When you download Uber's app and get into a car summoned on demand via a smart phone reservation system, by default you agree to a litany of terms and conditions. When you agree to these very stringent terms, you basically sign your life away, consumer advocates say. So then, what happens when a driver hits you on the head with a hammer, as one passenger claims, or fatally knocking down a 6 year old girl?
Uber is a so-called ride-sharing service that puts potential drivers through their own background check so that they can become an impromptu taxi driver using their own car and Uber's tech & taximeter. The truth is- as evidenced by the intelligent girl I spoke with on the radio- people don't know what they're getting into when they get in to an Uber car, nor do they know what they're getting into when they download the app
Uber's terms and conditions are a way for the company to absolve itself of any liability in cases of injury or accident and to avoid responsibility for a driver's actions. It completely covers themselves by saying they are not responsible for anything that happens to you, the consumer. You can be raped, you can be abused, in fact, you can be murdered, and it's categorically not Uber’s responsibility.
When asked about the protections Uber offers passengers, a spokesperson refers to it’s webpage on safety. Uber PR herald the service as being ultra-safe. However, Uber's statements on safety are antithetical to its terms and conditions. In fact, It's so duplicitous that it should be considered fraudulent. They do not in any way seek to warrant that their product is safe. They put it right there in unambiguous terminology
The fine print of Uber terms clearly says that “passengers accept a risk by using the service. You understand, therefore, that by using the application and the service, you may be exposed to transportation that is potentially dangerous, offensive, harmful to minors, unsafe or otherwise objectionable," Uber's terms and conditions read, "and that you use the application and the service at your own risk."
What is of upmost importance to me is that TfL refer Private Hire impropriety back to the PH Operator. Absurd in itself. But, considering TFL have granted Uber a private hire operators license, and considering Uber make it blatantly clear that they accept no liability whatsoever for the driver’s behaviour, then who is responsible? Conclusively, they can only be regarded as a Public Hire service. So, compliance is a matter for arbitrament re: the ‘Conditions of Fitness’