London:
A British law firm said on Thursday it has filed a multi-million pound class action in the city's High Court on behalf of 10,887 licensed black cab drivers in London in their claim against Uber for alleged losses suffered as a result of “unlawful activities”. in the city's taxi market.
Mishcon De Reya said the claim filed in the Commercial Court relates to actions taken by the US-headquartered taxi company dating back to 2012 under the private hire vehicle license granted by Transport for London (TfL) .
It is claimed that their operating system did not meet the requirements of the Private Hire Vehicles (London) Act 1988. Uber has denied the allegations, describing the claim as “unfounded”.
“Uber has consistently failed to comply with the law applicable to private hire cars in London and that is why we are pleased to be bringing today's claim on behalf of almost 11,000 London taxi drivers,” said Richard Leedham, partner and head of commercial litigation at Mishcon . de Reya.
According to the claim, drivers of London's iconic black cabs will allege that Uber's operating system did not meet the requirements of the law, that Uber was aware of this at all key times and that Uber “deliberately misled” TfL into withdrawing its license to obtain. about how that operating system worked.
The plaintiffs further argued that Uber's intent was to “unlawfully gain market share” and, by necessity, take business from existing black cab drivers.
“These old claims are completely baseless. Uber operates legally in London, is fully licensed by TfL and is proud to serve millions of passengers and drivers in the capital,” an Uber statement said.
The value of the claim is estimated at around £250 million, with each of the black cab drivers potentially eligible for compensation, according to RGL Management – the litigation claims management company representing the black cab drivers.
(This story has not been edited by Our staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)