6 ms·

Uber won its license back in London

112 points by docker_up 8y ago

honestoHeminway 8y ago
Oh, those legal fights- trillion dollar companys milking theire civil opponents warchests. You can allmost hear the process grinding the opposition to dust. while not totalMarketDominance() DO IF Opposition.trysToRalleyPublic() THEN backOffFor(minCoolDownTimePublic) ELSIF Opposition.hasLawProtection() THEN reproposeUnderminerLaw(oldInterestLaw.getNewFancyName({"ACTA","BACTA","DODO","WTHEC","ETC"}) ELSIF Opposition.isInDefeat() Opposition.devourSelf("It actually was "+ Opposition.getPoliticalOpposition+" all along") market.TotalPenetration() END END What a devious, single minded organism, made from monkeys.
KineticLensman 8y ago
This doesn't mean that Uber hasn't been operating in London. It was refused a new license last year but was allowed to keep going pending the decision reported here (in effect an appeal)
- gaius 8y ago
  but was allowed to keep going pending the decision reported here In other words, no material consequences for the bad behaviour at all, not even a slapped wrist, just business as usual. London is ill-served by these weak so-called regulators. If a private citizen had committed these crimes and told a judge they were now a reformed character, would they get off Scot free?
  - gsnedders 8y ago
    Uber were not convicted of any crimes. The bar for a license renewal being refused is much, much lower than criminal activity.
gsnedders 8y ago
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-uber-britain/uber-wins-london-license-but-with-conditions-idUSKBN1JL31G https://www.reuters.com/article/us-uber-britain/uber-wins-lo... includes slightly more, IMO, including: > Judge Emma Arbuthnot said that while Uber had not been fit and proper when that decision was made, an overhaul of its policies in the subsequent months had changed its position. > Uber, which has about 45,000 drivers in London, introduced several new initiatives in response to the ruling, including 24/7 telephone support and the proactive reporting of serious incidents to police. It has also changed senior management in Britain, its biggest European market. > The license conditions include giving TFL notice of what Uber is doing in areas that may be a cause of concern, reporting safety related complaints and having an independent assurance audit report every six months.
- willspoke 8y ago
  They have 15 months, I believe, to prove that they should merit a 5 year licence. If nothing goes wrong, then they would have succeeded in renewing their licence. Presently they are under probation.
hardlianotion 8y ago
Provisionally https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2018/jun/26/uber-case-licence-london https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2018/jun/26/uber-case...
hacker_9 8y ago
I'm not sure why this is even news to be honest; I live in London and noticed zero glitch in the consistency of my Uber rides. I don't think anyone actually thought this would be a problem when 1) they fulfil a service that everyone wants (cabs simply do not compare on speed, efficiency, price and ease of booking) and 2) the company is such a well known global brand, that there would be an uproar if it was banned and no politician would want that stain on their time in office.
- geezerjay 8y ago
  > I'm not sure why this is even news to be honest; IIRC national taxi cab associations of some european countries have used Uber's story in London as propaganda to sell the idea that Uber is being banned around the world, and thus it should also be banned in their nations as well. This story puts a stop to that propaganda effort.
- paulie_a 8y ago
  I am not in London so it is probably an unfair assumption. But the most important reason Uber is better is because cab drivers are unequivocally terrible in every way.
  - jonplackett 8y ago
    This is so true. If cab drivers hadn’t been so universally crap to begin with, everyone wouldn’t have so readily switched to Uber.
    - paulie_a 8y ago
      A taxi is when I am incredibly desperate when an Uber will take ten minutes. But I regret the taxi every time. although Uber is a little more hit or miss with drivers/cleanliness of cars lately but still better than any alternative.
  - biggc 8y ago
    > I am not in London My understanding is that London cabs are held to an extremely high standard (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taxicabs_of_the_United_Kingdom#The_Knowledge https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taxicabs_of_the_United_Kingdom...), as a result they're also extremely expensive.
jimnotgym 8y ago
Well at least Uber can now focus on tax-avoidance as an unfair advantage over regular cabs. https://goodlawproject.org/uber-case/ https://goodlawproject.org/uber-case/
- dingo_bat 8y ago
  Do you pay more income tax than is legally required? Why do you expect a company to do different?
  - jimnotgym 8y ago
    No, But I do pay all of the tax that is legally required. This is where we differ from Uber. Our company doesn't have a sweatheart deal with the government and would get into a lot of trouble if we didn't.
- rosege 8y ago
  And they really don't need to have that as an advantage over regular cabs as their service already is superior. In my city (Sydney) I would take Uber even if it wasn't cheaper because every time I get in a regular cab they either try and go a slow way or when we get to the destination they hit some buttons and the fare jumps by a few dollars even though we haven't gone over a toll road or the time of day doesn't have a penalty rate.
- paulddraper 8y ago
  > Jo Maugham QC, our director, told ITV: “I’m suing Uber to understand whether HMRC treats these big US multinationals including Uber with kid gloves. Uber undoubtedly has arranged its business model to minimise its tax liability, to dodge taxes if you like, and to minimise the workers’ rights that it has to offer to its drivers.” So, a lawsuit to explore. Interesting, I guess?
  - jimnotgym 8y ago
    That's what he does, he is a campaigning lawyer. He is only claiming about £0.50 IIRC!
tsunamifury 8y ago
I travel the world over and Uber London is absolutely the best car service I've ever experienced. Want a bargin BMW 5 series to get you to your place -- Uber Exec. Need to treat a client to a S-Class, use Uber Black in just minutes. Every experience with Uber was a professional at a relatively low price. It makes San Francisco Uber seem like a dumpster fire.
- loriverkutya 8y ago
  Probably you didn't used it often enough. I have some quiet bad experience (never going to get an Uber with pregnant wife), as well as everybody I know and used Uber in London. Also, the standard Uber car in London is Toyota Prius.
cbcoutinho 8y ago
Are other commenters here comparing uber to regular cabs in London or black cabs? I always heard that the difference between them all is substantial - especially regarding knowledge of local streets and motorways
- spiralx 8y ago
  I assume most of the comparisons are for black cabs, which are indeed more expensive but have unrivalled knowledge of getting around central London, as well as being allowed to pick up fares by being hailed on the street. There are fewer differences between Uber and minicab firms in London. Uber is a bit more expensive on short journeys and drivers lack any local knowledge so can end up taking longer routes, but cheaper for journeys going a longer distance because drivers don't have to return to their home area after dropping you off. Uber's app is better than the others I've tried, but not unique, and their drivers and cars tend to be nice, but so are most minicabs that I've used.

112 points by docker_up 8y ago

Oh, those legal fights- trillion dollar companys milking theire civil opponents warchests. You can allmost hear the process grinding the opposition to dust. while not totalMarketDominance() DO IF Opposition.trysToRalleyPublic() THEN backOffFor(minCoolDownTimePublic) ELSIF Opposition.hasLawProtection() THEN reproposeUnderminerLaw(oldInterestLaw.getNewFancyName({"ACTA","BACTA","DODO","WTHEC","ETC"}) ELSIF Opposition.isInDefeat() Opposition.devourSelf("It actually was "+ Opposition.getPoliticalOpposition+" all along") market.TotalPenetration() END END What a devious, single minded organism, made from monkeys.

KineticLensman 8y ago

This doesn't mean that Uber hasn't been operating in London. It was refused a new license last year but was allowed to keep going pending the decision reported here (in effect an appeal)

gaius 8y ago
but was allowed to keep going pending the decision reported here In other words, no material consequences for the bad behaviour at all, not even a slapped wrist, just business as usual. London is ill-served by these weak so-called regulators. If a private citizen had committed these crimes and told a judge they were now a reformed character, would they get off Scot free?
- gsnedders 8y ago
  Uber were not convicted of any crimes. The bar for a license renewal being refused is much, much lower than criminal activity.

gsnedders 8y ago

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-uber-britain/uber-wins-london-license-but-with-conditions-idUSKBN1JL31G https://www.reuters.com/article/us-uber-britain/uber-wins-lo... includes slightly more, IMO, including: > Judge Emma Arbuthnot said that while Uber had not been fit and proper when that decision was made, an overhaul of its policies in the subsequent months had changed its position. > Uber, which has about 45,000 drivers in London, introduced several new initiatives in response to the ruling, including 24/7 telephone support and the proactive reporting of serious incidents to police. It has also changed senior management in Britain, its biggest European market. > The license conditions include giving TFL notice of what Uber is doing in areas that may be a cause of concern, reporting safety related complaints and having an independent assurance audit report every six months.

willspoke 8y ago
They have 15 months, I believe, to prove that they should merit a 5 year licence. If nothing goes wrong, then they would have succeeded in renewing their licence. Presently they are under probation.

hardlianotion 8y ago

Provisionally https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2018/jun/26/uber-case-licence-london https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2018/jun/26/uber-case...

hacker_9 8y ago

I'm not sure why this is even news to be honest; I live in London and noticed zero glitch in the consistency of my Uber rides. I don't think anyone actually thought this would be a problem when 1) they fulfil a service that everyone wants (cabs simply do not compare on speed, efficiency, price and ease of booking) and 2) the company is such a well known global brand, that there would be an uproar if it was banned and no politician would want that stain on their time in office.

geezerjay 8y ago
> I'm not sure why this is even news to be honest; IIRC national taxi cab associations of some european countries have used Uber's story in London as propaganda to sell the idea that Uber is being banned around the world, and thus it should also be banned in their nations as well. This story puts a stop to that propaganda effort.
paulie_a 8y ago
I am not in London so it is probably an unfair assumption. But the most important reason Uber is better is because cab drivers are unequivocally terrible in every way.
- jonplackett 8y ago
  This is so true. If cab drivers hadn’t been so universally crap to begin with, everyone wouldn’t have so readily switched to Uber.
  - paulie_a 8y ago
    A taxi is when I am incredibly desperate when an Uber will take ten minutes. But I regret the taxi every time. although Uber is a little more hit or miss with drivers/cleanliness of cars lately but still better than any alternative.
- biggc 8y ago
  > I am not in London My understanding is that London cabs are held to an extremely high standard (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taxicabs_of_the_United_Kingdom#The_Knowledge https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taxicabs_of_the_United_Kingdom...), as a result they're also extremely expensive.

jimnotgym 8y ago

Well at least Uber can now focus on tax-avoidance as an unfair advantage over regular cabs. https://goodlawproject.org/uber-case/ https://goodlawproject.org/uber-case/

dingo_bat 8y ago
Do you pay more income tax than is legally required? Why do you expect a company to do different?
- jimnotgym 8y ago
  No, But I do pay all of the tax that is legally required. This is where we differ from Uber. Our company doesn't have a sweatheart deal with the government and would get into a lot of trouble if we didn't.
rosege 8y ago
And they really don't need to have that as an advantage over regular cabs as their service already is superior. In my city (Sydney) I would take Uber even if it wasn't cheaper because every time I get in a regular cab they either try and go a slow way or when we get to the destination they hit some buttons and the fare jumps by a few dollars even though we haven't gone over a toll road or the time of day doesn't have a penalty rate.
paulddraper 8y ago
> Jo Maugham QC, our director, told ITV: “I’m suing Uber to understand whether HMRC treats these big US multinationals including Uber with kid gloves. Uber undoubtedly has arranged its business model to minimise its tax liability, to dodge taxes if you like, and to minimise the workers’ rights that it has to offer to its drivers.” So, a lawsuit to explore. Interesting, I guess?
- jimnotgym 8y ago
  That's what he does, he is a campaigning lawyer. He is only claiming about £0.50 IIRC!

tsunamifury 8y ago

I travel the world over and Uber London is absolutely the best car service I've ever experienced. Want a bargin BMW 5 series to get you to your place -- Uber Exec. Need to treat a client to a S-Class, use Uber Black in just minutes. Every experience with Uber was a professional at a relatively low price. It makes San Francisco Uber seem like a dumpster fire.

loriverkutya 8y ago
Probably you didn't used it often enough. I have some quiet bad experience (never going to get an Uber with pregnant wife), as well as everybody I know and used Uber in London. Also, the standard Uber car in London is Toyota Prius.

cbcoutinho 8y ago

Are other commenters here comparing uber to regular cabs in London or black cabs? I always heard that the difference between them all is substantial - especially regarding knowledge of local streets and motorways

spiralx 8y ago
I assume most of the comparisons are for black cabs, which are indeed more expensive but have unrivalled knowledge of getting around central London, as well as being allowed to pick up fares by being hailed on the street. There are fewer differences between Uber and minicab firms in London. Uber is a bit more expensive on short journeys and drivers lack any local knowledge so can end up taking longer routes, but cheaper for journeys going a longer distance because drivers don't have to return to their home area after dropping you off. Uber's app is better than the others I've tried, but not unique, and their drivers and cars tend to be nice, but so are most minicabs that I've used.