Uber to pay $1.1million to blind woman

Uber will now have to pay $1.1 million to a blind women who was left stranded for 14 different occasions by its drivers who refused to give her a ride along with her guide dog.

Blind women Lisa Irving, and her dog have won in an arbitration case against Uber in the US, reports San Francisco Chronicle.

Uber, is an American technology company. Its services include ride-hailing, food delivery, package delivery, couriers, freight transportation, and, through a partnership with Lime, electric bicycle and motorized scooter rental.

According to the women, she missed several work, birthday celebration, Christmas Eve church services and “was left out in the dark, in the rain, and other such humiliations because Uber drivers refused to carry her and her dog on 14 different occasions”.

Earlier in 2014 Uber was sued for discriminating against blind people and their guide dogs and agreed to pay $2.6 million in settlement in 2016.

The company will not pay an additional $1.1 million to Irving. According to Irving, she was rejected by Uber drivers at least 60 times.

"When Uber did conduct an investigation, its investigators were trained, in some instances, to coach drivers to find non-discriminatory reasons for ride denials, sometimes even to 'advocate' to keep drivers on the platform despite discrimination complaints," the arbitrator added.

Irving will get $324,000 in damages while $805,313 will go towards legal costs, including attorney fees.

According to The Verge, Uber now has a dedicated policy for issues with service animals like guide dogs.