“Uber loses another US driver sex assault trial, ordered to pay $5,000”, 20 April 2026

A federal jury in North Carolina on Monday said Uber should pay $5,000 to a ​woman who claimed she was sexually assaulted by a driver she booked through the app, as ‌the company faces thousands of similar claims…

It comes after a separate jury in Arizona earlier this year awarded $8.5 million to a woman who claimed an Uber driver had raped her when she ​was 19…

Both cases are so-called "bellwethers," or test cases for that litigation, and the verdicts could help determine the value ​of the remaining lawsuits for any potential settlement or resolution of the cases en masse…

Uber… argued during the trial that it is a software company and not a "common carrier" such ​as a taxi service that has a legal duty to protect passengers under North Carolina law. Even if the plaintiff proved otherwise, ‌Uber ⁠argued, the company is not liable for the actions of an independent contractor…

An Uber spokesperson said the jury's award represents a tiny fraction of the damages sought by ​the plaintiff and "should further bring ​these cases back to ⁠reality."

"That said, we believe the jury was once again incorrectly instructed on the question of liability and have strong grounds for appeal on that important point," the spokesperson said ​in a statement…