Uber unsafe, dangerous: Cabcharge Cabcharge has stepped up its fight with Uber, calling on governments to stamp out the ride-sharing service and labelling it "illegal and unsafe." Chairman Russell Balding has written to all state premiers and Prime Minister Tony Abbott raising safety and tax concerns linked to Uber, particularly its lower-end UberX service. "UberX ride sharing is dangerous, unsupervised and as the NSW government has said, illegal," he told shareholders at Cabcharge's annual general meeting on Wednesday. Governments need to do something about it. He also claimed US-based Uber did not pay any tax in Australia and the structure of the service made it difficult for governments to track the money earned by drivers. "Uber is an offshore entity that does not pay any tax here," he said. It also appears to facilitate tax avoidance. UberX allows drivers, who are not accredited by the government, to use their own cars to pick up passengers who book using a mobile app. Victoria's Taxi Services Commission issued a "cease and desist" letter to the company in early November, while NSW and Queensland governments have fined UberX drivers. Mr Balding said the rise of Uber, which is growing in popularity in Australia, was "threatening the livelihood" of thousands of taxi drivers. But an Uber spokeswoman dismissed his claims as "scaremongering," and said the company complies with all applicable tax laws. "We are confident that policy makers will see these claims for what they are ... and make their decisions based on what is best for consumers, not incumbent industries," she said. Mr Balding's comments came as Cabcharge faced a shareholder backlash over concerns about a lack of independence and renewal on the company's board. More than a quarter of shareholder votes were against Cabcharge's executive pay structure, constituting a so-called "second strike," after a similar result at last year's meeting. A second strike prompts a vote to spill the board, which was defeated by Cabcharge's shareholders. Cabcharge has received a strike every year since the two strike rule, was introduced in 2011, but its board has not yet been disrupted. Mr Balding also defended the decision to appoint Rod Gilmour, a former paid consultant to Cabcharge, to the company's board in June. Mr Gilmour surprised investors by stepping down from the board on Tuesday night, on the eve of the AGM at which he was up for election. Mr Balding would not comment on reports proxy votes cast before the meeting indicated Mr Gilmour was to be voted off the board but insisted his decision to step down was made for "personal reasons." Cabcharge shares closed 11 cents higher at $4.86.