Colorado Rep. Jenny Wilford filed a lawsuit against the ride-hailing app Lyft, alleging she was sexually assaulted last February during a trip with a man posing as a certified driver.
Wilford alleges in her lawsuit that she was subjected to “unwelcome and non-consensual sexual contact, contact, and (vulgar) comments” on February 24, 2024, while on her way to her home in Adams County. The argument apparently got so bad that Wilford left the courthouse. She drove early and walked to places other than her home so the driver wouldn't know where she lived.
Lyft records listed her driver as someone named Shanu. Instead, they received unvetted drivers who did not match the profile description, according to the lawsuit.
This person was using the Shanu account on behalf of Shanu Transportation, a registered transportation company authorized only to move real estate. Colorado Newsline reported.
The complaint states, “Shanu allowed drivers to use this account to perform supplementary work without going through the normal driver qualification and profile process required by Colorado law to use a Lyft driver account. “I have been allowed to do so.''
Drivers typically must undergo a background check and driving history review before they can be certified by Lyft. Sharing accounts and passwords is prohibited by rideshare companies.
Kholmrod Halimov, the owner of Shanu Transportation who is named in the lawsuit, told Colorado Newsline that he had a friend use his Shanu Lift account. He suspected the man driving Wilford was his friend's brother.
Mr. Harimov argued that the ban on account sharing was not written into Lyft's contract. The closest thing to an allowed feature is Lyft Families, which allows up to five people to share a single account, but this option is only for riders, not drivers.
Shanu's driver profile had not been used by Harimov since before February 2024, he told the magazine. He maintained that the person who allegedly made sexual advances to Mr Wilford was the only person to use his account and that it was a one-off.
Despite being named in the lawsuit, Mr. Kharimov reportedly had no idea what had happened when he was first contacted by Colorado Newsline.
The case hinges on the prevalence of fake profiles on Lyft and its sloppy public safety record. Lyft just settled a separate lawsuit over sexual assault by a driver in July.
Lyft releases report in 2021 Revealing details of sexual assault data In three years, a staggering 360 cases of rape alone were recorded. Between 2017 and 2019, a total of 4,100 sexual assaults were reported, resulting in 10 deaths.
In December 2019 alone, more than 30 women sued Lyft in two lawsuits alleging sexual assault by drivers and a “sexual assault/predator crisis.”
If you have been sexually assaulted and live in New York, you can receive free and confidential crisis counseling by calling 1-800-942-6906. If you live out of state, dial the 24/7 National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-4673.
