# Dumped on the Highway, Passengers Fought Uber Secrecy in Court



## KevinH (Jul 13, 2014)

https://sfpublicpress.org/news/2020-01/dumped-on-the-highway-passengers-fought-uber-secrecy-in-court
By 
Seth Rosenfeld
San Francisco Public Press
- Jan 7 2020 - 6:01am

After an evening of socializing in Santa Barbara, Margaret Schimmel and her brother, Joseph, hailed an Uber to take them home, but the ride turned into a nightmare, according to a lawsuit they filed against Uber and the driver in San Francisco Superior Court.

The case illustrates Uber's use of secrecy in responding to lawsuits that accuse it and its drivers of injuring people - and the hurdles that accident victims can face in trying to hold the nation's largest ride-hailing firm accountable.

The San Francisco Public Press reviewed more than 150 lawsuits in which plaintiffs claimed they had been injured in accidents involving Uber vehicles. The investigation found repeated allegations that Uber drivers were poorly trained, distracted by their apps and driving dangerously, all of which Uber and its drivers denied.










In many of those cases, court records also show, Uber obtained broad protective orders that have hidden evidence concerning accidents and prevented the public and regulators from learning of safety hazards. Uber even refused to comply with the Schimmels' requests for information such as the driver's name, impeding the court process and leading a judge to sanction the firm's attorneys.

Margaret Schimmel, a graduate student in biology at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and her brother had summoned the ride using the Uber app at 12:20 a.m. on Aug.18, 2017. About 10 minutes later, a driver pulled up in a vehicle bearing the company's logo and asked if they were waiting for their Uber. Soon they were speeding along Highway 101, according to their lawsuit.

But when they told the driver that he was going the wrong way to their home, the lawsuit says, he began yelling, abruptly stopped at the center highway median and ordered them out of his car, despite their objections.

Stranded in the middle of a busy six-lane freeway, they tried to run across the southbound lanes to the safety of the shoulder, the lawsuit says, but Margaret was struck by a hit-and-run driver and her leg was crushed. Joseph dragged her off the highway to the apron. "I was stuck alone on the highway in the middle of the night trying to save my sister from bleeding to death," he recalled, according to an email in the court record.

An ambulance quickly arrived and took her to an emergency room in critical condition. The next day, Joseph reported the incident to Uber using the company's app and requested their driver's name. Uber said it could not determine his identity, the lawsuit says.

Their complaint claimed that Uber fraudulently marketed itself as a safe form of transportation but instead provided an "undertrained, dangerous driver" who was inadequately supervised and "acted with gross negligence, causing severe and permanent injury to the Plaintiffs." The complaint listed the unknown driver as defendant Doe 1.

Uber denied the allegations and asserted 39 affirmative defenses, all in service of the firm's contention that it had no liability for the alleged incident, including claims that the driver was an independent contractor and that Uber had "no duty" to provide a safe ride. The company also claimed that the Schimmels' driver was "not associated with the Uber app."

Uber requested that the Schimmels' lawyers sign a protective order to maintain confidentiality of company records that Uber said contained "sensitive and/or confidential proprietary business information." The lawyers signed it, but the discovery process of exchanging evidence broke down.

Attorneys Richard Schoenberger and Sara M. Peters, who were representing the Schimmels, filed a motion alleging that Uber's responses had been "entirely evasive" and that the company was improperly withholding evidence that would identify the driver. The information was necessary to "pursue justice for this tragedy," the motion said, but Uber had refused to provide it for more than a year.

Allison M. Lawrence, an attorney with Tyson & Mendes, a law firm that represents Uber in many accident cases, filed a sworn declaration saying that the company had turned over "all responsive documents in its custody" even though "this matter has _nothing_ to do with Uber."

After reviewing the matter, Judge Richard B. Ulmer Jr. ordered Uber to provide complete responses to the Schimmels' discovery requests and pay $2,100 in sanctions to reimburse their cost of bringing the motion.

Eight months later, on July 12, 2019, the case settled secretly, before trial, as did all the other resolved lawsuits reviewed by the Public Press. Neither Peters, an attorney for the Schimmels, nor James Sell, an attorney for Uber, responded to requests for comment.

As a result of the secrecy, no information about the driver, his record, or his relationship with Uber, has become public.

The Schimmel case is one of thousands of nonfatal accidents involving Uber drivers in California that, government studies indicate, the company did not include in its widely publicized December 2019 safety report.

Uber spokesman Andrew Hasbun said in a written statement that the company would not comment on specific cases, but that all drivers are expected to adhere to the company's "community guidelines," which include treating everyone with respect and following the law. The statement also said that Uber had improved its background checks of drivers.

Margaret Schimmel, meanwhile, continued to receive medical care and eventually returned to her biology classes in a wheelchair.

See accompanying stories in this project:

California Agency Is Hiding Uber and Lyft Accident Reports
Safety Report From Uber Leaves Out Most Accidents
*Audio Extras:* Seth Rosenfeld's Reporting Shines Light on Ride-Hailing's Dark Data


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## 25rides7daysaweek (Nov 20, 2017)

Uber has unmatched her with that driver


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## Fuzzyelvis (Dec 7, 2014)

What idiot tries to run across the freeway? In the dark? They couldn't just call the police? (assuming they didn't want to call another uber--someone will pick them up there).

And I wonder if the destination was put in correctly or if there's a lot more to the story? But in any case what they did was idiotic.

At this point we don't even know if it WAS an uber driver.


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## OG ant (Oct 11, 2019)

They have no one but thier own stupidity to blame. You dont just run across a 6 lane highway like a damn deer! You would think humans are smarter than animal.


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## Trafficat (Dec 19, 2016)

My hypothesis based on the way Uber reacted:
Driver had Uber/Lyft stickers on his window. Pax hailed the car like a taxicab instead of booking on the app. Pax did not record license plate number and can only tell the make and color of the vehicle. As a result, Uber cannot determine who the driver is or even whether the driver is a legit uber driver or someone with a sticker.

It probably was a legit Uber driver, or a recently deactivated Uber driver, taking illegal street hails. 

Uber lawyers also probably determined that settling the case was cheaper than fighting it.


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## troothequalstroll (Oct 12, 2019)

Was just a guy with an uber sticker or a shared/fake account that's why or driver figured out he picked up wrong riders lol

Sucks for them but did they check the plates?

Who goes to the airport at midnight? No reason to drive nights in this market


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## Wolfgang Faust (Aug 2, 2018)

Terrible.


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## peteyvavs (Nov 18, 2015)

There are thousands of bad drivers working r/s, I use to see them around the airport getting stoned and complaining about pax’s when they are the ones with attitude issues.


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## soontobeautomated (Apr 4, 2017)

Safety Never Stops


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## RDWRER (May 24, 2018)

Sounds like a bandit cab pretending to be their Uber.


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## KK2929 (Feb 9, 2017)

Any RS driver that orders pax out of their car in an unsafe area will and should be liable. 
As for the i.d. of the driver -- that is in the ride history of the pax. 
That driver should be worried. Their actions were reckless and a woman has been crippled because of it. 
Uber will lose this case. They will settle out of court like they always do.


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## Youburr (Aug 22, 2019)

I don’t have anything to do with this but it makes me want to file suit in a court of law.


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## OldUncleDave (Apr 22, 2019)

KK2929 said:


> Any RS driver that orders pax out of their car in an unsafe area will and should be liable.
> As for the i.d. of the driver -- that is in the ride history of the pax.
> That driver should be worried. Their actions were reckless and a woman has been crippled because of it.
> Uber will lose this case. They will settle out of court like they always do.


That is the main clue that this r/s driver wasn't on duty, or working illegal.

There is no indication of PAX having information in her app history.
Her sworn statement is that they didn't ID their driver.
He drove away from their destination. Maybe kidnap, long hauling, or scamming.


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## Cynergie (Apr 10, 2017)

Fuzzyelvis said:


> What idiot tries to run across the freeway? In the dark? They couldn't just call the police? (assuming they didn't want to call another uber--someone will pick them up there).
> 
> And I wonder if the destination was put in correctly or if there's a lot more to the story? But in any case what they did was idiotic.
> 
> At this point we don't even know if it WAS an uber driver.


sounds like there is a lot more to the story than the Plantiff is letting on.

Like alcohol and back seat drivers don't mix. And perhaps even party drugs.

Pax live to LIE. Love to have been a fly on the wall when those two were spilling their guts to their crook of an attorney


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## uberdriverfornow (Jan 10, 2016)

How was Uber supposed to know the license plate of the car that they wound up getting into?

In this case, Uber is 100% not at fault.


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## 25rides7daysaweek (Nov 20, 2017)

Youburr said:


> I don't have anything to do with this but it makes me want to file suit in a court of law.


If you can get a lawyer to take it
I WANT IN TOO !!!


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## Cynergie (Apr 10, 2017)

Trafficat said:


> My hypothesis based on the way Uber reacted:
> Driver had Uber/Lyft stickers on his window. Pax hailed the car like a taxicab instead of booking on the app. Pax did not record license plate number and can only tell the make and color of the vehicle. As a result, Uber cannot determine who the driver is or even whether the driver is a legit uber driver or someone with a sticker.
> 
> It probably was a legit Uber driver, or a recently deactivated Uber driver, taking illegal street hails.
> ...


HTH does the Plantiff even know if the driver who pulled up to the curb was driving for the Uber app at that time? Especially when the article explicitly indicates this:



> Margaret Schimmel, a graduate student in biology at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and her brother had summoned the ride using the Uber app at 12:20 a.m. on Aug.18, 2017. *About 10 minutes later, a driver pulled up in a vehicle bearing the company's logo and asked if they were waiting for their Uber*. Soon they were speeding along Highway 101, according to their lawsuit.
> 
> But when they told the driver that *he was going the wrong way to their home*, the lawsuit says, *he began yelling, abruptly stopped at the center highway median and ordered them out of his car*, despite their objections.


Just because his vehicle is showing the Uber sticker doesn't mean he was driving for the app at the time. It's also quite likely the Lyft app may have been on the vehicle as well, but the Uber sticker is what the pax was fixated on

It's also strange that the driver had to ASK them if they were _waiting for an Uber_?? I mean isn't that what Uber app-less cabbies used to do a decade ago?? Instead of just pulling up and asking them to confirm the pax name on the Uber account?? 

I'm also willing to bet these idiots also failed to check and match the driver's LICENSE PLATE with their app as well. Bet they just blindly jumped into the vehicle like most pax.

If the pax failed to confirm the license plate, then sounds like the driver was a legit Uber driver. But didn't take the ping so knew he wasn't the right driver for this pax. But by the Law of Surprise and luck of close proximity to a potential fare, attempted to steal another driver's fare regardless. Ended up trying to take a short cut and/or flat out wing the trip with no official designated GPS route as provided by the app. Then panicked once the pax called him on his skullduggery and tried to cover his tracks by ditching them on the freeway.

Regardless of whether that driver was trying to hustle the pax or not, seems he was displaying a legit Uber logo during the time of the ride. Which would make Uber complicit by default regardless of whether they quietly deactivated said driver (most likely case) or not. Which would explain DK's opting for the secret settlement. To make Uber's complicity in the whole [email protected] up go quietly away.


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## O-Side Uber (Jul 26, 2017)

OG ant said:


> They have no one but thier own stupidity to blame. You dont just run across a 6 lane highway like a damn deer! You would think humans are smarter than animal.


The brother and sister were likely drunk and backseat driving the guy . Not cool to boot them on the freeway.. I'd reserve that for a violent passenger. I don't believe that a sober person would walk across 6 lanes on the freeway. An emergency call to Uber would have been a better choice .


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## Cynergie (Apr 10, 2017)

^^
Except you can't emergency call an Uber from a freeway median? There's no way Uber's app would permit a pax to put their blip in the middle of the freeway---wait....then again this IS Uber we're talking about. Just about anything is possible....

Anyhow, what you said about reserving the freeway for the more violent pax is really no laughing matter. There was a tragic news article a while back that made mainstream news. a couple of friends were hanging out at a bar and one of them became too inebriated and passed out.

So his other 2 buddies called an Uber and put him into the vehicle which was being driven by a woman. This incident was in the late evening so visibility on the freeway was at the lowest point. Driver took the freeway to expedite the ride. And shortly afterwards, the drunk pax regained consciousness. Thought he was being kidnapped in his disoriented and intoxicated state. Demanded that the female driver immediately stop the car and let him out.

Driver kept denying the pax request as they were on the freeway. At that point, the pax became violent and attacked the female driver, forcing her to abruptly pullover on the shoulder. The intoxicated pax immediately jumped out onto the freeway, ran straight into oncoming traffic and was instantly killed. Leaving an extremely shaken up and emotionally distraught Uber driver. She was later released after making her statement to law enforcement.

Tragic lose-lose situation for both parties involved. Because after avoiding the news media, odds are Uber most likely and immediately deactivated this poor driver.


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## Disgusted Driver (Jan 9, 2015)

It's clearly suspicious as to what really went on. I'm guessing that driver picked up the wrong fare and pax didn't check that they were getting into the right car. 

Two stupids don't make a smart!


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## Classical Telecaster (Dec 12, 2019)

troothequalstroll said:


> Was just a guy with an uber sticker or a shared/fake account that's why or driver figured out he picked up wrong riders lol
> 
> Sucks for them but did they check the plates?
> 
> Who goes to the airport at midnight? No reason to drive nights in this market


In my case I probably took fifty red-eyes from LAX back to Michigan from '98 through '01 in the course of my job.

Bad decisions on the paxs' part but what a nightmare! Dumping them in the MIDDLE of the 101? He could have at least pulled over to the right if not an exit.


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## 5☆OG (Jun 30, 2019)

25rides7daysaweek said:


> Uber has unmatched her with that driver


yeah exactly


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## uberdriverfornow (Jan 10, 2016)

Cynergie said:


> HTH does the Plantiff even know if the driver who pulled up to the curb was driving for the Uber app at that time? Especially when the article explicitly indicates this:
> 
> Just because his vehicle is showing the Uber sticker doesn't mean he was driving for the app at the time. It's also quite likely the Lyft app may have been on the vehicle as well, but the Uber sticker is what the pax was fixated on
> 
> ...


how an Uber driver steal another drivers fare and get paid for it through the app ?


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## DriveLV (Aug 21, 2019)

Classical Telecaster said:


> Bad decisions on the paxs' part but what a nightmare! Dumping them in the MIDDLE of the 101? He could have at least pulled over to the right if not an exit.


It makes absolutely zero sense for the driver to drop them in the median of the 101. Not only is it unsafe for the pax, but it's unsafe for the driver too!

Not knowing what really happened - my imagination goes to the following possible scenarios:

Driver dropped the pax on the shoulder of the freeway.

Maybe pax decided it would be faster/better to cross the freeway to the complete other side rather than walk off the freeway and around? (remember they said the driver was going the wrong direction).
or
Maybe one of the pax was super drunk and just decided to start running to the middle of the freeway from the shoulder - just because. Drunks make all sorts of irrational navigation decisions.

Either way, I'm guessing the driver was not their assigned Uber driver. We all know Uber has no problem throwing drivers under the bus - it wouldn't benefit Uber at all to hide the identity of the driver (unless they allowed the driver on the platform after he was already convicted of vehicular manslaughter or was a convicted sexual predator).


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## tohunt4me (Nov 23, 2015)

KevinH said:


> https://sfpublicpress.org/news/2020-01/dumped-on-the-highway-passengers-fought-uber-secrecy-in-court
> By
> Seth Rosenfeld
> San Francisco Public Press
> ...


A " GUY PULLS UP AND ASKS IF THEY WERE WAITING ON AN UBER "!

REALLY ?

THEY JUMP IN . . .

PROBABLY WASNT AN UBER DRIVER !

DEFINANTLY THE WRONG ONE !


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## MiamiKid (May 24, 2016)

OG ant said:


> They have no one but thier own stupidity to blame. You dont just run across a 6 lane highway like a damn deer! You would think humans are smarter than animal.


100% the fault of the driver. Period.


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## DriveLV (Aug 21, 2019)

tohunt4me said:


> A " GUY PULLS UP AND ASKS IF THEY WERE WAITING ON AN UBER "!


To be fair, I've pulled up and said those words "waiting on an uber"? If they say yes, then we continue and do the name exchange, etc.

This happens when I've suspected it's my pax but they don't immediately approach my vehicle. I don't want the pax to think I'm ignoring them (if it's really my pax), nor do I want them thinking I'm just a creepy guy who stopped near them and am staring at them.

Sure - on it's own "waiting for an Uber?" may sound suspicious, but in context it can make sense.

That said - I don't believe this was their assigned Uber driver. He may or may not have been going for a cash ride, or had a nefarious purpose in mind. He may had a different pax lined up in the app but discovered on the freeway he had the wrong one.



MiamiKid said:


> 100% the fault of the driver. Period.


Assuming we believe the pax story....

The driver didn't push the pax in front of a moving car. The pax were adults and made conscious decisions.

The pax decided to exit the vehicle instead of remain in the car and insist on being brought to the exit/shoulder.
The pax decided upon exiting the vehicle that they should cross the freeway instead of multiple other options:
call emergency services
or
wait for a safe break in traffic before crossing

Cars don't just run up into the median all the time. It would have likely been safe to wait there - even if they had to wait 10 minutes for an emergency vehicle to break traffic.

Note: having lived in Santa Barbara, after midnight on the 101 there should be breaks without any cars traveling (might have to wait a few minutes). It's not like Los Angeles where there is a constant traffic flow on every freeway 24/7.
Oh - and when the article says it's a 6 lane freeway - that's total lanes. It's only 3 lanes in each direction - and in many places one of the 3 lanes is an exit/entrance lane.


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## MiamiKid (May 24, 2016)

DriveLV said:


> To be fair, I've pulled up and said those words "waiting on an uber"? If they say yes, then we continue and do the name exchange, etc.
> 
> This happens when I've suspected it's my pax but they don't immediately approach my vehicle. I don't want the pax to think I'm ignoring them (if it's really my pax), nor do I want them thinking I'm just a creepy guy who stopped near them and am staring at them.
> 
> ...


The driver will be held liable, criminal or civil, in any courtroom in this country.


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## DriveLV (Aug 21, 2019)

MiamiKid said:


> The driver will be held liable, criminal or civil, in any courtroom in this country.


If true, I would have expected the DA to force Uber to give up the driver's identity so they could press charges.


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## uberdriverfornow (Jan 10, 2016)

DriveLV said:


> If true, I would have expected the DA to force Uber to give up the driver's identity so they could press charges.


How exactly is Uber supposed to know the name of this driver ?


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## observer (Dec 11, 2014)

https://www.claimsjournal.com/news/national/2018/11/06/287694.htm


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## DriveLV (Aug 21, 2019)

uberdriverfornow said:


> How exactly is Uber supposed to know the name of this driver ?


I agree this probably wasn't the assigned driver.

That said, if the driver had done something worthy of criminal prosecution as Miami says, then the DA would have started by subpoenaing Uber's records for info on the alleged "driver" - which probably would have been reported along with the civil suit.


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## uberdriverfornow (Jan 10, 2016)

observer said:


> https://www.claimsjournal.com/news/national/2018/11/06/287694.htm


nothing in that story indicates how


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## observer (Dec 11, 2014)

uberdriverfornow said:


> nothing in that story indicates how


"A lawyer for the Schimmels, Curtis Johnson, acknowledges they didn't realize they got into the wrong vehicle in downtown Santa Barbara - not the car that the Uber app"


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## uberdriverfornow (Jan 10, 2016)

observer said:


> "A lawyer for the Schimmels, Curtis Johnson, acknowledges they didn't realize they got into the wrong vehicle in downtown Santa Barbara - not the car that the Uber app"


exactly, without a plate Uber has no way of knowing

thw plaintiffs are just going on a fishing expedition

and im glad Uber is going to bat for drivers in this case


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## goneubering (Aug 17, 2017)

What a horrible story all the way around.


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## observer (Dec 11, 2014)

uberdriverfornow said:


> exactly, without a plate Uber has no way of knowing
> 
> thw plaintiffs are just going on a fishing expedition
> 
> and im glad Uber is going to bat for drivers in this case


I'm pretty sure Uber tracks drivers 96.9 percent (pulled that number out of midair) of the time.

Remember Godview?

Uber could easily have narrowed it down to drivers near address on the date and time.

They settled because that's what Uber does.

They probably found the driver and deactivated him. Now, we'll most likely never find out. Because Uber is like that, keeping secrets.


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## tohunt4me (Nov 23, 2015)

uberdriverfornow said:


> How exactly is Uber supposed to know the name of this driver ?


Bingo.

It was not their Assigned Driver.

Could have been anyone !



observer said:


> "A lawyer for the Schimmels, Curtis Johnson, acknowledges they didn't realize they got into the wrong vehicle in downtown Santa Barbara - not the car that the Uber app"


Exactly.

Most likely Drunk too.

SUE THE BAR !

good luck.

Mandatory ADULT CLASSES.


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## Fuzzyelvis (Dec 7, 2014)

Cynergie said:


> ^^
> Except you can't emergency call an Uber from a freeway median? There's no way Uber's app would permit a pax to put their blip in the middle of the freeway---wait....then again this IS Uber we're talking about. Just about anything is possible....
> 
> Anyhow, what you said about reserving the freeway for the more violent pax is really no laughing matter. There was a tragic news article a while back that made mainstream news. a couple of friends were hanging out at a bar and one of them became too inebriated and passed out.
> ...


I've had plenty of calls from freeways. Many are likely misplaced pins but could be someone broken down (or kicked out of their uber). They get shuffled by me but I've also seen cars with uber or lyft signs picking up on the freeway.

Uber will absolutely let you pin on a freeway. They'll let you pin in the ocean too.

Letting someone put an unconscious unaccompanied person in your car is a stupid move and the driver should never have allowed it in the first place.


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## Amsoil Uber Connect (Jan 14, 2015)

The point is, How does anyone know that Uber does not Pay Off there Attorneys to keep any proceedings to move forward ? , Uber has all the info that should have been given up during Discovery for the pre trial ? and turn around and say the information does not exsist when in fact it does !

We all know how much Uber lies. 

They CARRY BIG INSURANCE ! Ya well good luck collecting on that.


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## Fuzzyelvis (Dec 7, 2014)

DriveLV said:


> If true, I would have expected the DA to force Uber to give up the driver's identity so they could press charges.


What charges? Is it actually illegal to kick someone out of your car on the median? And even if it is, driver can just say he was being physically threatened if he didn't let them out right away.


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## DriveLV (Aug 21, 2019)

Fuzzyelvis said:


> What charges? Is it actually illegal to kick someone out of your car on the median? And even if it is, driver can just say he was being physically threatened if he didn't let them out right away.


I personally don't think criminal charges could be proven. But MiamiKid claimed that any jury would convict the driver for his actions.

I was just pointing out that if the DA really thought there was a criminal case there, the DA would have pursued Uber for potential evidence of the drivers identity.


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## goneubering (Aug 17, 2017)

Fuzzyelvis said:


> I've had plenty of calls from freeways. Many are likely misplaced pins but could be someone broken down (or kicked out of their uber). They get shuffled by me but I've also seen cars with uber or lyft signs picking up on the freeway.
> 
> Uber will absolutely let you pin on a freeway. They'll let you pin in the ocean too.
> 
> Letting someone put an unconscious unaccompanied person in your car is a stupid move and the driver should never have allowed it in the first place.


True story!! At first I thought it was a wrong placement but I had a legit ride request on the freeway from a bunch of guys with car trouble.


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## uberdriverfornow (Jan 10, 2016)

observer said:


> I'm pretty sure Uber tracks drivers 96.9 percent (pulled that number out of midair) of the time.
> 
> Remember Godview?
> 
> ...


we don't know it was an actual driver



Fuzzyelvis said:


> What charges? Is it actually illegal to kick someone out of your car on the median? And even if it is, driver can just say he was being physically threatened if he didn't let them out right away.


apparently even if they were stabbing him to death he cant stop in the median because its against the law

better to die than to stop on the median

seriously though, dropping then off on the median doesnt mean he is liable for their being dumbasses after


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## nonononodrivethru (Mar 25, 2019)

KevinH said:


> https://sfpublicpress.org/news/2020-01/dumped-on-the-highway-passengers-fought-uber-secrecy-in-court
> By
> Seth Rosenfeld
> San Francisco Public Press
> ...


There is no discovery with these companies. They have the capabilities of seeing which driver accidentally picked them up if it was the wrong driver, but they will obstruct the investigation.


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## MiamiKid (May 24, 2016)

DriveLV said:


> If true, I would have expected the DA to force Uber to give up the driver's identity so they could press charges.


There's more going on behind the scenes. And very likely a civil suit brewing.

Moreover, what shocks me is the fact that, no matter what happens, this forum stands with the driver. Morally challenged.

My two cents.
&#128526;


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## uberdriverfornow (Jan 10, 2016)

MiamiKid said:


> There's more going on behind the scenes. And very likely a civil suit brewing.
> 
> Moreover, what shocks me is the fact that, no matter what happens, this forum stands with the driver. Morally challenged.
> 
> ...


Did the driver push them out in traffic ?

My two cents.
&#128526;


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## Invisible (Jun 15, 2018)

MiamiKid said:


> There's more going on behind the scenes. And very likely a civil suit brewing.
> 
> Moreover, what shocks me is the fact that, no matter what happens, this forum stands with the driver. Morally challenged.
> 
> ...


I don't stand by the driver for dropping them off on the freeway. People here have been killed walking on the freeway.

The reason this forum stands by the drivers is because drivers know pax lie.


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## LyftUberFuwabolewa (Feb 7, 2019)

RDWRER said:


> Sounds like a bandit cab pretending to be their Uber.


How would he get paid?


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## observer (Dec 11, 2014)

MiamiKid said:


> There's more going on behind the scenes. And very likely a civil suit brewing.
> 
> Moreover, what shocks me is the fact that, no matter what happens, this forum stands with the driver. Morally challenged.
> 
> ...


Uber has already settled the case and had everyone sign NDAs.

Driver should have pulled over to the side of the freeway and not in the center that is just plain stupid.

My 2 Centavos.
&#128529;


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## MothMan (May 15, 2016)

LyftUberFuwabolewa said:


> How would he get paid?


Somewhere during the ride or at the end of the ride, the driver starts talking $. How it ends is anyone's guess but I gotta believe these guys get some $ or they wouldn't be doing it.

I remember being in a gas station one night when two guys came in and headed to the ATM. One wanted to be paid for a ride and the other was none too happy about how the ride had occurred. Lots of yelling. $ was eventually obtained from ATM and driver got some of it.


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## uberdriverfornow (Jan 10, 2016)

MothMan said:


> Somewhere during the ride or at the end of the ride, the driver starts talking $. How it ends is anyone's guess but I gotta believe these guys get some $ or they wouldn't be doing it.
> 
> I remember being in a gas station one night when two guys came in and headed to the ATM. One wanted to be paid for a ride and the other was none too happy about how the ride had occurred. Lots of yelling. $ was eventually obtained from ATM and driver got some of it.


if he offered money it would be in the news story


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## MothMan (May 15, 2016)

observer said:


> I'm pretty sure Uber tracks drivers 96.9 percent (pulled that number out of midair) of the time.
> 
> Remember Godview?
> 
> Uber could easily have narrowed it down to drivers near address on the date and time.


Easily? Only if they have something already written to manipulate the data that way.

I've worked for two large companies that had Ad Hoc report generation teams. It was where we sent the crappy programmers since management did not want to go to the trouble of firing them. Good luck getting correct information out them in a reasonable amount of time.



uberdriverfornow said:


> if he offered money it would be in the news story


The question was about how a bandit cab gets paid. It was not specific to this story. And even if it was, my response said $ may not come up until the end of the ride and this ride did not end at a destination.

Don't know why uberpeople is insisting these two responses go in the same post. Have not experienced this before.


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## Mkang14 (Jun 29, 2019)

Who kicks people out in the middle of the highway? Driver is crazy and an idiot without any sense❕



uberdriverfornow said:


> Did the driver push them out in traffic ?
> 
> My two cents.
> &#128526;


Let me drop you off in a lion's &#129409; den. You choose what direction↙⬅⬆➡↗↘⬇↖ you want to go, to make your escape&#127939;‍♂&#128168;. If you get attacked⚠, it will be completely your fault. Don't blame the driver &#128129;‍♀

&#128580;


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## MiamiKid (May 24, 2016)

observer said:


> Uber has already settled the case and had everyone sign NDAs.
> 
> Driver should have pulled over to the side of the freeway and not in the center that is just plain stupid.
> 
> ...


No the driver should have taken the closest exit to drop off the passenger. There are laws against dropping passengers on an interstate. Particularly in the center.



Mkang14 said:


> Who kicks people out in the middle of the highway? Driver is crazy and an idiot without any sense❕
> 
> 
> Let me drop you off in a lion's &#129409; den. You choose what direction↙⬅⬆➡↗↘⬇↖ you want to go, to make your escape&#127939;‍♂&#128168;. If you get attacked⚠, it will be completely your fault. Don't blame the driver &#128129;‍♀
> ...


Excellent analogy.


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## uberdriverfornow (Jan 10, 2016)

Mkang14 said:


> Who kicks people out in the middle of the highway? Driver is crazy and an idiot without any sense❕
> 
> 
> Let me drop you off in a lion's &#129409; den. You choose what direction↙⬅⬆➡↗↘⬇↖ you want to go, to make your escape&#127939;‍♂&#128168;. If you get attacked⚠, it will be completely your fault. Don't blame the driver &#128129;‍♀
> ...


If I'm being a dbag then I would fully expect to be dropped off at the worst spot possible.


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## Mkang14 (Jun 29, 2019)

uberdriverfornow said:


> If I'm being a dbag then I would fully expect to be dropped off at the worst spot possible.


Yes, makes complete sense. If I call someone a "jerk", I should be murdered☠


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## uberdriverfornow (Jan 10, 2016)

Mkang14 said:


> Yes, makes complete sense. If I call someone a "jerk", I should be murdered☠


The driver did not harm the passengers in any way, shape, or form.

The driver did not force the passengers to get in his car.

What else you got ?


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## KK2929 (Feb 9, 2017)

OldUncleDave said:


> That is the main clue that this r/s driver wasn't on duty, or working illegal.
> 
> There is no indication of PAX having information in her app history.
> Her sworn statement is that they didn't ID their driver.
> He drove away from their destination. Maybe kidnap, long hauling, or scamming.


---------------------------
Are we reading the same article ?

Eight months later, on July 12, 2019, the case settled secretly, before trial, as did all the other resolved lawsuits reviewed by the Public Press. Neither Peters, an attorney for the Schimmels, nor James Sell, an attorney for Uber, responded to requests for comment.

Uber settled this case out of court. That is admission of guilt.

This driver did something reckless and stupid. One question - was he going in the wrong direction ?? Why the over reaction to the question. The person has no respect for anyone and little value for life.



uberdriverfornow said:


> The driver did not harm the passengers in any way, shape, or form.
> 
> The driver did not force the passengers to get in his car.
> 
> What else you got ?


----------------------
Surely you are not serious. Ordering people out of the car along a busy freeway and in the middle of no where is putting their safety in danger and, yes, he did force them out of the car.


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## Mkang14 (Jun 29, 2019)

uberdriverfornow said:


> The driver did not harm the passengers in any way, shape, or form.
> 
> The driver did not force the passengers to get in his car.
> 
> What else you got ?


&#129318;‍♀

Why did the driver take the pax? If he had no intention of providing them a safe ride. Is he a thug?

Someone goes on an airplane✈, the pilot gets butthurt &#128530; for whatever reason and tells everyone to start getting out of the plane (he doesn't physically push them out).

The pilot &#128104;‍✈didnt touch them. He didnt make them buy a plane ticket &#127915;.

You see how there are problems with your logic?


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## uberdriverfornow (Jan 10, 2016)

Mkang14 said:


> &#129318;‍♀
> 
> Why did the driver take the pax? If he had no intention of providing them a safe ride. Is he a thug?
> 
> ...


we don't know since we don't have the drivers account

all we know is that the driver never touched the pax and never harmed the pax in any way



KK2929 said:


> ---------------------------
> Are we reading the same article ?
> 
> Eight months later, on July 12, 2019, the case settled secretly, before trial, as did all the other resolved lawsuits reviewed by the Public Press. Neither Peters, an attorney for the Schimmels, nor James Sell, an attorney for Uber, responded to requests for comment.
> ...


just because he forced them out of the car doesn't mean he forced them to jump in front of a moving car


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## Mkang14 (Jun 29, 2019)

uberdriverfornow said:


> we don't know since we don't have the drivers account
> 
> all we know is that the driver never touched the pax and never harmed the pax in any way


There are more ways to harm someone then physically touch them.

We also know that the driver left them in the middle of the highway.


uberdriverfornow said:


> just because he forced them out of the car doesn't mean he forced them to jump in front of a moving car


But he put them in the situation that caused the injury. What if a car swerves and hits the pax where the driver left them? Who's fault is it then?


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## uberdriverfornow (Jan 10, 2016)

Mkang14 said:


> There are more ways to harm someone then physically touch them. Such as leave them in dangers way.
> 
> We also know that the driver left them in the middle of the highway.
> 
> But he put them in the situation that caused the injury. What if a car swerves and hits the pax where the driver left them? Who's fault is it then?


so any time we drop a customer off near any street, they can easily walk in front of a car and get killed so we are clearly always killing people ? get real

pax are responsible for their own actions such as getting into the wrong car cause they were too stupid to look at the license plate

now if the driver physically harmed the pax in any way then of course I would be blaming the driver but that just rarely ever happens since most drivers are just trying to make a living


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## Mkang14 (Jun 29, 2019)

uberdriverfornow said:


> so any time we drop a customer off near any street, they can easily walk in front of a car and get killed so we are clearly always killing people ? get real
> 
> pax are responsible for their own actions such as getting into the wrong car cause they were too stupid to look at the license plate
> 
> now if the driver physically harmed the pax in any way then of course I would be blaming the driver but that just rarely ever happens since most drivers are just trying to make a living


I honestly don't think you would blame the driver for harming a pax (ever). But that's besides the point.

Most drivers/humans, trying to make an honest living, wouldn't drop someone off in the middle of the highway! That is much different then dropping someone off in front of a store or their house.


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## uberdriverfornow (Jan 10, 2016)

Mkang14 said:


> I honestly don't think you would blame the driver for harming a pax (ever). But that's besides the point.
> 
> Most drivers/humans, trying to make an honest living, wouldn't drop someone off in the middle of the highway! That is much different then dropping someone off in front of a store or their house.


well its almost always pax hitting drivers


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## goneubering (Aug 17, 2017)

Mkang14 said:


> I honestly don't think you would blame the driver for harming a pax (ever). But that's besides the point.
> 
> Most drivers/humans, trying to make an honest living, wouldn't drop someone off in the middle of the highway! That is much different then dropping someone off in front of a store or their house.


If this story is accurate then the driver is a terrible person. 

*But when they told the driver that he was going the wrong way to their home, the lawsuit says, he began yelling, abruptly stopped at the center highway median and ordered them out of his car, despite their objections.*


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## uberdriverfornow (Jan 10, 2016)

goneubering said:


> If this story is accurate then the driver is a terrible person. :frown:
> 
> *But when they told the driver that he was going the wrong way to their home, the lawsuit says, he began yelling, abruptly stopped at the center highway median and ordered them out of his car, despite their objections.*


lol ya that story sounds accurate...totally believable...clearly nothing left out


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## Mkang14 (Jun 29, 2019)

uberdriverfornow said:


> well its almost always pax hitting drivers


Problem is even with video evidence you find a way to twist the truth so driver is innocent.

When there is a will, there is a way.


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## uberdriverfornow (Jan 10, 2016)

Mkang14 said:


> Problem is even with video evidence you find a way to twist the truth so driver is innocent.
> 
> When there is a will there is a way.


it's not even with video....im showing you actual video evidence ... you got no evidence whatsoever that the driver harmed the pax in any way

even their own version has no evidence the driver harmed the pax

am I saying it wasnt a dbag move ? no, it was very rude but not illegal, especially if it was the riders attacking the driver, which would be the only time I would kick out riders on a freeway


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## goneubering (Aug 17, 2017)

uberdriverfornow said:


> lol ya that story sounds accurate...totally believable...clearly nothing left out


We'll never know all the details but kicking someone out of your car in the middle of a freeway is really really bad.


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## uberdriverfornow (Jan 10, 2016)

my guess is the driver picked up the wrong pax and they berated him to the point that he had to kick them out on the freeway



goneubering said:


> We'll never know all the details but kicking someone out of your car in the middle of a freeway is really really bad.


not if they were attacking him


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## goneubering (Aug 17, 2017)

uberdriverfornow said:


> my guess is the driver picked up the wrong pax and they berated him to the point that he had to kick them out on the freeway
> 
> 
> not if they were attacking him


If they were attacking him then why would Uber have settled?


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## uberdriverfornow (Jan 10, 2016)

goneubering said:


> If they were attacking him then why would Uber have settled?


just to make it go away since the rider had injuries and to not have to give up driver information


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## Mkang14 (Jun 29, 2019)

uberdriverfornow said:


> it's not even with video....im showing you actual video evidence ... you got no evidence whatsoever that the driver harmed the pax in any way
> 
> even their own version has no evidence the driver harmed the pax
> 
> am I saying it wasnt a dbag move ? no, it was very rude but not illegal, especially if it was the riders attacking the driver, which would be the only time I would kick out riders on a freeway


If 4 friends broke into a house. One of them had a gun that the other 3 didnt know about and kills the homeowner in a struggle. All 4 are charged.

Because when you do stupid things, you win stupid prizes. You don't have to be the one to harm someone.


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## uberdriverfornow (Jan 10, 2016)

Mkang14 said:


> If 4 friends broke into a house. One of them had a gun that the other 3 didnt know about and kills the homeowner in a struggle. All 4 are charged.


no connection between that and what happened

stopping along a freeway isnt a crime


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## doyousensehumor (Apr 13, 2015)

Mkang14 said:


> Because when you do stupid things, you win stupid prizes


I like that phrase


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## Mkang14 (Jun 29, 2019)

uberdriverfornow said:


> no connection between that and what happened
> 
> stopping along a freeway isnt a crime


You purposefully leave out important details.&#128514;

First, you missed my point. I wanted to show you an example in which people get charged for stupid decision making, even if they didnt directly cause the injury. Your whole "he didnt hurt them" stance doesn't work.

Second, yes stopping on the side of a highway isnt illegal. But making pax get out in the middle of the highway is.


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## uberdriverfornow (Jan 10, 2016)

Mkang14 said:


> You purposefully leave out important details.&#128514;
> 
> First, you missed my point. I wanted to show you an example in which people get charged for stupid decision making, even if they didnt directly cause the injury. Your whole "he didnt hurt them" stance doesn't work.
> 
> Second, yes stopping on the side of a highway isnt illegal. But making pax get out in the middle of the highway is.


people get charged when an actual crime occurs

and he didnt stop in traffic lol


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## KK2929 (Feb 9, 2017)

uberdriverfornow said:


> we don't know since we don't have the drivers account
> 
> all we know is that the driver never touched the pax and never harmed the pax in any way
> 
> ...


----------------------------
Your logic is tunneled visioned and immature. The driver was 100% in the wrong. If you are going to remove people from the car, it is done in a safe place and not along the side of a fwy. Not to mention, it is illegal to stop on a fwy in Calif. unless because of an emergency. Kicking people out of your car is not an emergency. A freeway in the daytime or at night is frightening. Very noisy and at night, it is difficult to judge the distance of a car by headlights. Plus the thing that you are not considering is , " Were these people intoxicated? " All these things only add to the fact that the driver accepted the ride, over reacted to a simple remark and deliberately put their lives in danger.
There is a certain responsibility that goes with driving RS, whether we like it or not. Putting someones safety and/or life in danger is not one of them. At least not in my car.


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## uberdriverfornow (Jan 10, 2016)

KK2929 said:


> ----------------------------
> Your logic is tunneled visioned and immature. The driver was 100% in the wrong. If you are going to remove people from the car, it is done in a safe place and not along the side of a fwy. Not to mention, it is illegal to stop on a fwy in Calif. unless because of an emergency. Kicking people out of your car is not an emergency. A freeway in the daytime or at night is frightening. Very noisy and at night, it is difficult to judge the distance of a car by headlights. Plus the thing that you are not considering is , " Were these people intoxicated? " All these things only add to the fact that the driver accepted the ride, over reacted to a simple remark and deliberately put their lives in danger.
> There is a certain responsibility that goes with driving RS, whether we like it or not. Putting someones safety and/or life in danger is not one of them. At least not in my car.


you dont know if it was an emergency

if you let riders bully you around that's your business


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## Cynergie (Apr 10, 2017)

Mkang14 said:


> Who kicks people out in the middle of the highway? Driver is crazy and an idiot without any sense❕
> 
> 
> Let me drop you off in a lion's &#129409; den. You choose what direction↙⬅⬆➡↗↘⬇↖ you want to go, to make your escape&#127939;‍♂&#128168;. If you get attacked⚠, it will be completely your fault. Don't blame the driver &#128129;‍♀
> ...


Well this poor sort of Uber Ant

http://abcnews.go.com/US/uber-passenger-struck-killed-police-car-fleeing-fight/story?id=66283016



> "I had to stop because it was distracting my driving," Randy continued.


Not to laugh at this tragic misfortune. But damn that's funny


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## MothMan (May 15, 2016)

This story reminds me of two LEOs who got in a lot of trouble for dropping off a drunk guy at Taco Bell and the drunk guy ended up getting hit by a car. If you do a search on the story, you can come up with lots more followup on it. Example of who is held legally responsible for what happens after someone leaves your vehicle.

2 officers fined $1,000 in Taco Bell death case


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## Hopindrew (Jan 30, 2019)

25rides7daysaweek said:


> Uber has unmatched her with that driver


All taken care of


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## Funky Monkey (Jul 11, 2016)

KevinH said:


> https://sfpublicpress.org/news/2020-01/dumped-on-the-highway-passengers-fought-uber-secrecy-in-court
> By
> Seth Rosenfeld
> San Francisco Public Press
> ...


That's a great idea! What every driver wants to do with unruly passengers but doesn't have the nerve to do. Kidding, I wasn't there. However, it does sound like once we've accepted a ride and they're in the car that's it. They can rape us because we'll be deactivated if we kick them out


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## Immoralized (Nov 7, 2017)

Seems like the rider got into the wrong uber and when the uber driver realize it and the rider started to complain it all exploded. Turning into a screaming match which ended up with the two riders dumped on the freeway as the wrong driver drove off. Then the two intoxicated riders ran into the cars on the freeway in their incapacitated mental/physical state.

Either that or they did get into the right uber and it was the right driver and the riders didn't like the route he was taking. Never will know the real story as the records are sealed and all this is just speculation at the end of the day.


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## AngelAdams (Jan 21, 2019)

Is it just me, or is express pool too efficient?



Fuzzyelvis said:


> What idiot tries to run across the freeway? In the dark? They couldn't just call the police? (assuming they didn't want to call another uber--someone will pick them up there).
> 
> And I wonder if the destination was put in correctly or if there's a lot more to the story? But in any case what they did was idiotic.
> 
> At this point we don't even know if it WAS an uber driver.


What idiot can't run across a freeway at night? I need to know her size before I pass judgment



Trafficat said:


> My hypothesis based on the way Uber reacted:
> Driver had Uber/Lyft stickers on his window. Pax hailed the car like a taxicab instead of booking on the app. Pax did not record license plate number and can only tell the make and color of the vehicle. As a result, Uber cannot determine who the driver is or even whether the driver is a legit uber driver or someone with a sticker.
> 
> It probably was a legit Uber driver, or a recently deactivated Uber driver, taking illegal street hails.
> ...


If they were really smart, they should of said the hit and run was an amazon prime van. Two birds one midwestern (assuming) American.


----------

