POSTED BY Olivia Vache
Although Uber has been waging war around many U.S. cities, it has begun its rampage into other countries as well. Uber began its arduous journey to conquer the world with its sensible transportation alternative in 2012. One of the first stops for Uber is the highly regulated country of France. Many countries have already expressed their distaste for Uber’s ride-sharing services, and with the addition of UberPOP[1] (the European version of UberX) the negative press is skyrocketing.
In the past year or two, France, independently of the EU, has tried numerous methods for sustaining their highly regulated Taxi services over UberPOP and other similar services. Some of these methods have included ridiculous and meaningless rules imposed on UberPOP and other services including, but not limited to: requiring an Uber to wait 15 minutes from the time it is hailed to the time it can pick someone up; forbidding Uber to show the rider the availability of nearby vehicles; making such connection between riders and drivers without professional licenses punishable by up to 2 years in prison and a fine; forcing drivers of UberPOP to return to the “dispatch center”after each ride (Taxis do not have to do this) among many other attempts.
However, despite Uber’s unsuccessful attempts to reach many country’s markets, it has not given up on France. In late December 2014, Uber caught a lucky break by dodging a potential ban of UberPOP in its entirety. In Paris, Taxi companies had filed suit against Uber reasoning that it’s unfair for UberPOP to be allowed when Taxi licenses cost up to $300,000 and on the grounds that the liability of an UberPOP driver is immense since their personal auto insurance wouldn’t cover damages with a passenger. In response, UberPOP has publicized that all of its drivers are given commercial liability insurance with up to $5 Million per accident for damages caused by the driver.
Most recently however, Uber has retreated to the EU for safety from France’s wrath. Although France is doing everything in its power to ban UberPOP, Uber claims that France did not properly notify the EU before throwing its hasty new laws at the ride-sharing company. This may have given Uber a bit more time, but both parties seem to be completely dedicated to winning this fight on short-range-travel. As the legal battle continues, Uber claims France’s ban on UberPOP to be unconstitutional, and expects backing from the EU, which is sworn to forbid national governments from hindering free trade or movement of services. As this battle plays out, the rest of the world fights the same or similar battles with UberX/UberPOP all over the globe.
Bio:
Olivia is a Staff Member of the Journal of High Technology Law. She is currently a 2L at Suffolk Law with a concentration in Intellectual Property and Technology and Innovation. She holds a B.A. in Economics and Political Science from Sarah Lawrence College in New York.
[1] UberPOP refers to the term “peer-to-peer” car service.
