EU court rules France can bring criminal suit to Uber for illegal taxi services

Anca Alexe 10/04/2018 | 12:23

According to a ruling by a top EU court on Tuesday, Uber local managers can be subject of criminal proceedings in France, for running an illegal taxi service, Reuters reports.

The case is related to Uber’s use of unlicensed drivers as part of the UberPOP service in France, which has been suspended there and in several other cities, but will not affect the rest of Uber’s operations in the country.

The European Court of Justice (ECJ)’s statement read: “Member states may prohibit and punish, as a matter of criminal law, the illegal exercise of transport activities in the context of the UberPOP service, without notifying the Commission in advance of the draft legislation.”

Uber had argued that France should seek the European Commission’s approval for a new taxi law, which contained measures for taxis and ride-sharing apps, including a measure that said only official taxis could use geolocation to show available cars.

Uber has created controversy in countries across Europe since its launch in 2011, and there have been several protests and conflicts with local authorities, including in Bucharest, where the City Hall has said mobility apps are operating illegally.

The company has even been forced to quit countries like Denmark and Hungary, and recently has started voluntarily suspending its services in some cities to comply with legislation.

Under EU law, national legislation affecting digital services needs to be pre-notified to the EU to ensure it doesn’t distort the single market.

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