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On 6 May 2014, the Victorian Taxi Service Commission fined Uber drivers A$1,723. State officers said that they will review the state's Transport Act, while Uber said it will reimburse its drivers. |
On 4 December 2015, an Uber driver was found guilty of driving a hire car without a licence or registration. The case was the first of 12 brought against Uber drivers. On 18 May 2016, the judgement was overturned on appeal, effectively legalizing Uber in Victoria. |
On 25 August 2016, the government announced plans to legalize ridesharing in Victoria. From 2018, taxi licences were abolished and licence holders compensated by an 8-year A$1 levy on all taxi and ride-booking services in the state. |
Western Australia. |
From 18 December 2015, new regulations were introduced, including a requirement that ridesharing company apply for omnibus licences, as required by taxi services. Both Uber and the taxi industry supported the regulations, which provided certainty. |
Bangladesh. |
Uber was launched on November 22, 2016 in Dhaka, but within 36 hours of its launching, Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) declared it illegal. Uber and other ridesharing companies lobbied the government to legalize ridesharing companies. Though the government ban was still on effect, the ridesharing companies operated in the city. On December 3, 2017, the BRTA formulated a guideline for ridesharing companies and most of the ridesharing companies were given operating licenses by February 2018. |
The CNG Auto-rickshaw Drivers of Dhaka and Chittagong implemented a strike action on December 27–28, 2017 with 8 demands that included a ban on ridesharing companies. They faced a huge backlash from general public as the CNG auto-rickshaw drivers are notoriously known for overcharging passengers, breaking traffic rules, and misconduct with passengers. In early 2018, a large faction CNG auto-rickshaw drivers decided to join Uber and the ridesharing companies, which operate auto-rickshaw service. |
Belgium. |
In April 2014, Uber was banned in Brussels, and the company was threatened with fines of €10,000 if it offers fares to drivers who are not in possession of a taxi license. Bruxelles-Mobilite, the city's federal region administration responsible for infrastructure and traffic, impounded 13 cars aligned with Uber after March 2014 and a spokesperson for the body described the service as "illegal" in June 2014. The spokesperson also said in a public statement that Bruxelles-Mobilite was generally addressing the issue of illegal taxi drivers in a sector that was difficult to regulate. Although already banned in Brussels, Uber advertised for a Brussels-based "General Manager" on the "LinkedIn" website in June 2014. The advertisement stated that the role was "by far the most demanding position Uber has to offer." |
In October 2015, Uber suspended its UberPOP service, but continued to operate its UberX service, which uses licensed drivers. |
In March 2018, taxi drivers protested, blocking roads, demanding the government drop plans to make it easier for ridesharing companies to operate. |
Brazil. |
On April 29, 2015, a Brazilian court banned Uber in response to complaints by a taxi drivers' union. The court also ordered Apple Inc., Google Inc., Microsoft, and Samsung Electronics to prevent installation and use of the Uber mobile app by Brazilian residents. A few weeks later, the order was revoked, allowing Uber to operate normally. |
On July 24, 2015, 1,000 taxi drivers in Rio de Janeiro blocked traffic during the morning rush hour. Lawmakers voted to ban Uber in São Paulo and Brasília. |
In October 2015, Fernando Haddad, the mayor of São Paulo, signed a bill to allow for a new category of "black taxis" which would operate in parallel to the city's existing licensed taxis but only be bookable via mobile phone apps. Uber rejected the proposal. |
In late 2015, an Uber driver was beaten by taxi drivers in Brazil, and similar attacks followed. |
Bulgaria. |
Uber began operations in Sofia in December 2014. In September 2015, a court upheld fines imposed on Uber for unfair trade practices and Uber subsequently stopped service in Bulgaria. |
Canada. |
Uber drivers in Canada are required "to register, collect and remit HST/GST from their fares to the government", regardless of their income. |
Toronto. |
On December 5, 2012, Toronto officials charged Uber with 25 municipal licensing infractions, including operation of an unlicensed taxi brokerage and unlicensed limousine service. Municipal officials said they had advised the company to comply with local regulations and that rival taxi dispatch apps had obtained licenses. Despite support from some quarters including mayor John Tory, Toronto Police Service launched a crackdown on Uber drivers. In July 2015, a $400M class-action lawsuit was filed against UberX and UberXL in Toronto on behalf of Ontario taxi and limo drivers, brokers, and owners, who alleged that Uber violated section 39.1 of the province's Highway Traffic Act by having unlicensed drivers picking up passengers and transporting them for compensation. In March 2016, Sukhvir Tehethi, a local taxi driver, filed an injunction against Uber to stop it from operating. A Toronto city councillor warned that passengers using UberX may be fined up to $20,000. On March 3, 2016, after hours of heated debate, the City Council of Toronto passed a bylaw allowing UberX to operate legally in the city with conditions, while also cutting regulations for taxis. |
Edmonton. |
Edmonton officials unveiled a proposed ridesharing bylaw on September 9, 2015 to permit Uber to operate legally in Edmonton. Uber opposed the accompanying regulations. Uber was legalized in Edmonton on Wednesday, January 27, 2016 effective as of March 1, 2016. However, Uber ceased operations in Edmonton on March 1, 2016, citing inability to obtain the necessary insurance. Uber continued to operate outside of Edmonton despite lack of insurance or proper licensing of their drivers. Uber pulled their cars off Edmonton streets until July 1 when the province approved an insurance policy specifically for ride-sharing companies. |
Calgary. |
In 2015, Calgary, Alberta charged at least 17 drivers illegally driving for Uber without insurance. Uber was given clearance to operate in Calgary in December 2016. |
Surrey. |
In 2020, mayor Doug McCallum gained criticism in the media when he refused to allow Uber drivers to operate in the city of Surrey. McCallum said that the reason for the ban on Uber drivers was done so in order to protect the jobs of the cab drivers working in Surrey. As part of the ban against Uber, any Uber driver that was caught driving within the Surrey city limits while driving a passenger would have to pay $500. |
Quebec. |
Uber continues to negotiate with the government of Quebec after the government issued regulations requiring drivers to undergo 35 hours of training and a background check. |
As of January 2019, in the same pilot project as Uber, the Government of Quebec authorizes Eva, a local cooperative alternative, to run in Montreal, Quebec and Gatineau. Eva launches the application in May 2019, becoming the second most used application in Quebec. |
Halifax. |
Following a bylaw change November 1, 2020, ridesharing companies were officially allowed to begin operating in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Uber launched in the city on December 3, 2020. |
New Brunswick. |
In November, 2020, the province of New Brunswick passed legislation that give ridesharing companies the right to operate, asking local municipalities to regulate their use. |
Costa Rica. |
On August 21, 2015, Uber started operations in Costa Rica and multiple Uber drivers were immediately attacked by taxi drivers. |
China. |
In December 2014, in Chongqing, police raided a training session organised by Uber that was attended by more than 20 drivers. In April 2015, Chinese authorities raided the offices of Uber in Guangzhou, Guangdong. |
On May 6, 2015, local police raided Uber's offices in Chengdu, in Sichuan province. |
In 2016, Uber sold its Chinese operations to Didi. |
Croatia. |
Before Uber began operations in Croatia, the Sustainable Development of Croatia party and major taxi service companies were against it, stating that the price of Uber service doesn't compensate the drivers enough for gas, car maintenance, passenger insurance, nor health and retirement insurance for the driver, and Uber prices also don't include VAT nor surtax. In October 2015, Uber initiated service in Zagreb. In June 2016, the Uber started operating in Split, Croatia and Dubrovnik. In September 2016, a group of taxi drivers attacked a Uber driver who was waiting for a passenger at Zagreb Airport. The Uber driver canceled the ride before the passenger arrived and drove away, with the attackers following him. The attack was filmed by the victim and reported to the Law enforcement in Croatia. |
Czech Republic. |
The biggest protests against Uber in Prague took place in February 2018, when the taxi drivers drove forth and back along the highway. This was repeated for several days. Roads in Prague was also occupied by taxi drivers in October 2017 when they protested near the airport. Uber's activity in Brno was preliminarily stopped by the regional court in July 2017, but in October 2017, a higher court canceled the measure. In March 2018, Uber concluded an agreement with the Czech government. Drivers under this agreement will have to be licensed as taxi drivers. |
Denmark. |
After Uber Black and UberPop were launched in Copenhagen in November 2014, the Danish Transport Authority filed a complaint accusing Uber of operating illegally. In January 2015, Denmark's transport minister stated that, although he was not opposed to Uber, the app was "contrary" to Danish law—consumer safety and employee training were identified as the key concerns. |
In July 2016, six Uber drivers were convicted for offering taxi services without license. Police also charged more than 48 Uber drivers for unlicensed taxi driving. |
On November 18, 2016, the Østre Landsret ruled that Uber is an illegal taxi service. |
Uber shut operations in Denmark in April 2017. |
Egypt. |
After several protests, sit-ins, and violent attacks by taxi operators in 2016 and a lawsuit filed in March 2018, the Egyptian government legalized Uber and Careem in May 2018. The regulations require the ridesharing companies to pay license fees and share user data with the government. |
European Union. |
On June 11, 2014, in a concerted action, taxis blocked roads in major European cities in protest against what they perceived as a threat to their livelihoods from ridesharing companies. The cabbies contended that Uber and similar smartphone app-based services have an unfair advantage because they are not subject to the same kinds of fees and regulations placed on taxis. |
In December 2017, the European Court of Justice ruled that Uber is a transport company, subject to local transport regulation in European Union member states, rather than an information society service as Uber had argued. |
Finland. |
Uber launched UberPop in Helsinki in 2014. In September 2016, the Helsinki Court of Appeal deemed Uber illegal, as the company did not have a taxi license. Drivers faced criminal prosecution. |
In 2018, Uber was legalized in Finland. |
France. |
On January 13, 2014, cab drivers in Paris attacked an Uber driver's car near Charles de Gaulle Airport, protesting competition. |
On October 17, 2014, a court ruled that Uber was illegal and stated that UberPop violated a pre-existent regulation that bans carpooling for profit and fined Uber €100,000. |
On December 12, 2014, a French court ruled that Uber could not advertise some of its services to the general public in France; if it did so, it would face a $25,000 daily fine. |
Effective January 1, 2015, UberPop was banned under the provisions of the Thévenoud Law, which requires anyone carrying passengers for hire to be licensed and have insurance. |
By February 23, 2015 about 100 drivers, mostly first-time offenders, had been ticketed. |
UberPool remained operational in Paris and continued to aggressively recruit French drivers and passengers. |
On June 25, 2015, cab drivers in Paris "locked down" Paris in an anti-Uber protest that became increasingly violent. Musician Courtney Love got caught in the protest and live tweeted as her Uber cab was violently attacked and she and her driver were held hostage. |
In June 2015, French authorities arrested two Uber managers on six charges, including "deceptive commercial practices", complicity in instigating an illegal taxi-driving activity, and the illegal stocking of personal information. |
On July 5, 2015, Uber suspended UberPop in the face of pressure by the French government while awaiting a court decision. |
On September 22, 2015, France's highest constitutional authority rejected Uber's appeal of a law banning UberPop. |
In June 2016, a Paris court fined Uber €800,000, half suspended, for illegally running its UberPop service in 2015. |
Germany. |
In early 2014, Berlin authorities ruled against Uber—which operated in the German cities of Berlin, Munich, Frankfurt, Hamburg, and Düsseldorf—on two occasions following a case filed by the Berlin Taxi Association. The first ruling, delivered by a court in April 2014, deemed Uber's limousine service to be in breach of local legislation, while an August 13, 2014 decision banned the service from operating in Berlin due to safety concerns—the latter decision, which included a €25,000 fine for non-compliance, cited issues pertaining to unregulated vehicles and unqualified drivers who are not properly insured. |
On August 28, 2014, a court in Frankfurt issued an immediate cease and desist order against Uber following an appeal from Taxi Deutschland. The preliminary injunction applied to all of Germany and included a fine of €250,000 per ride for non-compliance. If the injunction was breached, Uber's German-based employees could be jailed for up to 6 months and the company could be fined. UberBLACK was not affected by the ruling. |
On September 16, 2014, the district court of Frankfurt revoked the preliminary injunction, thereby re-allowing Uber to operate in Germany. The presiding judge wrote that the Taxi Deutschland case "would have had prospects for success", but the case was merely lodged too late, as any case needs to be filed within two months of a service's launch—Uber started in Germany in April 2014, but the case was filed in August 2014. Taxi Deutschland appealed the ruling. |
On March 18, 2015, a Frankfurt district court imposed a nationwide ban on UberPop, claiming that drivers do not have proper licensing and insurance. Each violation of this order would be subject to a €250,000 fine. |
In October 2015, Uber limited its operations to its UberX and UberBLACK services, which requires drivers that hold passenger transport licenses. |
In November 2018, Uber began operations in Düsseldorf, working with licensed drivers and taxi companies. |
Greece. |
In April 2018, Uber suspended service in Greece after regulations were implemented that require all rides to begin and end in the fleet partner's designated headquarters or parking area. |
Hong Kong. |
On August 11, 2015, Hong Kong Police raided Uber's office after arresting five drivers in a sting operation aimed at combating illegal taxis. Two more drivers were arrested on the next day. However, the Hong Kong government investment agency, InvestHK, had endorsed Uber as one of its "success stories" on its website, although the endorsement was later removed. |
On March 15, 2018, a group of local taxi drivers protested outside the Hong Kong Police Headquarters, requesting for actions to be taken on those "unlicensed taxis". They accused Uber from using false and misleading documents to lie to the public. On the same day, another group of taxi drivers protested by honking their horns for 30 seconds in Admiralty, Hong Kong at noon. They also threatened to flood the area with their vehicles if no actions are taken by the government. |
Hungary. |
In July 2016, Uber was ruled to be an illegal taxi service in Hungary and subsequently suspended operations. |
India. |
Hyderabad. |
The Hyderabad road transport authority banned Uber cabs a day after the Indian Ministry of Home Affairs advised all states to stop the operation of ridesharing companies. A spokesman for the authority said that Uber did not hold a license to operate in the city, and asked the public to cease using Uber. |
Karnataka. |
After Home Minister Rajnath Singh announced in Parliament on December 9, 2014 that he had advised all states and Union territories to ban unregistered and unlicensed cab services, the state government of Karnataka banned Uber on December 11, 2014. |
New Delhi. |
In December 2014, following allegations of rape against an Uber driver in New Delhi, Uber was banned from New Delhi for not following the city's compulsory police verification procedure. The driver had been charged, then acquitted, of a prior sexual assault in 2011. Within two days of the rape incident, almost 7,000 people signed a petition calling on Uber to conduct mandatory 7-year background checks on drivers, in line with its U.S. operations. Delhi's transport department banned Uber. Uber issued a statement stating that it would work with the Indian government "to establish clear background checks currently absent in their commercial transportation licensing programs." |
In banning Uber, Delhi's transport department cited several rules that Uber had broken. According to New Delhi's Radio Taxi Scheme, 2006, all taxi licensees must be either a company under the Companies Act, 2013 (or the 1956 Act), or a society under the Societies Registration Act, 1860. Furthermore, taxi services must provide adequate parking space for all taxis, as well as sufficiently sized office space to accommodate the control room, the maintenance of a minimum fleet size per license (500 vehicles), and all vehicles must be fitted with GPS/GPRS tracking systems (to be in constant communication with the control room while on duty). The rules also stipulate that the taxi licensee is responsible for ensuring the quality of drivers, including police verifications, supervision, and employee behaviour. |
Uber is faced with limits to the number of drivers that are allowed to operate. but now its operating in New Delhi. |
Indonesia. |
On March 22, 2016, thousands of taxi drivers in Jakarta demonstrated against Uber and a similar service, Grab. Several places were targeted during the protests, including the Istana Merdeka, the DPR/MPR Building, and the Ministry of Communication and Informatics central office. Taxi drivers accused that Grab and Uber were causing them to receive smaller daily incomes due to the rising number of app users. The demonstrators also demanded that the government ban the apps and issue a governmental decree concerning this problem. |
In January 2019, Indonesia announced plans to fix the rates charged by ridesharing companies such as Grab and Go-Jek. |
Israel. |
Uber first introduced a limited service in the Tel Aviv area in August 2014. However, in November 2017 the Tel Aviv District Court issued a permanent injunction against Uber's utilizing private cars in Israel on the grounds that these lacked the insurance coverage of regulated taxis. Uber was allowed to provide its service in licensed taxis as do other crowd-sourced ride-hailing companies such as Gett. Although Uber had the support of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the court ruled for the taxi companies and drivers who opposed Uber. |
Italy. |