2 Fargo women say they had uncomfortable experiences on Uber rides

Amid several lawsuits filed alleging sexual misconduct by drivers, Uber and Lyft are rolling out new safety features to protect passengers, especially women.

Two Fargo women said, however, that they recently had uncomfortable experiences with their drivers and feel that the ride sharing companies are failing customers.

Melissa Weeks was taking a late night Uber ride from Dilworth to Fargo nearly a week and half ago.

As she sat in the front seat, Weeks said when the driver turned on to her block, the ride became a nightmare.

“He wouldn't let go of my arm. He said, ‘I want to love you, let me love you and I said no stop the car,” Weeks said. “I said, ‘I'm getting out, stop the car.’ And he said, ‘no, I'm bringing you to your house,’ and I said, ‘no you're not.’ And I ripped my arm away and I jumped out of the car.”

Weeks immediately reported the incident to Uber and called police.

“It was shocking, extremely upsetting,” Weeks said. “This is supposed to be my safe ride. It's kind of disheartening that I can work all night in a bar and not get harassed, and it takes my Uber driver to harass me.”

Kendall Kehres described an unpleasant situation with her Uber driver.

“Taking advantage of someone in this situation, especially when they've had so much drinks, is completely inappropriate for someone who's supposed to be getting you home safe,” Kehres said.

Kehres said her driver began coming on to her. At the time, she said she took his number thinking it be would an easy way to reach him for future rides. Instead, the driver sent her inappropriate text messages.

“When you're driving for Uber, you're working, you don't flirt with or be sexual with your patrons in any business,” Kehres said.

For Uber, this appears to be a common problem nationwide and two weeks ago the company released new safety features.

One of the newest features is called Ride Check. You have to go to the app’s settings and click on safety to make sure the notification is on. Ride Check will send you and the driver a push notification whenever there's a long stop or a possible crash.

Uber refunded both women's money over what happened.

The Fargo, Moorhead, and West Fargo police departments told us they don't track crimes specifically involving Lyft and Uber rides.