Law Office of Michael J. Tremoulis | March 21, 2025 | Personal Injury
If you ever need a ride, you probably wonder, “Am I safer taking Uber or a taxi?” Taxi drivers tend to be full-time professional drivers, whereas most Uber drivers are part-time side hustlers. An analysis of sexual assaults between yellow cabs and rideshares seems to yield fairly similar results. Uber has GPS tracking and a panic button, but taxis have direct supervision, and many have onboard cameras.
So what’s better…Uber or a taxi? Often, the answer to this question may be circumstantial or depend on your location. Let’s look at a few different aspects of this debate.
Safety Features in the Uber App
Over time, Uber has implemented various safety features for drivers and riders. The Uber app offers real-time GPS tracking, a panic button, and discreet in-app 911 calling. Uber also provides the ability to record audio during the ride in the app. These are helpful features if you are concerned about human trafficking, reckless driving, or sexual assault.
For crowded pick-up areas, Uber provides a PIN to verify with your driver that you’re getting in the right vehicle. Before this feature was implemented, riders often got into the wrong vehicle at pick-up due to the large number of vehicles at popular events.
Taxi Safety Features
Yellow cabs in major cities like Los Angeles, Houston, and Denver are rolling out more safety features for drivers and passengers. Taxis are easily identifiable from the outside with large numbers painted on the sides. Many jurisdictions require that the driver’s permit be displayed on the dash. These permits typically show the driver’s photo and full name, which is more information than you’ll get from Uber.
Additionally, more yellow cabs are being equipped with onboard security cameras. However, you can only access the footage if the taxi company is willing to share it. Likewise, real-time GPS tracking is not a yellow cab feature, but other apps offer the same functionality.
Taxi Drivers’ Employee Status
Something that certainly favors taxis in the safety debate is that taxi drivers are employees, not independent contractors. It’s safe to assume that any employee will be interviewed in person. However, even a videoconferencing interview would still be more “face time” than Uber is asking for before hiring someone.
The other comforting thing about yellow cab drivers being employees is that they have direct supervisors, and someone is personally managing them. Good luck trying to speak to an Uber driver’s “supervisor.”
Reporting Your Incident to the Company
To put it mildly, reporting an incident to Uber is tedious. A quick phone call to a human being at a small, locally-owned business would no doubt be much more productive. The entire process of dealing with an Uber incident is automated. Even if you can speak to a human, they’ll be reading from a script and repeating various canned answers. It’s a frustrating, circular experience.
Let’s look at the example of accidentally leaving a laptop in the backseat of an Uber versus doing the same in a yellow cab. The second an Uber driver marks your ride complete, you have no way to contact them. So if you realize you left your laptop in an Uber, the second the driver pulls away, you have to watch your laptop drive off into the sunset while you go through Uber’s entire complaint process.
Likewise, Uber doesn’t penalize or punish drivers who don’t return valuables, and there is no recourse for passengers. With a taxi, you can call the company, and dispatch will likely ask the taxi to turn around or can have you pick the item up at their office.
Contact an Attorney if You Were Injured in an Accident With Uber or a Taxi
If you were in a car accident, pedestrian accident, or motorcycle accident with an Uber or a taxi, you deserve compensation from the wrongdoer. If you were injured in Lima, Ohio, do not hesitate to reach out to a personal injury lawyer to get help as soon as possible.
Contact the Lima Personal Injury Lawyer of the Law Office of Michael J. Tremoulis for Help Today
If you were injured in an accident in Lima, and need legal help, contact our personal injury lawyer at the Law Office of Michael J. Tremoulis to schedule a free case review today.
We proudly serve Allen County and the surrounding areas.
Law Office of Michael J. Tremoulis Lima
540 W Market St
Lima, OH 45801
(419) 404-4444
