUS TO RUN AWAY FROM HOME TO LOUISIANA*
> 
> Email
> 
> ...


This father is kidding himself.
Lucky some stranger didn't pick them up at the gas station and do God knows what with them !



SEAL Team 5 said:


> I know how these fathers feel. Back in the early 90's when my kids were young they stole some Nike Air Jordan's from an athletic shoe store and got caught. I blamed Nike for making the shoes really cool and desirable.
> Gimme a break, fathers blaming others for the actions of their children. These fathers need to look at why their young teens decided to leave home.


He should take them to Tijuana to the Donkey show ,and explain to them how girls are sold for this . . .
They may be more cautious.
lot of scarey people in the world.
Sometimes ,the truth can be the scariest thing.

You KNOW they just wanted to come down for Mardi Gras.


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