Uber pays $10m after sloppy background checks fail to detect dodgy drivers

Uber has agreed a multimillion-dollar settlement with the cities of Los Angeles and San Francisco over allegations it misled customers about background checks on its drivers. The ride-hailing app has paid $10 million after being accused of carrying out checks that were inferior to those faced by regular taxi drivers in the California cities. It admitted no wrongdoing but agreed to pay a further $15 million if it did not comply with the terms of the settlement over the next two years. Uber insisted it had addressed many of the issues raised in the lawsuit.

It sends a clear message to all businesses, and to start-ups in particular, that in the quest to quickly obtain market share, laws designed to protect consumers cannot be ignored. If a business acts like it is above the law, it will pay a heavy price.

San Francisco district attorney George Gascon

The settle comes after Investigators found more than two dozen drivers with criminal records working for the company. One of them had spent 26 years behind bars for second-degree murder but had applied to Uber using another name. He carried passengers on more than 1,000 journeys for Uber. Some of the drivers would have been failed background checks had they been working for other companies, who say they have more stringent controls such as fingerprint checks,

We’re glad to put this case behind us and excited to redouble our efforts serving riders and drivers across the state of California

Uber statement

uber