Family Blames Uber After 12-Year-Old Girl Rides Uber Alone to Parking Garage To Take Her Own Life
The family of a young Florida girl who took an Uber to a location where she killed herself is pointing the finger at the company for the tragedy.
Benita “BB” Diamond, 12, took her own life on Jan. 10 when she reportedly downloaded the Uber app on her mother’s phone in the middle of the night, requesting a ride to downtown Orlando. She then reportedly walked to a nine-story parking garage, which she jumped off of to her death, her parents said, KCCI reported.
She left behind a note saying she was “past the point of no return,” according to the Orlando Sentinel.
The girl’s family held a news conference Thursday, where they said that Uber is to blame for the tragedy since the driver who took their daughter did not follow a company policy instructing not pick up unaccompanied minors.
“If Uber had followed their policy, without a doubt, our daughter would still be here,” her father Ronald Diamond stated.
“That would have been the one red flag we would have caught. There is no way she’s getting away with that in our household. We were too much active parents,” he continued.
Uber’s website outlines the policy that reads, “A rider must be at least 18 years of age to have an Uber account and request rides. Anyone under 18 must be accompanied by someone 18 years of age or older on any ride.”
The girl’s mother, Lisa Chen, said that policy could have saved her daughter’s life.
“That day, if the Uber driver had done his job right, we would have seen the red flag, because I always knew where my daughter was,” Chen said at the news conference.
The parents say they aren’t interested in money but want to make sure Uber’s policy on driving minors is enforced so that other parents won’t experience similar tragedies, according to the Orlando Sentinel.
The family reportedly wrote a letter to Uber outlining their demands for stricter policy enforcement.
“This will happen to another child or teenager if I don’t do anything right now, if I don’t make sure Uber, or Lyft or any share-ride company enforces their policy,” Chen said.
“They have a policy in place, but if they don’t enforce it, it’s useless,” she continued.
An Uber spoke representative said that Benita Diamond’s suicide was not reported to the company, but that Uber is now investigating the case and is ready to “take appropriate action,” according to KCCI.
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