Lyft sued by 20 more women over alleged sexual assault, rape by drivers

Lyft hit with more sexual assault, rape allegations

Twenty more women have come forward saying they were sexually assaulted or raped by Lyft drivers.

SAN FRANCISCO (KTVU) - Twenty more women came forward Wednesday with allegations they were raped or sexually assaulted by Lyft drivers.

Several of those women spoke out at a news conference in San Francisco announcing the lawsuit.

The survivors said the rideshare company knowingly continued to let sexual predators drive and interact with the public. One woman identified as Jane Doe described how she fought back against her rapist.

"I fought for my life and punched the Lyft driver while the vehicle was still moving," she said. "I got out of it alive because I fought back."

Her driver pleaded guilty to the assault.

Ashley, another survivor, said her driver sexually assaulted her after a friend put her in a Lyft following a work celebration. Ashley said the driver sped off with her still in the car after her husband tried to check on why it was taking so long for her to get home.

And Caroline, who was out celebrating her birthday when she says her driver sexually assaulted her. "He had his hand down my pants, and he was groping and raping me," said Caroline. "Then he started talking about taking me to a hotel. I was freaking out. I can't tell you how scared I was."

Attorney Mike Bomberger filed a lawsuit in September on behalf of 14 women saying they had been sexually assaulted or raped. The suit filed in San Francisco Wednesday adds 20 more women to the lawsuit. "The bottom line is Lyft does not take the safety of their passengers seriously, and never has," he said.

Lyft released a statement in response to the lawsuit saying the company has been relentless in working to build safety into every aspect of the service and highlighting recent changes. “In just the last few months, we've launched more than 15 new safety features," the company said. "Including daily continuous criminal background monitoring of all of our drivers, in-app emergency assistance to make reporting easier for riders, and mandatory feedback for rides rated less than four stars."

Bomberger said the company claims it prioritizes safety, but hasn't taken concrete steps to prevent assaults from happening.

The women said they are fighting back against Lyft in hopes that other riders won't go through what they experienced.