Turo Faces Scrutiny After Two Renters Use Cars for Acts of Violence
Two Incidents, One Platform: Understanding the Role of Turo in Preventing Violent Crimes
In a shocking turn of events, two individuals rented cars from Turo, a peer-to-peer car-sharing platform, and used them to commit acts of violence earlier this week. The first incident occurred when a military veteran drove a Ford F-150 Lightning into a crowd of people, resulting in the deaths of at least 15 individuals. In the second incident, an active-duty Green Beret rented a Tesla Cybertruck, parked it in front of the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas, and allegedly blew it up. The driver died by suicide.
Turo’s Response: Outrage and Efforts to Improve Safety Measures
In response to these incidents, Turo’s chief executive, Andre Haddad, released a statement expressing his outrage at how the two individuals who perpetrated these heinous crimes abused the platform. He noted that Turo is working "around the clock" to figure out how the platform could have been misused like this.
The Question: How Could Turo Prevent Such Incidents?
As Haddad pointed out, both perpetrators had valid driver’s licenses, clean criminal backgrounds, and were decorated U.S. military servicemembers. This raises questions about whether Turo’s current safety measures are adequate to prevent such incidents from occurring in the future.
Turo’s Safety Measures: A Multi-Layered Approach
Turo claims that it screens each renter through a proprietary multi-layer, data-science-based trust and safety algorithm called the Turo Risk Score. The company uses 50 internal and external data sources to build, maintain, and improve on this score. However, it is unclear what specific measures Turo takes to verify the identity and background of its renters. TechCrunch reached out to Turo for clarification, but did not receive a response.
A History of Controversy: Human Trafficking and Other Issues
Over the years, Turo has been embroiled in controversy after cars on its platform have been used for human and drug trafficking. Furthermore, hosts regularly post about their cars being rented out to individuals with criminal histories on the Turo subreddit page.
Even With Improved Safety Measures, Incidents May Still Occur
Even if Turo’s background checks were foolproof, it is unlikely that such incidents could be completely prevented. As Haddad noted, these two perpetrators could have boarded any plane, checked into any hotel, or rented a car from any traditional vehicle rental chain.
The Statistics: A Small Percentage of Incidents on the Platform
Turo has facilitated 27 million trips over 12 years, and fewer than 0.10% have ended with a serious incident like a vehicle theft. While this may seem like a small percentage, it is still a significant number considering the scale of Turo’s operations.
What’s Next for Turo? Improving Safety Measures and Consulting with Experts
Haddad noted that aside from investing in improving its risk score algorithm, Turo has also assembled a team of former law enforcement professionals to help assess future risk. The company is consulting with national security and counterterrorism experts to learn more about how it can improve its safety measures.
The Road Ahead: A Collaborative Effort
Turo’s efforts to improve its safety measures are crucial in preventing such incidents from occurring in the future. However, this will require a collaborative effort between Turo, law enforcement agencies, and other stakeholders. By working together, we may be able to reduce the number of incidents on the platform.
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