Businesses Are Trying Even Harder To Force Your Injury Case Into Arbitration

As more and more of our lives have moved online in the past 10-20 years, we haven’t given much thought to the unintended legal consequences of that happening. One consequence, as more and more people seem to be learning, is the possibility that simply doing standard business online could keep you from having your day in court if you are ever injured.

Multiple Industries

Many of our larger companies are involved in many industries, business sectors, and have multiple divisions, and some of those companies have online and real world components to their businesses.

Take, as an example (and a relevant one, as will be explained later), Uber. Uber is of course a real world rideshare company, but it also operates online, with an app that is used to order rides, pay, and engage with the service and its drivers. Uber has expanded into delivery of goods and food, also done online.

But when a company does any business online, they have the ability to make you sign terms of service. Most of us click the little box, agreeing to those terms, without giving it much thought. But one thing that many companies are burying in those terms is the requirement that any injury case be arbitrated—thus not allowing a victim’s case to be decided by a judge or a jury of his or her peers.

Couple Sues and is Sent to Arbitration

This is exactly what happened to a couple in New Jersey that sued Uber and were injured because of the negligence of their Uber driver.

Uber has successfully convinced a New Jersey court to move the case to arbitration thus kicking the case out of court, all because Uber says that the couple’s daughter previously ordered a pizza from the UberEats app, and in doing so, apparently agreed to the terms of service, which contained an arbitration provision.

The couple disputes that they had any idea what their daughter had agreed to on the UberEats app, but regardless, the issue is the same. Large companies are deceiving people into losing their rights to have their cases heard in court by including arbitration provisions in seemingly unrelated businesses.

Following Disney’s Playbook

This is exactly what happened a few weeks ago, when a family sued for Wrongful Death after a relative died on Disney property.

Disney tried to force the couple’s case to be arbitrated, all because the couple had a trial membership to Disney’s streaming service, Disney +. In signing up for the service, they unknowingly agreed to an arbitration provision.

Disney eventually backed off of their demand, but the lesson is the same: through online terms of service, big companies are trying to take away victims’ constitutional rights to a trial, and a jury.

Be prepared for whatever the Defendant may say in your injury case. Contact our Rhode Island injury lawyers at Robert E. Craven & Associates at 401-453-2700 today.

Sources:

slate.com/business/2024/10/uber-eats-disney-plus-arbitration-lawsuits.html

cnn.com/2024/10/02/business/uber-eats-accident-lawsuit/index.html