Uber in the news for all the wrong reasons

Mobile taxi app Uber has made the headlines once again in the past few days, with a number of Californian taxi firms suing the company for false and misleading advertisements regarding the safety of its service.

19 taxi companies have claimed that Uber has wrongly criticised the safety of taxi rides offered by other established firms in the state, by making false and misleading statements with the intention of encouraging users to opt for the service offered by the mobile app. By apparently mistakenly suggesting they will receive a ‘safer’ ride than their competitors provide, local taxi businesses feel that the app has damaged the reputation of their companies and reduced customer numbers.

This isn’t the first time that Uber has been involved in a supposes breach of Californian law, with the firm being accused in December 2014 of misleading consuemrs over its background checks on drivers. The latest lawsuit comes within less than 24 hours of Uber’s offices in Paris being raided by French police, as part of ongoing investigations into its UberPOP peer-to-peer ride-sharing service, which utlises drivers who may not be insured or licensed – which obviously raises safety concerns.

These are just two of the problems that Uber is facing around the world. Germany has recently issued a nationwide ban of the UberPOP service after declaring its business model to be illegal, while in South Korea, Uber are being investigated for breaking local communications and transportation rules.