Platform Or Rider? Examining Liability For Passenger Injuries In App-Based Bike Taxi Services In India
Hanna A Khan, SRM School of Law, SRM Institute of Science and Technology, Kattankulathur, Tamil Nadu
ABSTRACT
Bike taxis have become a familiar form of urban transport in India. Through a mobile application, a passenger can view a rider’s details, check a fare and begin a journey within minutes. The service is often affordable and useful for short trips, especially in congested cities. Its convenience, however, raises an important legal question: when a passenger is injured, should responsibility rest with the rider, the vehicle owner, the insurer, the platform, or more than one of them? The issue is complicated because the rider drives the motorcycle, the vehicle may belong to another person, and the aggregator arranges the ride and may control verification, records, safety processes and complaint handling. The Sani Krishna–Rapido dispute in Bengaluru has brought practical attention to medical expenses, passenger insurance and platform accountability. The dispute does not itself establish that Rapido is legally liable, but it illustrates the difficulties faced by an injured passenger. This article examines the relevant principles under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, negligence law, consumer protection law, insurance and the Motor Vehicle Aggregator Guidelines, 2025. It also considers the Karnataka High Court’s decision of 23 January 2026 concerning the regulatory position of bike taxis. The article argues that a platform should not be liable for every accident merely because a ride was booked through its application. Equally, it should not escape responsibility where it breaches a legal duty or fails to perform a safety-related undertaking and that failure is connected to the injury. A fair framework should preserve the rider’s direct responsibility for negligent driving while requiring platforms to provide transparent insurance information, verify legally required credentials, preserve relevant trip records and offer an accessible accident-support process.
Keywords: Bike taxis; aggregator; passenger safety; platform liability; negligence; insurance; Motor Vehicles Act, 1988; Consumer Protection Act, 2019; Rapido.
