If you’re one of 40,000 Uber drivers in London, you’ll have to look for another job very soon, as the company just lost its license to operate in London. Transport for London, the body of government responsible for transportation regulations in London, today publicly announced that it will not renewย the private hire operator licence forย Uber London Limited after its expiration on September 30. In the announcement, TFL states that “private hire operators must meet rigorous regulations, and demonstrate to TfL that they do so, in order to operate.” Insinuating that Uber has failed to this, the agency clarified that “TfL must also be satisfied that an operator is fit and proper to hold a licence.”
The agency says that Uber has continuously shownย a lack of corporate responsibility which has put its riders at risks. These are the official reasons why TFL will not renew Uber’s license:
- Its approach to reporting serious criminal offences.
- Its approach to how medical certificates are obtained.
- Its approach to how Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks are obtained.
- Its approach to explaining the use of Greyball in London – software that could be used to block regulatory bodies from gaining full access to the app and prevent officials from undertaking regulatory or law enforcement duties.
In respond to all of this, Uber said thatย “Transport for London and the mayor have caved in to a small number of people who want to restrict consumer choice,” BBC reports.ย Uber has 21 days to appeal this decision, andย Uber’s general manager in London Tom Elvidge confirmed they will in order to “To defend the livelihoods of all those drivers, and the consumer choice of millions of Londoners who use our app, we intend to immediately challenge this in the courts.”