Young woman dies in what could be the first fatal accident involving Uber in Singapore

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A young woman died after the Uber car she was riding collided with a truck on a Singapore highway in the early hours of Sunday morning, according to Singapore daily The Straits Times.

It looks like the first fatal accident involving a ride-hailing service in the city-state, although Uber did not confirm this.

A spokesperson for Uber in Singapore told Tech in Asia the company was informed about the accident. “Our thoughts go out to the loved ones of the victim. We stand ready to assist local authorities with their investigation.”

Singapore has introduced a vocational license for private-hire car drivers.

Chinese-language newspaper Lianhe Wanbao reports that the incident seems to have involved another vehicle whose driver got in a verbal fight with the truck driver, causing the latter to hit the brakes unexpectedly. The Uber car rammed into the truck as a result.

Safety concerns is one of the first things cited when people object to ride-hailing services like Uber and Grab. The argument is that private-hire car drivers are not professionally trained and licensed like their taxi driver counterparts.

Singapore has introduced a requirement for private-hire car drivers to get a vocational license, but it doesn’t go into force until 2017.

Uber does background checks on drivers, looking at their past driving behavior for things like “DUI or drug-related offenses, fatal accidents, history of reckless driving, or criminal record.”

Uber drivers are covered by commercial liability insurance while they’re “on the clock,” in other words, accepting rides through the app. “We have contacted our insurance partners in this case,” the Uber spokesperson said.

In terms of safety, a recent study by Western Carolina University found that the use of ride-hailing apps in 150 cities in the US has lowered the number of incidents of drunk driving and fatal accidents.