Rideshare Sexual Assault Lawsuit Attorneys

Uber and Lyft owe their passengers a duty of care. Under negligence law, a company that places passengers alone in vehicles with drivers it knows—or should know—pose a risk of harm can be held liable for the assault that follows. These are not isolated incidents. Internal data obtained through litigation reveals that Uber received a report of sexual assault or misconduct in the United States almost every eight minutes between 2017 and 2022. Juries have heard the evidence and found Uber liable.

Survivors Deserve a Trial Team That Fights as Hard as They Do

Uber is a company valued at over $150 billion. It has experienced litigation counsel, a coordinated national defense strategy, and a documented practice of attacking survivors in court rather than acknowledging its failures. In the first two federal bellwether trials in the Uber MDL, that strategy, built around discrediting the women at the plaintiff's table, failed twice.

Turnbull, Moak & Pendergrass is well prepared for this fight. Brett Turnbull founded this firm specifically to take on powerful defendants with deep pockets and armies of lawyers. Our attorneys have tried more than 127 cases to verdict across 36 states. We have secured multiple eight-figure outcomes against some of the most sophisticated corporate defendants in American litigation.

Key Statistics

400,000+: Total reports of sexual assault or misconduct to Uber, 2017–2022.
5,981: Serious sexual assault reports to Uber in 2017–2018 alone.
4,158: Sexual assault reports to Lyft, 2017–2019.
3,700+: Active claims in the Uber federal MDL as of May 2026.

Current Verdicts & Settlements

Two federal bellwether trials have now been completed in the Uber sexual assault MDL. Both ended in verdicts for the survivor:

$8.5 Million — Dean v. Uber, U.S. District Court, District of Arizona (February 2026). The first federal MDL bellwether trial. A 19-year-old woman was raped by her Uber driver in Tempe, Arizona. Evidence showed that Uber's internal risk algorithm rated her trip as high risk, and the company dispatched the driver anyway.

Second Bellwether Verdict for Plaintiff — Mensing v. Uber, U.S. District Court, Western District of North Carolina (April 2026). Brianna Mensing testified that her Uber driver grabbed her upper inner thigh during a late-night ride in 2019 and told her he wanted to "keep it with him." At trial, Uber's defense focused on attacking her personal history and credibility rather than accounting for its driver's conduct. The jury found Uber liable and awarded $5,000 in damages, which reflects only the first day of harm following the assault.

These verdicts do not resolve the more than 3,700 cases still pending in the federal MDL, but they establish that juries are willing to hold Uber accountable, and they change the math for every settlement conversation going forward.

The Scale Of The Problem

Sealed court records from MDL litigation show that Uber received around 400,000 reports of sexual assault or misconduct from 2017 to 2022, averaging nearly one every eight minutes. In contrast, Uber publicly disclosed only 12,522 serious incidents during that time.

Plaintiffs' attorneys claim internal documents indicate 70,000 to 85,000 annual reports of sexual violence. Evidence from a bellwether trial revealed that Uber developed an algorithm, called Safety Risk Assessed Dispatch (S-RAD), to assess the risk of sexual assault for each ride.

In Dean v. Uber, Jaylynn Dean's trip was rated 0.81 out of 1.0 on that risk scale; Uber still dispatched the driver.

Uber's own published U.S. Safety Reports document the scale of the problem across three reporting periods:

2017–2018: 5,981 reports of the five most serious categories of sexual assault.
2019–2020: 3,824 reports.
2021–2022: 2,717 reports.

Lyft's own safety reports tell a similar story: 4,158 sexual assault reports from 2017 to 2019, and 2,651 from 2020 to 2022.

Internal documents obtained through litigation and reported by The New York Times revealed that Uber's safety standards were explicitly framed to protect the company, not its passengers.

How We’re Holding Uber And Lyft Accountable

Rideshare sexual assault claims fall under personal injury tort law, with liability grounded in several overlapping theories:

Negligent Hiring: Uber and Lyft rely on background check processes that plaintiffs allege are inadequate to screen out individuals with prior criminal records for violence or sexual offenses. The company's rapid driver onboarding model prioritizes volume over safety.
Negligent Retention: Even after receiving complaints about specific drivers documented in internal systems, both companies have allowed those drivers to continue operating on their platforms.
Failure to Warn: Despite possessing internal data showing the scale of assault on their platforms, Uber and Lyft did not adequately warn passengers or disclose the true scope of the risk to riders booking through their apps.

Negligent Design of Safety Systems: Uber developed internal tools capable of reducing assault risk—including algorithms identifying high-risk matches and options for same-gender pairings—but delayed or limited their implementation. Plaintiffs allege business priorities, including the cost and legal implications of reclassifying drivers as employees, drove those decisions.
Apparent Agency, the theory on which Uber was found liable in Dean v. Uber: When a company's marketing, branding, and app experience leads a passenger to reasonably believe that the driver is the company's agent, the company can be held liable for that driver's conduct even if drivers are technically classified as independent contractors.

Who Can Be Held Liable

Uber Technologies, Inc., for negligent hiring, retention, failure to warn, inadequate safety systems, and apparent agency
Lyft, Inc., for the same categories of institutional negligence
The individual driver for the assault itself
Potentially, third parties in limited circumstances involving inadequate venue security, alcohol service, or other contributing factors

Do You Have a Claim?

Rideshare assaults follow a consistent pattern. Research and litigation data consistently identify the following conditions as risk factors:

Late-night rides after social events or bars
Solo passengers, especially women
Intoxicated or vulnerable passengers
Drivers with unresolved misconduct complaints
Long or isolated routes with few intervention chances
Rides flagged for elevated risk by the platform but dispatched anyway

The assault generally occurs in the vehicle itself, which is a private, enclosed space that Uber and Lyft control through their matching and dispatch systems. That control is central to their liability.

Survivors frequently experience:

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
Depression, anxiety, and panic disorders/li>
Fear of transportation, public spaces, or being alone
Trust and relationship difficulties
Substance use disorders as coping mechanisms
Lost educational and professional opportunities
Physical injuries from the assault
Ongoing need for therapy and medical care

The law recognizes these as compensable harms. You don’t need to have filed a police report, and claims may still be valid even after a significant time. Statutes of limitations for sexual assault claims vary by state, and some have eliminated or extended deadlines for survivors.

Compensation And Damages

Survivors of rideshare sexual assault may be entitled to compensation for:

Past and future medical and psychological treatment expenses
Lost wages and diminished earning capacity
Pain, suffering, and emotional distress
Loss of enjoyment of life and loss of consortium
Costs of ongoing therapy, counseling, and rehabilitation
In cases where the defendant's conduct is found sufficiently egregious, courts may award punitive damages to punish the company and deter future misconduct

Steps To Take: What To Do If You Were Assaulted In A Rideshare

1. Get to safety and seek medical attention.

Your safety and health come first. Even if you have no visible physical injuries, a medical evaluation creates contemporaneous documentation that supports your legal claim. Sexual assault nurse examiner (SANE) exams are available at many hospitals and are specifically designed for survivors.

2. Report to law enforcement.

File a police report as soon as you are safely able to do so. A police report is not required to file a civil claim, but it strengthens your case.

3. Report within the app, but carefully.

Use Uber or Lyft's in-app reporting feature to create an official record with the company. Do this before speaking with any company representative, and do not provide recorded or detailed statements without legal counsel.

4. Preserve all evidence immediately.

Screenshot your ride receipt, driver's name and photo, route, trip details, and any communications. Do not delete the app or your account, as this data is critical evidence and may be difficult to recover later.

5. Do not speak with Uber or Lyft representatives without an attorney.

These companies have legal teams whose job is to minimize their liability. Anything you say can be used against your claim. Contact a lawyer first.

6. Call Turnbull, Moak & Pendergrass.

We will evaluate your claim at no cost, explain your legal options clearly, and tell you exactly where you stand—with no pressure and complete confidentiality.

Uber and Lyft Have Spent Years Perfecting Their Defense. We Have Decades of Experience in How to Beat It.

Beyond attacking survivors' credibility, rideshare companies argue they bear no liability because their drivers are classified as independent contractors. Courts have rejected this argument, but getting there requires building the right evidentiary record from day one: driver complaint history, internal safety data, platform communications, and expert testimony. That work has to start the moment you hire a lawyer.

Turnbull, Moak & Pendergrass was built for exactly that work. Our attorneys are licensed in 10 states, have handled cases across 36, and have a documented record of taking complex mass tort and institutional negligence cases all the way to trial.

We ensure your claim is filed correctly and on time, evidence is preserved before it disappears, and the full scope of your damages is documented and pursued. You will never face Uber's or Lyft's legal teams alone. Call (888) 488-9616 today for a free, confidential consultation. You pay nothing unless we win.

FAQ

What is the Uber sexual assault MDL, and how does it affect my case?

MDL No. 3084 (In Re: Uber Technologies, Inc., Passenger Sexual Assault Litigation) consolidates more than 3,700 federal Uber sexual assault lawsuits in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California before Judge Charles R. Breyer. Each plaintiff retains their own individual case; your recovery is based on your specific circumstances. If an Uber driver assaulted you, your claim may be filed directly into the MDL or pursued in state court, depending on the facts and jurisdiction.

Do I need a police report to file a claim?

No. A police report strengthens a claim but is not required to pursue civil legal action. Many survivors did not report to law enforcement at the time of the assault for a variety of understandable reasons. That does not bar you from seeking compensation.

How long do I have to file a rideshare sexual assault lawsuit?

Statutes of limitations for sexual assault and personal injury claims vary significantly by state, ranging from one year to ten years or more. Some states have recently extended or eliminated deadlines specifically for sexual assault survivors. The only way to know the applicable deadline is to speak with an attorney promptly.

Uber says its drivers are independent contractors. Does that mean it's not liable?

Courts have repeatedly rejected this argument under the theory of apparent agency, meaning Uber's marketing and platform experience led the passenger to reasonably believe the driver was acting on Uber's behalf.

What does the legal process look like?

After a free consultation, we evaluate your claim, gather evidence, and file your lawsuit. Depending on where and when the assault occurred, your case may be filed in the federal MDL, a state court consolidation, or as a standalone action. We handle all communications with Uber and Lyft, as well as their attorneys. Most cases resolve through negotiated settlement, but we prepare every case for trial because that posture drives maximum results.

Disclaimer: No representation is made that the quality of legal services to be performed is greater than the quality of legal services performed by other lawyers. — Alabama Rule of Professional Conduct 7.2(e)

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