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Uber expanding background checks, tightening rules for who can be a driver
Posted
June 29, 2026
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June 29, 2026
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0:35Now PlayingUber has announced that it is enacting stricter background checks and restrictions for its drivers.
The company said it is rolling out the new policies for rideshare drivers and couriers for its delivery service starting Monday.
Drivers and applicants have previously been disqualified from employment if they have a sexual assault, murder or homicide, sex crimes involving minors, and kidnapping convictions or pending charges. However, the company is expanding the list of criminal offenses that permanently disqualify someone from being driver in the U.S.
The company will no longer allow people with prior convictions for violent felonies, sexual crimes, stalking and strangulation at any time in their lives to be drivers.
In a news release announcing the new security measures, the company said it had prevented 3.5 million people from joining or remaining on the platform since 2017.
Uber launched a feature in March to allow both women riders and drivers across the U.S. to be matched with other women for trips, expanding a pilot program aimed at addressing concerns about the safety of its hail-riding platform.
The new feature was rolled out nationwide despite an ongoing class action lawsuit at the time against the policy in California, filed by Uber drivers who argue it is discriminatory against men. Rival ride-hailing company Lyft also faced a discrimination lawsuit over a similar offering it introduced nationwide in 2024.
Uber and Lyft have both faced criticism for years over their safety records, including thousands of reports of sexual assaults from passengers and drivers.
In February, a federal jury found Uber to be legally responsible in a 2023 case of sexual assault and the company was ordered to pay $8.5 million to an Arizona woman who said she was raped by one of its drivers.
Uber maintains that because its drivers are contractors and not employees, it’s not liable for their misconduct. But Uber says has taken multiple steps in efforts to improve safety, including teaming up with Lyft in 2021 to create a database of drivers ousted from their ride-hailing services for complaints over sexual assault and other crimes.
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