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Uber ordered to pay $40m to family of woman killed after driver left her on highway

A US jury ordered Uber to pay $40 million to the family of a 23-year-old killed after her driver dumped her and a sick friend on a California highway.

The 23-year-old was returning home with a friend who got sick in the car when the Uber driver allegedly ordered them to get out of the vehicle on a California highway.

The Long Sip
What happened

Uber was ordered to pay $40 million to the parents of Emily Normandin-Parker, killed on a California highway after her driver forced her out of the car.

The detail

The driver, Vu Tran, did not call for help after leaving the women on the highway, and instead rang Uber to demand a cleaning fee, the family's lawyers said.

What it means

Uber had argued the driver was an independent contractor and it bore no responsibility, but the retired judge overseeing arbitration rejected that defence.

For you

Uber initially offered the family $10 million on the condition they stay silent about the incident, which they refused.

Full story at BBC

What readers are saying

ozzy1955
The judge's observation that the driver was more concerned about charging a cleaning fee than helping two intoxicated women stranded on a highway says everything about where his priorities were. That he didn't even call for help for them is the part that makes this worse than just a bad decision - it shows a complete absence of duty of care.
UncleGill
The detail about the driver calling Uber to demand a cleaning fee instead of helping them is appalling. Showing that level of concern for a car over human lives makes the court outcome entirely correct.
tess76
It is heartbreaking to read that she trusted the service to get her home safely after making the responsible choice not to drive. No family should ever have to experience such a tragedy.
ConsultantNicole
The mention of the initial settlement offer requiring a non-disclosure agreement shows why arbitration matters. Refusing that condition meant the details of what actually happened on that highway finally came to light.
IranianAusFarah
Forty million dollars cannot undo this negligence.

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