Taxi hailing App Uber will not have its London operating license renewed, Transport for London (TfL) announced on Monday.
In a statement, TFL said that the ride-hailing firm was not “fit and proper at this time.”
“Despite addressing some of these issues, TfL does not have confidence that similar issues will not reoccur in the future, which has led it to conclude that the company is not fit and proper at this time,” the statement read in part.
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Authorities also noted that while Uber has made significant changes in improving their services, some 14,000 rides have in recent times been made by uninsured drivers.
“While we recognize Uber has made improvements, it is unacceptable that Uber has allowed passengers to get into minicabs with drivers who are potentially unlicensed and uninsured,” Helen Chapman, Director of Licensing, Regulation and Charging at TfL said.
In 2017, the firm lost it’s license due to safety concerns but was granted a 15-month extension that lapsed in September. It was again awarded a two-month extension which expired on Sunday.
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Uber has 21 days to appeal the decision, a period during which it will still be operational.
According to Jamie Heywood, Uber’s regional general manager for Northern and Eastern Europe, the decision by TFL was “extraordinary and wrong, and we will appeal.”
“We have fundamentally changed our business over the last two years and are setting the standard on safety. TfL found us to be a fit and proper operator just two months ago, and we continue to go above and beyond,” Heywood stated.
Some of the trips, it has been reported, were made by drivers whose licences had been revoked, including one driver who was cautioned for distributing indecent images of children.
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