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Uber licence in London refused

(138 Posts)
maryeliza54 Fri 22-Sept-17 11:04:59

Wow - this is going to cause a storm.

Primrose65 Fri 22-Sept-17 18:26:47

I voted for Sadiq Khan maryeliza!
I also travel around London almost every day and have an idea of how removing a well-used form of transport will impact the millions of journeys made each day.
It's part of his job to build good working relationships with the large businesses operating in the city - simply saying TfL is the judge is not acceptable. He's sending out a message that he is without influence at best.

maryeliza54 Fri 22-Sept-17 18:24:59

I've found a bit more out about the issues around the obtaining of medical certificates- clearly there are issues if you want to drive and have epilepsy, T1 diabetes, have had black outs etc. To get a medical certificate to be a taxi driver, you have to get one of these completed by your own GP who will have your records. However, I have found at least two online sires/ forums aimed at would be Uber drivers that give advice on how to get a doctor who doesn't know you to sign one of these certificates. I've no idea of course about how widespread all this is but it's scarey I think that this information is so easily available if you search for it. Why on earth are there apparently no checks on who exactly has signed the form and whether that doctor has access to your medical records? This applies across the board and not just Uber drivers, it's just that I was searching under Uber. It makes you think about DBS checks as well, especially if you haven't lived here all that long.

whitewave Fri 22-Sept-17 18:20:08

Perhaps Uber will provide evidence that they are indeed reporting sexual harassment claims and checking their drivers, then they can apply for their licence back.

maryeliza54 Fri 22-Sept-17 17:40:59

Or nightmare

maryeliza54 Fri 22-Sept-17 17:40:45

My analogy is not confused - because the market is different in London it's entirely possible that regulations are not being followed as properly as they should be in London. If Uber had been doing what it should, TFL wouldn't have been able to do this. But either way, the courts will decide or Uber will put its house in order in the next 21 days. I think the latter is far the most likely, Uber were just hoping TFL would blink first and good for them that they haven't. As for lobbying, well Uber did plenty of that with Dave and George in the first place. Who is boycotting black cabs? If they are Uber users, they don't use them anyway and can continue to use Uber. I think it's a bit premature and blinkered to see this as the end of SK - more wishful thinking perhaps? There'll be far more important issues in the next Mayoral election when this will all be a distant dream.

Primrose65 Fri 22-Sept-17 17:24:22

A different market with different regulations. The CQC judges care homes against the same yardstick so I think your analogy is confusing. A closer one would be exactly the same care home is judged OK by 39 local authority inspectors but one says it has to close down as it's unsafe. This one authority has been lobbied extensively by a competitor.
I'm sure this is all academic. People are already boycotting black cabs. However this is resolved, there's no way Sadiq Khan will be elected again in London. Over a quarter of a million signatures now.

lemongrove Fri 22-Sept-17 17:13:05

I would hope that Uber are looked into in all the other cities
As well.

maryeliza54 Fri 22-Sept-17 17:07:05

Just because they may or may not be operating fine in other cities, doesn't mean that all is well in London. BUPA have care homes all over the country - if the CQC went into one and said there were problems they had to put right would you say ' Everything's fine in the BUPA homes in Manchester and Brighton' ? And London is a totally fifferent market anyway in cabs.

Primrose65 Fri 22-Sept-17 16:56:50

Wow - this is going to cause a storm
You were quite right! Storm Uber seems to have swept through London today. Over 200,000 signatures now on the petition.

MissAdventure Fri 22-Sept-17 16:27:36

Nor me. Its always been a safety net for women on their own. Just get in a taxi and you'll be safe. I know that's not been the case always, but checks need to be in place.

Luckygirl Fri 22-Sept-17 16:12:45

I would not want to use a service that does not have proper safeguards for women on their own.

Primrose65 Fri 22-Sept-17 16:06:11

But they're OK to operate everywhere else in the UK though! 39 other UK cities (I think, according to Uber anyway) have no issue with them. I would hope other large cities like Manchester and Brighton have suitably safe cab regulations.
That's why people are upset with TfL and Sadiq Khan.

maryeliza54 Fri 22-Sept-17 16:02:52

They were onafour month extension as it was but like many global
Companies don't think the law applies to them in any meaningful sense. They seem to be able to sort out vast tax avoidance schemes but not a system for DBS checks

maryeliza54 Fri 22-Sept-17 15:59:25

Some people might be disappointed that Uber with all their wealth and resources didn't get their corporate responsilities and governance sorted.

Primrose65 Fri 22-Sept-17 15:41:44

Over 100,000 signatures on one of the petitions started this morning. I think a lot of people are disappointed that Sadiq Khan and TfL didn't get this sorted out.

Ilovecheese Fri 22-Sept-17 13:57:41

I expect the majority of Uber drivers are good people, but that's because they are just good people, not because they are employed by Uber.
We need to be as sure as we can that our taxi drivers can be trusted, and that means carrying out checks before they are employed.
I had 3 teenage daughters at one point, I always told them to come home in a Black Cab after a night out, because that was the best way to be sure that they came home safely. That's not always possible, I know, for those that don't live in a big city, but the least we can expect from private cab companies is that they try their best to ensure that their passengers can travel in safety.
If Uber can prove that they are doing their best, then they will have their licence restored.

maryeliza54 Fri 22-Sept-17 13:51:44

It was a response to the comment about a week before conference and to be fair, other comments elsewhere a Kyte SK deliberately engineering thus to gain political advantage. I've just heard a London Tory MP talking about all the thousands thrown out of work and totally ignoring the fact that no one has lost their job and we have a proper judicial appeal system to go through. Complaints about Uber do not just come from London - Denmark and Hungry have actually banned them completely and dozens of US Staes and other countries are having problems with them.

lemongrove Fri 22-Sept-17 13:42:44

Why all the political sarcasm Maryeliza hardly needed is it?

maryeliza54 Fri 22-Sept-17 13:39:11

Yes a huge socialist sorry communist plot to boost SK. Communists infiltrated Uber senior management and manipulated the company to ignore a variety of regulations around reporting sexual attacks, carrying out DBS checks properly and the proper issuing of medical certificates. They then fiendishly cleverly gave Uber a four month extension that expired just before Conference.

lemongrove Fri 22-Sept-17 13:36:33

If Uber are employing some iffy drivers then it's a thumbs up from me to get rid of them.

loopyloo Fri 22-Sept-17 13:27:26

And the week before the Labour conference!

maryeliza54 Fri 22-Sept-17 13:23:17

I don't think there is any lawful way for the decidion to be revoked is there?

maryeliza54 Fri 22-Sept-17 13:22:15

They have the right of appeal, they can well afford to exercise that right. They will do that. The courts will hear the evidence. But in the meantime, they can wrk on their compliance systems - why should they be above the law?

Primrose65 Fri 22-Sept-17 13:12:41

I've already had 3 emails with links to petitions to revoke this. I suspect London is going to revolt.

petra Fri 22-Sept-17 12:42:56

Great news. And no, I'm not giving my reasons why I'm very very happy at this news.