Lyft pays shareholders $27 million for drivers sexual assault- Nothing for Survi

I would expect, and certainly hope, that the victims of these assaults, are suing Lyft separately, whether individually or collectively. They are entitled to a safe ride, after all, and if they don’t get one, the company is responsible. But the Jezebel article doesn’t say anything about the progress (if any) of these cases. Some of them may have been quietly settled out of court without being made public, so we can’t know for sure that victims have received nothing.

The underlying issue seems to be the adequacy of Lyft’s background checks for its drivers. Regrettably some scumbags who happen to have escaped criminal convictions will always slip through the cracks, but much can be done to prevent it. Uber must have had similar incidents. Is Uber’s safety record better than Lyft’s, or have they handled such incidents more rapidly and sympathetically?

Lyft is normally a bit cheaper than Uber. Has Lyft been cutting corners? In what sense does Lyft claim to be “more socially conscious”? I’m alway suspicious of what such a claim might mean. I hope it doesn’t take the form of giving “second chances” to supposedly “reformed” criminals (like that idiot George Gascon) to the detriment of their passengers’ safety.

Edited to add: It seems as though Uber has the same problem with assaults. Lyft’s fault was that they didn’t disclose it before they went public, screwing their shareholders when the news broke and share prices plunged.

Perhaps the ultimate answer to this problem is cameras showing the cars’ interiors. Why don’t they do it?