Lawsuit Alleges Lyft Driver Groped Passenger, After Making Sexual Advances

Lyft failed to take reasonable steps to confront problems with drivers sexually assaulting passengers, plaintiff argues.

An Oklahoma woman indicates in a recently filed lawsuit that she was sexually assaulted by a Lyft driver in Texas two years ago, as a result the rideshare service’s decision to act with “conscious disregard” for the safety of passengers, by failing to implement measures that could have prevented the attack.

The complaint (PDF) was brought by a woman identified only with the initials E.J. in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas on November 7, naming Lyft Inc. as the sole defendant.

E.J. joins a growing number of women who have filed similar rideshare sexual assault lawsuits in recent years, pursuing damages from Lyft and its competitor, Uber, which has faced the lion’s share of the litigation.

Each of these claims involves similar allegations that the companies failed to implement adequate safety measures beyond basic background checks. Plaintiffs say they should have installed surveillance cameras in vehicles, provided sexual assault and harassment awareness training for drivers, and offered passengers the option to choose a driver’s gender.

The complaints also allege that Lyft began to implement protections for vulnerable passengers only after investors filed a lawsuit claiming the safety failures were damaging the company’s financial performance. A Lyft settlement agreement was ultimate reached to resolve that claim in July 2024, which required broad reforms and improvements to passenger safety.

The reforms included a commitment to make passengers better aware of the safety functions already available on the Lyft app, such as a feature to silently alert 911 or a Lyft representative, while also agreeing to assign a member of the company’s existing Culture of Ethics and Compliance Committee to represent driver and user safety.

However, the changes came too late for many passengers who have been sexually assaulted or raped by Lyft drivers in recent years.

Lyft Sexual Assault Allegations

According to her lawsuit, E.J., who is using the pseudonym to protect her identity, requested a ride using the Lyft app on November 3, 2023, while living in Fort Worth, Texas. The company assigned her a driver identified as Sergio, whom she says made sexual advances toward her, and then reached over the seat to grope her genitals through her clothing.

Due to the experience, the lawsuit indicates E.J. has suffered increased anxiety, distress and shame.

“By failing to take reasonable steps to confront the problem of multiple rapes and sexual assaults of Lyft passengers by Lyft drivers, Lyft has acted in conscious disregard of the safety of its passengers, including Plaintiff, and has breached its duty of reasonable care and has breached the implied and express covenants arising from its contract with its passengers.”

– E.J. v. Lyft Inc. et al

The lawsuit claims the rideshare company should be held legally responsible for E.J.’s assault and trauma, presenting claims of negligence, negligent hiring, supervision and retention, common carrier negligence, negligent failure to warn, vicarious liability/liability for the torts of Lyft’s drivers, vicarious liability for sexual assault, vicarious liability for sexual battery, intentional misrepresentation, negligent misrepresentation, negligent infliction of emotional distress, breach of contract, design defect and failure to warn. It is seeking both compensatory and punitive damages.

Uber Sexual Assault Lawsuits

Although E.J.’s lawsuit targets Lyft, Uber faces far more claims, with more than 2,800 Uber sexual assault lawsuits currently pending throughout the federal court system, each involving former passengers who were allegedly harassed, assaulted, kidnapped and/or raped by drivers due to the company’s constant practice of placing profits ahead of customer safety.

The federal claims are consolidated into an Uber sexual assault lawsuit multidistrict litigation (MDL) in the Northern District of California, where they are being overseen by U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer. In addition, Uber also faces hundreds of similar claims pending in California state court, including several expected to go to trial in the coming months, to help gauge how juries may respond to certain evidence and testimony likely to be repeated throughout the litigation.

The very first Uber sexual assault lawsuit trial ended in California state court in late September, with the jury determining that Uber was negligent in its protection of passengers, while also concluding that the negligence did not substantially contribute to the attack and was thus not liable for damages. The next California state trial is scheduled for April 4, 2026.

The results of these bellwether trials are being closely watched and are likely to have a significant impact on the ongoing negotiations. However, if no Uber sexual assault settlement agreement is reached after the bellwether trials, Judge Breyer is likely to begin remanding individual claims back to their originating districts for early trial dates.

The U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (JPML) is expected to consider whether to establish a separate Lyft sexual assault lawsuit MDL during an upcoming hearing, since there are now at least 18 claims similar to the one presented by E.J., which are pending before 13 different U.S. District Judges.

Sign up for more legal news that could affect you or your family.