National, USA (July 14, 2015) – With the rise of largely unregulated Transportation Network Companies, including Uber, Lyft and Sidecar, the National Women’s Coalition Against Violence & Exploitation (NWCAVE) is compelled to draw attention to the growing number of incidents in which women have reportedly been harmed by drivers for these companies. These incidents include reports of sexual assaults, stalking and kidnapping.
“Every woman has a right to a safe ride home from these companies and to expect that these companies have properly vetted their drivers. Unfortunately, we don’t believe this is happening,” said Michelle Bart, President and Co-Founder of NWCAVE.
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“We have read with great concern a new report, ‘One Standard for All,’ that shows name- based background checks—which are the kind used by Uber and Lyft—have a potential error rate of 43 percent. By contrast, fingerprint-based checks have a 1 percent error rate,” said Bart. “We must say NO MORE to driver abuse against passengers,” said Bart.
“We applaud NWCAVE for taking this important stand on passenger safety,” said Rebecca Walls, spokesperson for the ‘Who’s Driving You?’ campaign, a safety initiative of the Taxicab, Limousine & Paratransit Association. “We are seeing sexual assaults and other forms of violence rise at an alarming rate in Uber vehicles. Preventing violence in the for-hire vehicle industry starts with fingerprint-based background checks on drivers. Sadly, Uber’s solution is to conduct sub-par, name-based checks that are rife with errors, and then to deactivate dangerous drivers only after they have harmed someone. Quite simply, that’s just too little, too late.”
“NWCAVE therefore is asking that local governments across the country insist that all for-hire drivers pass a fingerprint-based background check. This responsibility lies not just with these companies, but with government bodies, officials and leaders who have consciously avoided regulating these services in the first place. This negligence cannot continue. Drivers, companies and governments must be held to a higher standard and to keep their passengers safe, especially women and children,” said Bart.
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About The National Women’s Coalition Against Violence & Exploitation (NWCAVE) is a volunteer operated 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization located in the pacific northwest of the United States of America. They continue working to inform, educate and prevent violence and exploitation against women and children nationally and internationally. Whether human trafficking, domestic violence, sexual assault, sexual violence, stalking, bullying, hate crimes and all other forms of violence and exploitation against women and children, NWCAVE strives to keep the public informed and educated on how we can live in a more civilized society free of violence.
In order to achieve our mission and objectives NWCAVE collaborates with other organizations, businesses, the public and media to continue to inform, educate and help prevent violence and exploitation in our local communities and throughout the world. www.NWCAVE.org
About ‘Who’s Driving You?’ is a safety and awareness campaign designed to educate the public about the dangers of unlicensed transportation companies. It is an initiative of the Taxicab, Limousine & Paratransit Association, an international non-profit trade association whose membership consists of 1,100 licensed transportation companies. For more information, visit sedative-drugs.com, follow us on Twitter (@WhosDrivingYou) and follow us on Facebook (facebook.com/WhosDrivingYou)
