Uber Customers Facing Another Price Hike After High Court Judgement
In recent months, Uber has been criticised by passengers on social media for their wild surge pricing and 10% price hike in London. But their prices seem set to increase again following a High Court ruling yesterday. In a decision likely to affect the entire industry, the court rules that private hire operators enter into a contract with passengers and not drivers.
High Court Ruling
It feels like Uber has been in and out of court since they first started operating in London. This latest ruling is just the latest in a long line of problems they’ve faced with their business model. The current ruling basically means that Uber is going to have to start adding VAT to their fare prices.
The High Court ruling stated:
‘in order to operate lawfully under the Private Hire Vehicles (London) Act 1998 a licensed operator who accepts a booking from a passenger is required to enter as principal into a contractual obligation with the passenger to provide the journey which is the subject of the booking’
Although the ruling mentions the Private Hire Vehicles (London) Act 1998, the ruling is likely to impact the rest of the country. Those involved in the case expect that licensing authorities will soon mirror the ruling in their guidance. This could have a big impact on fare prices across the UK. Private Hire operators ac
Industry Response
Uber was clearly disappointed by the ruling. A spokesperson commented saying:
“This court ruling means that all the details of the Supreme Court decision are now clear. Every private hire operator in London will be impacted by this decision, and should comply with the Supreme Court verdict in full.”
"Drivers on Uber are guaranteed at least the National Living Wage, holiday pay and a pension plan but we’re not the only player in town. Other operators must also ensure drivers are treated fairly.”
The App Drivers & Couriers Union (ADCU) were one of the groups that originally took Uber to court about driver rights. A statement from them made it clear that they were satisfied with the ruling. General secretary James Farrar, said:
"Rather than fix its broken business model, Uber was determined to double down on misclassification at the cost of worker rights, passenger safety and the avoidance of VAT.
"Our victory will now make misclassification unlawful, transform the London minicab industry for the better and finally eradicate sector wide worker rights abuses."
The High Court decision is likely to have far-reaching consequences, not just for drivers in London but across the UK. The Licensed Private Hire Car Association (LPHCA) today published a statement saying that their ‘legal team will now consider the implications of this ruling’ and communicate advice to their members.
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