Uber driver leaves woman in labour stranded on the pavement, charges her anyway

UBER is under fire after one of its drivers abandoned a woman in labour on the pavement — and then charged her anyway.

Uber driver ditches woman in labour

UBER is under fire after one of its drivers refused to take a woman in labour to the hospital, leaving her stranded on the pavement — and then charged her anyway.

The incident occurred last November, when New York lawyer David Lee, 37, summoned an Uber to take himself, his wife and their birthing coach to the hospital 5km away.

The problems started when the Uber arrived, Fortune reports. The driver backed out after the man’s wife vomited on the pavement, telling the couple he would lose $US1000 a day if she was sick in the car.

He added that no other driver would accept a woman in labour as a passenger. Despite their assurances she would not be sick again, and if she was that they would pay for his cleaning, the driver refused.

He drove away — but charged them $US13 ($18.45) for his lost time.

“I don’t blame Uber for one driver’s poor actions, since bad apples can appear in any organisation, but I do think that when a company has a culture of bullying their way past laws and regulations, as Uber seems to do, they begin to think they can act with impunity in anything,” Mr Lee told Fortune.

Another Uber driver eventually arrived to take them to the hospital, and Uber refunded the $US13 after he complained, but Mr Lee said he was frustrated the company wouldn’t acknowledge any wrongdoing by the driver.

But in a statement to Fortune, Uber said: “Denying service to a passenger in labour is unacceptable: it goes against our code of conduct and the standard of service our riders rely on. We extend our deepest apologies to both riders and have taken action to respond to this complaint. We are glad that the rider’s next driver was professional and courteous.”

The incident raised the issue how well Uber trains its drivers in their responsibilities under anti-discrimination and public accommodation laws, which prohibit drivers from refusing women in labour.

The company said it had a non-discrimination policy and that refusal of service based on identity would not be tolerated. Mr Lee, however, questioned whether the company was committed to ensuring drivers abided by its rules.

“Uber should have clarified their policies on drivers and women in labour, and confirmed that the driver received appropriate disciplinary action,” he said.

Originally published as Uber driver leaves woman in labour stranded on the pavement, charges her anyway