Reply to post: Re: EU law proportionality test

Uber alles... nein! Germany imposes nationwide ban on taxi app

big_D Silver badge

Re: EU law proportionality test

Sorry, but no.

The law is there to protect the consumer and the driver. That means that everybody who wants to be a taxi driver (and that includes the, as described in the original article, "hobby"-Taxi drivers working for Uber) has to get a licence.

If Uber made their drivers get a licence / only used drivers with a licence, as well as ensuring the meters in the cars are properly calibrated, made sure the drivers have commercial transport insurance and that the cars have been approved by the local TÜV (equivalent of an MOT station) for the carrying of paying guests etc. then there wouldn't be a problem.

The law also states that Uber must pay them a fixed wage and they must pay health insurance for their drivers as well.

Schlenker makes the point, as did I last week in another article here, it is irrelevant, whether the journey is initiated by a smartphone app, a telephone call, picking up a ride at a taxi stand or hailing a taxi, they are all the same thing, plying for hire, which is covered by the law. His argument is, that you can't just wrap up a taxi journey in a "new fangled" App and say it isn't passenger transport from A to B and that the law no longer applies.

Further, "he who steps into a strange car must trust the driver with his health and life. No driver can check driver, company and vehicle. Therefore the law makers only allow this business model under strict conditions. An Internet rating should replace a thorough check by the authorities?"

Additionally the background check, resulting in a certificate of conduct, from the authorities goes far deeper that the private check from Uber. Additionally legally licenced drivers must undergo a thorough medical examination, before they receive their licence.

Those caught driving for the likes of Uber will also find that their car insurance will be revoked by their insurance company (and in Germany that means that the registration plates on the car will also be revoked / removed), as happened in Hamburg recently. In the event of an accident, the driver is not insured and the passenger will have to sue the driver for compensation. (Schlenker said, "Uber takes it as read, that the passenger will receive nothing.")

On the other hand, car sharing schemes have benn big here for over a decade. There are several that match drivers and travellers who are following the same route and pair them up, but the driver must have already registered that he is driving a route at a set time and the passenger will pay towards fuel for the journey - the driver cannot make any profit. Likewise hire companies operate a system where the driver can pick up a car that needs to get returned to another depot and they have a set time to get there, as long as they can get there on time, they get the car for free - and can make minor detours from the prescribed route.

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