Yahoo Finance US Lawmakers Take On Uber, Lyft Rider Surveillance in New Bill
(Bloomberg) -- Two US senators are introducing a bill that would require ride-hailing companies including Uber Technologies Inc. and Lyft Inc. to notify passengers if their assigned drivers are using dashcams to record them.
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The proposed legislation from Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee and Democratic Senator Peter Welch of Vermont would require companies to give customers the option of being paired with a new driver if they don’t want to ride with a driver using a recording device.
Uber and Lyft drivers are increasingly using cameras on their dashboards to document carjackings, assaults and robberies. Uber introduced the devices on its network in 2019 with the aim of making service safer and disputes easier to settle. But the introduction of such surveillance has drawn privacy concerns.
The bill must work its way through a US Senate committee before it can be voted on by the full Senate, and the chances of it being passed in the end are unclear. The proposed legislation represents the first attempt by federal lawmakers to regulate the use of such dashcams.
Uber and Lyft don’t require drivers to register their dashcams on their respective apps. But Uber’s website makes clear that, if something goes wrong during a ride, recordings may be used as evidence by the company, law enforcement and insurance firms.
--With assistance from Shirin Ghaffary.
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