A Southwest Florida parent is upset an Uber driver picked up his underage daughter late at night and drove her to a party without his consent. According to the ride sharing service, it violates company rules.
He says it was two in the morning when his daughter and a friend were picked up. "I was just floored," Russ Lindeman said. "I couldn't believe it! It's just scary."
The father says it's scary enough that his daughter snuck out behind his back. "She's a really good kid," he said. "I didn't think she would do that, which I think every parent would say, 'not my kid'."
The father says the Uber driver made it worse by not asking either girl for ID before driving them off into the night.
"I mean this really could have gone south," Lindeman said. "How is it possible that a 15 year old minor can get into an Uber and be driven wherever they want to go without any consent or any verification of age?"
According to Uber's website, in most cities, a rider must be at least 18 years of age to have an Uber account and request rides. Anyone under 18 must be accompanied by someone 18 years of age or older on any ride.
A driver in a city that doesn't allow minors to ride, should decline the ride request if they believe the person requesting a ride is under 18. Driver's are also given permission to provide a driver's license or ID card for confirmation to make sure a rider is of age before starting the trip or allowing them to ride.
Four in your corner asked a few local law enforcement agencies if they've seen any major incidents involving Uber.
Each agency more or less had the same answer.
Corporal Philip Mullen with Cape Coral Police says he hasn't heard of anything involving Uber that was an actual safety concern but says if there is ever any concern it should be reported.
"If it's reported, at the very least it's documented in some form," Cpl Mullen said. "It may rise to the level of an incident report but in any case it's documented."
Luckily, police weren't needed in the case of Lindeman's daughter but that doesn't mean she won't be sentenced so to speak.
"She's grounded for the whole month of June at least," he said.
Four In Your Corner has contacted Uber regarding Lindeman's concerns. The company has not responded.
