Panic On The Streets of London as Uber Loses License Bid

Uber is one of the biggest names around when it comes to calling for and paying for a ride from a mobile device. It’s generally worked so well that people are constantly coming back. Some recent upheaval in the organization, however, has left it susceptible to competitors, and a new blow to the company recently hit from Transport for London, who denied Uber’s request for a renewed license.

TfL turned down the renewal request, asserting that Uber is “not fit and proper” to hold such license in the city of London. Thus, when the current license expires on September 30, Uber’s operations will be shut down completely. However, those hoping for UberEats service will be happy to note that it will continue to operate; UberEats doesn’t require a private hire license.

The decision to shut down Uber’s license, according to reports from TfL, stem from a number of issues, including “a lack of corporate responsibility” connecting to such things as “its approach to reporting serious criminal offenses,” “its approach to how medical certificates are obtained,” “its approach to how Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service checks are obtained,” and “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.”

Uber, however, has 21 days to appeal the move, which it plans to do “immediately”, and by now has likely already done. Tom Elvidge, Uber’s London general manager, pointed out that over 3.5 million citizens of London use the app regularly, and 40,000 licensed drivers therein are making a living as Uber drivers, now to be shut down unless something changes.

While there certainly seems to be quite a list of charges arrayed against Uber—and it’s certainly been no stranger to controversy in the past—the sheer number of satisfied Uber users does speak to its favor. There’s always a fringe element in anything; when you’re talking about a system the size of Uber, it stands to reason the fringe is more pronounced than normal.

Still, Uber’s got a serious problem on its hands right now and may lose a substantial market, unless it can get its licensing figured out post-haste.