TLTP
\nLONDON
\nUber won an appeal against a London ban on Monday after a judge ruled that the company was \u201cfit and proper\u201d to restore its operating licence in the British capital despite its \u201chistorical failings\u201d.
\nDeputy Chief Magistrate Tan Ikram said the ride-hailing company could operate after Transport for London (TfL) revoked its licence in November last year for the second time over safety concerns. \u201cDespite their historical failings, I find them, now, to be a fit and proper person to hold a London PHV (private hire vehicle) operator\u2019s licence,\u201d Judge Tan Ikram said in his written verdict.
\n\u201cI do, however, wish to hear from the advocates on conditions and on my determination as to the length of a licence.\u201d
\nUber\u2019s licence removal last year was the latest stage of a long-running battle with London\u2019s transport regulator in one of its most important markets. TfL refused to grant the Silicon Valley-based company a new licence due to what it called a \u201cpattern of failures\u201d, including thousands of trips conducted where drivers other than those advertised picked up passengers.
\nThis was the result of an Uber system change that allowed unauthorised drivers to upload their photographs to other Uber driver accounts, resulting in a minimum of 14,000 uninsured trips across the city, TfL said.
\nWhile some of these journeys were undertaken by unlicensed drivers, others involved \u201cdismissed or suspended drivers\u201d creating Uber accounts to carry passengers.
\nTfl concluded that the company was \u201cnot fit and proper\u201d at the time, despite moves by Uber to correct the issues.
\nThe latest court win for Uber is the first of a two-pronged process it to regain its London licence, with the second a negotiation with TfL, which has the power to approve the length of a new licence.
\nThe licence review is one of several legal battles the US firm is fighting. In its home state of California, lawsuits against the company include drivers demanding expanded employment rights which would severely affect its gig-economy business model if successful.
\nTo find Uber \u201cfit and proper\u201d to operate the judge had to be satisfied that Uber had the qualities and capabilities reasonably expected of a private-hire vehicle operator, the company said in written documents.
\nUber\u2019s licence was first revoked in 2017 before a judge restored it on a probationary basis.
\nAt the Uber hearing earlier this month, Uber was accused by the Licensed Taxi Drivers\u2019 Association, which represents some of London\u2019s black-cab drivers, of attempting to hide the fraudulent use of photo identification by some drivers from the regulator. Uber \u201cemphatically rejected\u201d the allegation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
TLTP LONDON Uber won an appeal against a London ban on Monday after a judge ruled that the company was \u201cfit and proper\u201d to restore its operating licence in the British capital despite its \u201chistorical failings\u201d. Deputy Chief Magistrate Tan Ikram said the ride-hailing company could operate after Transport for London (TfL) revoked its licence […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-147320","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-business"],"yoast_head":"\n