Uber has been ordered to pay $40 million to the parents of a 23-year-old woman who was fatally struck by a vehicle on a California highway after a driver allegedly forced her and her friend out of the car.According to the BBC, Emily Normandin-Parker had booked an Uber with a friend to get home after a night out on August 12, 2023. During the ride, her friend became sick and vomited inside the car, following which the driver, Vu Tran, pulled over on State Route 73 in Orange County and left the two women on the side of the freeway.Normandin-Parker was then struck and killed by another vehicle as the Uber drove away, according to her family’s lawyers. Her parents, Carol Normandin and Ken Parker, said their daughter had made the decision not to drive because she was intoxicated and had trusted Uber to get her home safely.“Emily did everything Uber tells riders to do – she made the responsible choice not to drive and we trusted Uber to get her home safely,” her parents said in a statement. “That trust cost our daughter her life.”The $40 million award was issued following a five-day arbitration process, with retired judge Richard Stone ordering Uber to pay $20 million each to Normandin and Parker.During the proceedings, Uber argued that Tran was an independent contractor and that the company should not be held legally responsible for his actions.The family’s lawyers said Tran did not call for help after leaving the women on the highway. Instead, they alleged, he pulled away and contacted Uber to seek a cleaning fee after the vomiting incident.Stone said the driver had shown “far more worry for his new car than he did for his passengers”, and noted that he could have taken an exit and dropped the women at a safe location.Uber said it disagreed with the decision and believed the arbitrator was wrong to hold the company legally responsible.“No family should have to suffer the loss of a child, and our thoughts continue to be with the Normandin-Parker family,” Uber said, adding that it has strengthened its safety measures, including guidance to drivers to avoid dropping passengers at unsafe locations.The family’s law firm, Panish Shea Ravipudi LLP, said Uber had initially proposed a settlement that would have paid the parents $10 million but barred them from publicly discussing the incident. The family rejected the proposal.The parents have since established the Emily Normandin-Parker Foundation in their daughter’s memory and are advocating for stronger rideshare safety regulations.