TAXI

More readers than the rest put together! 26 JANUARY 2016 | TAXI 31
NEWS
Uber driver snubs pregnant woman
Trade
A pregnant woman who requested
an Uber car when she went into
labour was refused a lift by the
driver and charged £9 for timewasting.
David Lee and his wife, who
wishes to remain anonymous,
said they were outside their New
York City home with the birthing
coach and her overnight bag,
when the wife retched on
the pavement.
His heartless Uber
driver claimed he
would lose £694 a
day if she was sick
in the car and then
told them no other
driver would
accept a woman
in labour as a
passenger.
The couple
tried to assure
the driver that
she wouldn’t be
sick - and if she
was, they would
pay for cleaning
in full but he
refused to back down.
The couple were left gobsmacked
when the driver then demanded
£9 for his wasted time before
driving off leaving them
worried she might give
birth on
the pavement.
When David,
a 37-yearold
lawyer,
contacted Uber,
its response was
that the driver
had done nothing
wrong in refusing
the fare, and in
charging them for his
time.
He said: “I don’t blame Uber
for one driver’s poor actions, since bad
apples can appear in any organisation,
but I do think that when a company
has a culture of bullying their way past
laws and regulations, as Uber seems
to do, they begin to think they can act
with impunity in anything.”
Uber did eventually make a
refund of the cash but refused to
give him the driver’s details calling
it “driver privacy.”
A second Uber driver did
eventually reach the couple and
agreed to take them to the hospital.
Uber has since claimed that
“denying service to a passenger
in labour is unacceptable:
it goes against our code
of conduct and the
standard of service
our riders rely on.
“We extend
our deepest
apologies to both
riders and have
taken action to
respond to this
complaint.
We are glad that
the rider’s next
driver was professional
and courteous.”
Emily Martin, the general
counsel of the National Women’s
Law Center in Washington DC,
said: “Uber drivers are bound by the
same public accommodation laws that
prohibit New York City taxi drivers and
car services from discriminating on the
basis of pregnancy when deciding who
they will pick up - and those laws are a
good thing, as they help ensure that not
many babies end up being born on New
York City sidewalks.”
Urgent Notice
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RENEWAL NOTICE
If your licence expires in less
than four months it is vital
that you contact TPH on:
0343 222 4444
and request a renewal pack.
Failure to do so could result
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Once the pack is received
you must submit your application
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Please refer to tph notices
18/13 and 19/13 on their
website for ‘official’ advice
http://www.tfl.gov.uk/info
-for/taxis-and-private-hire/
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