Regulatory hassles are nothing new for Uber, it is a constant obstacle in their operations. The $68 billion ride-hailing giant was driven out of Taiwan back in February due to backlash and lack of support from the government. But, Uber has plans to kickstart operations in the country on April 13 (i.e Thursday) after a lengthy two-month break, reports Chinese publication Central News Agency.
The ride-hailing suspended its operations in Taiwan owing to the surmounting pressure from the government authorities. Authorities were stuck with the issue that Uber was onboarding unlicensed drivers on their platform and has, thus started implying large sums of fines on such driver partners.
The government made an amend to its transportation laws to ban the operation of unlicensed cabs and began charging a maximum fine of whopping NT$25 million (approx $780,000). Uber is being faced with penalties of around $36 million w.r.t to the new laws. It has been fined for a total of 35 separate occasions but the government says that it hasn’t received of the total penalties owed by the ride-hailing giant.
But, Uber had then vowed that it would sit down with government authorities and work out reforms to relaunch their service in the nation in the coming months. The Taiwanese Ministry of Transportation and Communications ordered Uber to change its business registration — where it should be recognized as a new taxi company rather than a technology one. This was one of their first requests to operate legally in the nation, coupled with other reforms as well.
And here we are, the ride-hailing giant has sent out invites for a press conference on 13th April (i.e Thursday). Uber plans on detailing its new operational model, application, and future business plans for the Taiwanese market. The company will also shed light on how it plans to allow its users to hail ‘legalized’ partner taxis, which are now fully compliant with local registration laws.
Further, The China Post continues to further detail the changes coming to Uber’s business model in Taiwan. It suggests that the ride-hailing would now be working with car rental companies in the nation rather than signing up private driver partners individually. It will also be introducing a significant update to its application, which will push the boundaries of their operations to rural areas as well. The Uber Taiwan Drivers’ Alliance, a group formed by ex-Uber drivers, will now work with leasing companies to further its network of drivers in the nation once the service is relaunched.
Uber had been faced with red tape in numerous countries, ranging from China and Taiwan to India as well. A couple days ago, Uber was also banned from operating its cab services in Italy due to resistance from competitive local taxi associations. The company has also been engaged in a regulatory tussle with the Indian authorities as well, especially in Karnataka. It not only had to face regulatory troubles but also suspension of one of its most popular and affordable services UberPOOL. It is also banned from operating in many countries such as Denmark and others in Europe. Headquartered in California, it is presently operational in 570 cities worldwide.
