Latest Amazon Driver Lawsuit Eyes Algorithms to Assign Fault
A March crash in Marietta, Georgia between an Amazon delivery van and a Tesla paralyzed a would-be medical student and turned the spotlight on how fault should be assigned when big companies farm out work to smaller third parties.
Amazon Logistics subcontracts to outside delivery drivers and small businesses, but only under Amazon’s branding and policies, Bloomberg reported on Friday (Nov. 12). According to data compiled by Bloomberg, Amazon Logistics was a defendant in lawsuits concerning some 119 motor vehicle injury cases in 35 states.
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The most recent case making headlines concerns 24-year-old Ans Rana, a graduate of Kennesaw State University in Kennesaw, Georgia who reportedly was planning to take his MCAT later this month and apply to medical school. Rana was in the backseat of a Tesla being driven by his brother when they were rear-ended by an Amazon delivery van.
Rana, who is now cared for by his sister and needs a ventilator to breathe, filed a lawsuit in June alleging that Amazon is liable for the accident because of the algorithms, apps and devices the company uses to operate its logistics unit, according to reports.
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Amazon, however, maintains that it is not legally at fault because the driver that crashed worked for Harper Logistics, a company launched solely to handle Amazon deliveries, according to Bloomberg.
The attorney for Rana, Scott Harrison, is homing in on the key role algorithms play as a way to prove that Amazon controls its entire logistics operation and oversees everything, including which drivers should be hired and fired. Drivers working for Harper Logistics are also required to wear Amazon-branded uniforms.
According to the lawsuit, Amazon isn’t a client of Harper Logistics; Amazon actually manages the company from the outside, Bloomberg reported. This assertion is expected to weigh heavily on determining Amazon’s level of fault, if any.
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Over $1 billion has been invested in technology, wages, and education to boost the safety of Amazon’s delivery operation; Amazon spokeswoman Maria Boschetti told Bloomberg that more than 50 percent of the fleet has video cameras and other technologies that provide real-time safety alerts.
Amazon’s Delivery Service Partner program was launched in 2018 to connect with people looking to start their own package delivery firm. Amazon offered to help entrepreneurs launch for $10,000 down with the hopes of earning as much as $300,000 a year, per reports.
Harper Logistics, founded in 2018, is one of an estimated 2,500 Amazon delivery service partners that employ over 260,000 drivers worldwide.