If you or someone in your family was sexually assaulted while riding in an Uber, you have the opportunity to seek significant compensation for your injuries and trauma. Businesses have a duty to keep their customers safe, and Uber has recently gotten into a whirlwind of legal trouble for failing to protect survivors from being assaulted by employees.
But unfortunately, only 1 out of 3 sexual assault survivors will report the incident to the police, and an even smaller number of survivors will pursue legal action against their attackers. There are a large number of reasons why survivors might leave their assaults unreported, and often, these reasons are deeply personal.
Though each survivor’s response to trauma is different, these are some of the most common reasons sexual assault survivors usually give for not reporting the incident:
- What if my attacker retaliates against me for reporting?
- What if the incident was somehow my fault? Did I do something to cause it?
- The police probably won’t do anything to help me, so why should I bother?
- Was it even sexual assault in the first place? Is it even worth reporting?
- I just want to put this behind me. I don’t want to cause trouble for anyone.
But no matter the reason, there’s always something to gain from taking legal action in a sexual assault case, especially if the responsible party is a major corporation like Uber. You do NOT need a police report to join the Uber lawsuit—and, by working with an attorney, you can be compensated for your medical bills, therapy visits, missing wages, and any other damages caused by the incident.
There are three types of damages you can pursue in a sexual assault case: non-economic damages, economic damages, and punitive damages.
Non-Economic Damages
Also referred to as “general damages,” non-economic damages are intended to compensate victims for any losses that do not have a specific monetary value. Some of the non-economic damages you could pursue in a lawsuit against Uber are:
- Pain and suffering (during and after the incident)
- Emotional distress
- Mental trauma (PTSD, anxiety, depression, etc.)
- Disfigurement, permanent injury, or scarring
- Lost enjoyment of life
- Loss of consortium
Economic Damages
Also referred to as “general damages,” non-economic damages are intended to compensate victims for any losses that do not have a specific monetary value. Some of the non-economic damages you could pursue in a lawsuit against Uber are:
- Cost of medical bills
- Cost of counseling or mental health therapy
- Cost of physical therapy or rehabilitation
- Wages lost while out of work
- Anticipated earnings you may lose in the future
- Cost of any property damage
Punitive Damages
Finally, punitive damages are designed to punish the attacker or the responsible party (in this case, Uber) for any malicious or intentionally negligent behavior. Though assault survivors often get a fairly large amount of money through non-economic and economic damages, punitive damages tend to be much higher in value. In extreme cases, punitive damages alone can be worth millions of dollars.
Here are some examples of what malicious or negligent behavior could look like in a sexual assault lawsuit against Uber:
- The attacker used a weapon during the incident.
- The attacker previously targeted other victims.
- The incident was excessively violent.
- The incident occurred more than once, without Uber intervening.
- Uber failed to respond to a previous complaint about the attacker.
- The attacker was a criminal that Uber hired with a faulty background check.
Join the sexual assault lawsuit against Uber
If you or a close family member experienced sexual assault while taking an Uber, you may be eligible to work with an attorney to join the ongoing lawsuit. Take our 60-second rideshare evaluation to see if you may be eligible to receive compensation for your injuries and trauma.
