A mother of two, Stella Grant lost her job early in the pandemic. One of her friends suggested she start driving for Lyft, which she did — a decision she now calls “a mistake.”
“Things started off well. But about a year ago, my life changed forever just because of that decision,” she said.
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Grant is part of a group of 17 Lyft passengers and drivers from across the country who are suing the ride-share company over allegations of physical and sexual assault during Lyft rides that they claim reflect an inability to ensure the safety of its users.
Two of the plaintiffs — including Grant — are drivers from Illinois who claim they were victims of physical assault while driving for Lyft.
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On Wednesday, three sexual assault survivors and two physical assault victims, accompanied by their lawyers, shared their stories at an online news conference. The complainants joined the call from California, Arizona, Connecticut and Illinois.
Adam Wolf, partner at the law firm Peiffer Wolf Carr Kane Conway & Wise, said that “Lyft has created a national crisis.”
“Lyft’s response to this crisis — it’s been appalling. Lyft continues to hire drivers without performing adequate background checks and continues to allow culpable drivers to keep driving Lyft,” Wolf said. “Most importantly, Lyft has failed to adopt and implement reasonable driver monitoring procedures designed to protect the safety of its drivers and passengers alike.”
In an emailed statement to the Tribune, Lyft said, “We’re committed to helping keep drivers and riders safe. While safety incidents on our platform are incredibly rare, we realize that even one is too many. Our goal is to make every Lyft ride as safe as possible, and we will continue to take action and invest in technology, policies and partnerships to do so.”
Lyft said that “well over 99% of Lyft rides occur without any safety report at all,” and that the company has “introduced numerous safety measures in order to address safety incidents” on its platform.
“Every single driver on the platform goes through rigorous screening,” the statement said. “We require a background check before someone is approved to drive and every year thereafter, as well as continuous criminal monitoring that provides Lyft with immediate notification of any disqualifying offense. Any driver who does not pass the initial, annual and continuous screenings is barred from our platform.”
Grant was the first speaker to share her story Wednesday. She said on Aug. 30, 2021, she received a ride request, but when she arrived at the pickup location in downtown Chicago, the person who requested the ride wasn’t there. It was someone else.
The woman got upset when Grant tried to confirm her identity as she got in the car, the driver said. “It was pretty clear that she was intoxicated, so she quickly began abusing me verbally and physically,” Grant added.
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The passenger hit Grant on the head, back and face, she said. While Grant attempted to call 911, the woman grabbed the steering wheel and crashed the car, breaking the right rearview mirror. She then lunged at Grant with a sharp object, cutting her lips and face.
“I was scared for my life,” Grant said. “I started bleeding. Blood was just gushing everywhere.”
Now, she says back pain has interfered with her ability to drive and she can’t afford physical therapy to make it better.
“That incident has not only left me with the back pain, it has also left me with a terrible scar in my lip. And I still suffer from anxiety just because of what happened to me that night,” Grant said. “The whole incident, like I said, has affected me not only physically; it has also affected me financially and mentally, even emotionally.”
Other drivers and passengers recounted similar experiences of alleged physical and sexual assaults during Lyft rides. A few seemingly tried to keep tears at bay as their voices broke when they shared their stories. Some said they suffer from anxiety and trauma because of these experiences and that they have socially withdrawn since.
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But they said contacting Lyft about what happened to them often ended in empty promises, no follow-ups and no way to ensure it wouldn’t happen again. Grant said she only received $350 for the broken mirror.
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“And they never called me again,” she said. “That was it.”
Police investigators needed Grant to get the passenger’s information from Lyft but the company wouldn’t give it to her without a court order, she said.
“Why do I have to really work so hard to get someone that did this to me — at least, if you’re not going to help me do anything, at least bring to focus the person that almost killed me … They just abandoned me like that.”
Wolf said the attorneys and plaintiffs have yet to discuss numbers regarding possible financial restitution.
“We have not discussed precise numbers and, in some ways, how do you put a precise number on what all of these people have gone through?” he said.
