Dale Williams was allegedly attacked by two men after trying to defuse a road rage dispute between his Uber driver and another motorist, and thought I’m going to die here’
A student alleges he was “left for dead” by an Uber driver following his attempt to calm a road rage incident. Dale Williams claims he was pursued and attacked by two men who were embroiled in a dispute with his driver, stemming from a road rage altercation.
The 30-year-old feared for his life during the terrifying assault, which took place on Blyth Street in Mapperley, Nottingham on Monday, December 8, reports Nottinghamshire Live.
Uber has stated that it takes safety “extremely seriously” and confirmed that an investigation into its driver is underway, while police are also probing the assault.
Mr Williams had just wrapped up work in the city centre when he booked an Uber to attend a friend’s housewarming party in Mapperley at around 11.30pm.
“On the way there, we came across some guys driving really erratically and swerving,” he recounted.
After the Uber driver overtook the car, the trailing driver “got right behind” them, triggering the taxi driver to engage in a “road rage” and start brake-checking, according to Mr Williams.
“They’d pulled up next to us, and I stood between them and the driver,” he explained.
“They turned on me instead, and I caught a punch to the face. Another guy got out and chased me down the street.
“He got me on the floor and started kicking and stomping on me and stuff.”
Mr Williams then looked up from the concrete to see the Uber driver making a hasty exit from the scene.
“I thought, ‘I’m going to die here’. I was on the floor getting laid into,” he added.
“He left me for dead. I was immediately trying to peace-keep. I hadn’t been drinking or anything,” said the victim.
Mr Williams, who sustained facial and arm bruising, sought medical attention at a hospital where he was informed that he might have fractured two ribs.
Since the incident, he claims Uber has not assisted him in gathering information necessary for an investigation into the assault.
He alleges that the company has closed the case and is also denying him access to the route data, which would allow him to review CCTV footage, and has yet to respond to his Subject Access Request for relevant data.
Furthermore, Mr Williams says that Uber has blacklisted his account and is withholding information about any action taken against the driver.
Despite having spoken to the police, he has yet to give a formal statement and fears that a lack of action will enable his attackers to evade justice.
An Uber spokesperson responded: “What’s been described has no place on the Uber app. Our specialist team is investigating the matter and the appropriate action will be taken with the driver.
“We take safety extremely seriously, and this isn’t the kind of experience we want anyone to have when using the Uber app. We stand ready to support the police in their investigation.”
A representative from Nottinghamshire Police stated: “Police were called to Blyth Street just before midnight on Monday 8 December following an assault. Officers located the victim at a house party. Our records show that contact has been made with the victim.
“A number of lines of inquiry have already been established to locate those responsible, and more inquiries will be conducted over the coming days. We take all reports of assaults seriously.”
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