The man sought a ride from Philadelphia and the Uber driver refused to take him, according to the lawsuit.
PHILADELPHIA -- A Cherry Hill man is suing ride-sharing service Uber, contending that he was forced out of a car and beaten by one of its drivers in December.
Joseph Fusco says he attended a holiday party Dec. 22 in Philadelphia's University City section and used the Uber app to seek a ride home that evening.
A driver responded to pick him up and all was well until Fusco told him his destination. The driver refused to take him to Cherry Hill and ordered Fusco out of his car.
When Fusco asked again to be driven to Cherry Hill, the driver walked around to the passenger side, removed Fusco from the car and beat him, the suit says.
The driver broke multiple bones in Fusco's face, knocked out teeth and left him in a pool of blood on the pavement, Fusco says.
The driver fled the scene and remains at large, the plaintiff states.
"The Uber driver stomped and kicked Plaintiff in the face and head while he was already unconscious, which upon information and belief, is captured on surveillance video," the suit states.
Philly Uber rider charged more than $28K
Matthew Luber, Fusco's attorney, said he has not seen the video, but that his client has seen it, and that police at the University of Pennsylvania have the video and are investigating the case. University police could provide no information on the case Friday.
Passers-by found Fusco on the sidewalk and called 911, according to the lawsuit. He was treated at a nearby hospital and discharged the next day.
While the suit claims that Uber has refused to fully cooperate with police in identifying the driver, Uber says it is cooperating with police and that the driver was removed from the app almost immediately, meaning he can no longer accept rides via the service.
Fusco also claims that he was charged for a 28-minute ride across Philadelphia that night that he did not take. The company offered to reimburse Fusco for that trip, according to the suit.
The suit notes that the driver didn't know where Fusco wanted to go until he got in the car. According to Uber, passengers enter trip information, including destination, into the app, but the driver doesn't actually receive the destination information until the trip begins.
In the lawsuit, Fusco accuses Uber of negligence, fraud and misleading statements about the safety of its service.
Fusco has already had surgery to repair some of the damage from the beating, but his suit says he "may never fully recover" from the incident.
Matt Gray may be reached at mgray@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @MattGraySJT. Find the South Jersey Times on Facebook.