Uber shareholders have filed a lawsuit against the company’s board, accusing directors and CEO Dara Khosrowshahi of ignoring and mishandling sexual assault and violence incidents tied to rides booked through the platform. The suit was filed Monday in federal court in California by the Detroit pension fund.
The complaint says Uber’s approach exposed the company to risk and hurt its stock value. It describes Uber as a “serial compliance violator” that knowingly cut corners in dealing with violence and assault in its vehicles.
According to the plaintiffs, this culture led to thousands of lawsuits from victims who alleged sexual assault and harassment by drivers. They argue Khosrowshahi and board members breached their fiduciary duty to the company and its shareholders by disregarding repeated warnings about safety failures in Uber’s ride-hailing service.
The shareholders are seeking personal compensation from the directors and CEO for the damage they say they caused, along with a requirement that they return part of their compensation to the company and put stronger oversight mechanisms in place. The complaint says the victims of this culture of noncompliance include sexual assault and harassment survivors, passengers with disabilities, and innocent riders. Uber told TechCrunch that the lawsuit ignores key facts and relies on misleading, false narratives from other claims the company has already addressed publicly and in court.
