A U.S. jury has ordered Uber to pay $8.5 million in damages after finding the company liable for the sexual assault of a teenage passenger by one of its drivers, a verdict that could have far-reaching consequences for thousands of related claims pending against the ride-hailing company. Reuters reported that the decision was delivered on Thursday by a federal jury in Phoenix, Arizona.
The case was brought by Jaylynn Dean, who said she was sexually assaulted by an Uber driver when she was 19 years old. It was the first bellwether trial among more than 3,000 similar lawsuits consolidated in U.S. federal court. Such trials are designed to test legal arguments and help both sides assess potential settlement values across large groups of claims.
Jurors concluded that the driver was acting as an agent of Uber at the time of the assault, making the company legally responsible for his conduct. They awarded Dean $8.5 million in compensatory damages but declined to impose punitive damages, despite her lawyers seeking more than $140 million. Following the verdict, Uber shares fell 1.5 per cent in after-hours trading, while rival Lyft, which faces similar lawsuits, saw its stock drop 1.8 per cent, according to Reuters.
Uber said it would appeal the decision. In a statement cited by Reuters, a company spokesperson said the jury had rejected other claims brought by Dean, including allegations that Uber was negligent or that its safety systems were defective. The spokesperson said the verdict showed that Uber had acted responsibly and had invested significantly in rider safety.
Dean’s attorneys framed the outcome differently. Sarah London, one of her lawyers, said the verdict validated thousands of survivors who had come forward despite personal risk to demand accountability from Uber, accusing the company of prioritising profits over passenger safety. Dean, an Oklahoma resident, filed her lawsuit in 2023, about a month after the alleged assault took place in Arizona.
According to the lawsuit, Dean was intoxicated when she requested an Uber ride from her boyfriend’s home to her hotel. She alleged that the driver asked harassing questions during the trip before stopping the car and raping her. Her lawyers argued that Uber had long been aware of sexual assaults involving drivers but failed to take basic steps to better protect riders, a criticism that has followed the company for years and drawn congressional scrutiny.
During closing arguments, attorney Alexandra Walsh said Uber had marketed itself as a safe transportation option for women, particularly those travelling at night or after drinking. She said the company’s messaging led women to believe the service offered protection from the very risks they feared.
Uber has consistently argued that it should not be held responsible for criminal acts committed by drivers using its platform. Reuters reported that the company maintains drivers are independent contractors, not employees, and that even if they were considered agents, Uber should not be liable for actions outside the scope of their duties. During the trial, Uber’s lawyer Kim Bueno told jurors that the driver had no criminal history, had completed about 10,000 trips and held a near-perfect rating, arguing the assault was not foreseeable.
The case was overseen by U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer, who is managing the federal litigation against Uber from San Francisco. In addition to the federal cases, Uber faces more than 500 similar lawsuits in California state court. In the only state case to reach trial so far, a jury last year sided with Uber, finding that while the company had been negligent in its safety measures, that negligence was not a substantial factor in causing harm.
Analysts said the Phoenix verdict could still influence Uber’s policies. Morningstar analyst Mark Giarelli told Reuters that while the broader financial impact was difficult to predict, the ruling underscored the importance of robust background checks across gig-economy platforms where customers interact closely with drivers and delivery workers.
