National Transportation Groups Push for Fingerprinting of Drivers

In Unified Policy Stance on Passenger Safety, Two Major Transportation Industry Trade Groups Say All For-Hire Drivers Must be Fingerprinted

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National Limousine Association

Jun 22, 2016, 10:10 ET

NEW YORK, June 22, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Limousine Association (NLA) and the Taxicab, Limousine & Paratransit Association (TLPA), North America's two largest professional trade associations in the for-hire passenger transportation business, jointly announced a unified position today calling for all drivers who transport passengers for a fee to be subject to national fingerprint-based background checks. The stance is aimed at ensuring the highest standards in vetting the nation's hundreds of thousands of for-hire drivers, and to ensure that universal practices to maximize passenger safety are instituted and upheld.

Established in 1917, the (TLPA) is a non-profit trade association of and for the private passenger transportation industry.

The vast majority of drivers within fleets operated by NLA and TLPA members in large to mid-sized cities must pass a fingerprint-based background check before they can transport passengers. However, in nearly every market, services such as Uber and Lyft do not use a fingerprint-based method to vet their drivers.

"There simply is no substitute for a fingerprint-based background check. You can fake a name or a social security number, but fingerprints don't lie. The numerous news reports of dangerous drivers for Uber and Lyft are reason enough to call for common-sense safety precautions, and that starts with fingerprints," said Dwight Kines, President of the TLPA.

"For years, many sectors of business, from daycare centers to commercial airlines, have relied on fingerprint-based background checks to verify the accuracy and authenticity of security screenings," said Gary Buffo, President of the NLA. "The TLPA and NLA believe that we must exhaust all feasible avenues to make certain that the people behind the wheels of commercial ground transportation vehicles are indeed who they claim to be. Thanks to recent technological advances, fingerprint background checks are more widely available and accessible than ever before, and it is time that we establish a new nationwide standard."

A study released last year found that fingerprint-based criminal background checks have a potential error rate of only 1 percent, while name-based background checks can have a potential error rate of 43 percent.

About TLPA: Established in 1917, the Taxicab, Limousine & Paratransit Association (TLPA) is a non-profit trade association of and for the private passenger transportation industry. Its extensive membership spans the globe to include 1,000 taxicab companies, executive sedan and limousine services, airport shuttle fleets, non-emergency medical transportation companies, paratransit services, and industry vendors. For more information, please visit www.tlpa.org

About NLA: The National Limousine Association was founded in 1985 as a voluntary, non-profit, tax-exempt organization responsible for and dedicated to representing and furthering the worldwide, national, state and local interests of the luxury chauffeured ground transportation industry. Its membership includes limousine owners and operators, suppliers, manufacturers, and regional and state limousine associations. For more information, please visit www.limo.org

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SOURCE National Limousine Association