Uber heads to court in a bid to save London license

UberToday (25 May) marks the day that court proceedings surrounding Uber’s London operating license finally get underway in a case expected to last between three and four days.

Uber’s London license was revoked back in September last year but the ride hailing firm appealed the decision under the Private Hire Vehicles (London) Act 1998 and has been able to operate freely in the UK capital since.

Using the extra time afforded to it by the appeal process, Uber has made several changes – especially in the area of passenger safety – over the last nine months in order to convince Transport for London (TfL) that it is worthy of getting a license back in Europe’s largest capital city, which also just so happens to be the European city where Uber is most used.

At the time of revoking Uber’s license, TfL said it had made the decision based on it deeming the transportation network not to be a ‘fit and proper’ operator. This was backed by London Mayor Sadiq Khan, who said that continuing to license Uber “could pose a threat to Londoners’ safety and security” because the company didn’t “play by the rules”.

Much of Ubers flagrance with regulations stems from former CEO Travis Kalanick and his approach of constantly throwing away the rulebook to strengthen Uber without following the correct channels. This is something that current CEO Dara Khosrowshahi is desperately working to change and has shown this desire in his meetings with regulators in London over the last few months.

As the case rolls on in the Westminster Magistrates’ Court, it is expected that TfL may look for some concessions from the San Francisco-based company, which would likely lead to the case stretching to several years through a number of appeals up the UK’s court system.