An incident where a delivery driver colliding with a parked car before erasing all traces of the order and fleeing the scene has left the vehicle owner in a frustrating pursuit for accountability and compensation. Austin Liu, the owner of the damaged vehicle, reported a substantial dent on his car and damage to the front bumper due to the crash.
Having not placed the delivery order himself, Austin Liu has faced difficulties in getting in touch with Uber. The order, instead, was placed by his neighbor to whom the meal was being delivered. In the aftermath of the incident, Liu shared his dissatisfaction over the ride-sharing platform’s failure to accept responsibility for the incident.
Responding to Liu’s complaint, Uber took the stance of denying culpability for the accident. The company retorted they are not legally required to compensate Liu for the property damage from the incident. However, they assured that the incident will be noted on the driver’s account and could potentially lead to a review of the driver’s access to the app in light of further occurrences.
While Uber pledged its cooperation with police investigations should the case be reported officially, a significant obstacle for Liu remains Uber’s lack of contact transparency according to Jessica Walker, of Consumer New Zealand.
In the event a vehicle registration is known, the affected party can use it to find owner details on Waka Kotahi’s website and subsequently lodge a claim with the Disputes Tribunal. Without such details, the issue becomes an internal one between Uber and the driver, Walker explained, adding that the onus falls on Uber to identify who was behind the wheel at the time of the incident.
As per the guidelines on Waka Kotahi’s website, drivers are obligated to provide their details to the party owning the damaged vehicle not later than 48 hours following the crash or to the police within 60 hours of the incident if the owner cannot be located.
Liu is intent on obtaining justice and has reached out to Uber as well as KFC in Rototuna Hamilton from where the delivery had been picked up. However, he stated that KFC declined to assist in identifying the driver and suggested seeking help from Uber or the police. KFC, when contacted, directed queries back to Uber.
Following RNZ’s inquiries, Uber issued an apology on Thursday afternoon. An Uber spokesperson insisted that the company takes all reports of incidents on its platform very seriously and expressed regret for Liu’s initial experience with their support services. The spokesperson also assured that the company was making efforts to reach out to the concerned parties and facilitate a resolution.
