heathcote wrote:
Should all TAXI proprietors not be allowed to join this class action, under the present P/Hire rules for England a vehicle not licenced by that Authority must not make it self available for hire in that Authorities district. Uber have vehicles(standing thus making themselves available for hire) in most districts where they do not have a licence(operator or vehicle/driver) but give fares to vehicles on their circuit..
But the 'triple lock' rule is well established, and sub-contracting was specifically legislated for in the Deregulation Act.
Fair point about the action only being available to London drivers, though. Not sure why - if the booking thing is a goer then presumably any driver anywhere in the UK where Uber operates will have been affected. But, of course, London has its own licensing regime distinct from the rest of the UK, so that might be a factor - it would make the action slightly more straightforward, rather than involving the rule books of dozens of different councils.
But why has this Cabbies Action Group setup disappeared? Why have all the others who supposedly also supported the action also disappeared, including Harbour Litigation (who were funding it all) and several trade associations etc, including some from the PH side:
Almost two-and-a-half years ago, TaxiPoint wrote:
Outside of Harbour, Mishcon de Reya and Newington there are several taxi industry leaders officially pledging their support to the action. These include LTDA, LCDC, UCG, Unite, KPM Automotive, Easyrentacab, Colts Cabs, Cricklewood Carriers Cab Company, Martin Cordell and Co, Sherbet Cars, Ubiquitous and of course us here at TaxiPoint.
Of course, lawyers Mishcon de Reya still seem to be involved, but since others are footing their bill it's no risk to them, and a lawyer will always construct an argument of sorts if they're paid to do so.
And the Cabbies Action Group website now says it's 'no longer operational', but directs visitors to the BULit21 website, which I'm sure it didn't do when I first looked last week.
But apart from that, I can't see precisely why most of the major players in the action seem to have pulled out, or to what extent they're still supportive. My best guess - and it's a bit obvious - is that it was decided that the legal case was too flimsy.
Anyway, if you want to organise your own class action then I'll be right behind you