Uber seeks legal advice after 40 New South Wales drivers suspended

“Taxi and hire auto services in NSW must be provided by an operator accredited by Roads and Maritime, in a licensed and insured vehicle which is driven by an authorised driver”.The company did not comment regarding whether they would assist drivers financially or legally during their period of vehicle suspension, although Uber has said in the past it would cover driver fines.

RMS safety and compliance director Peter Wells said on Monday that vehicles transporting public passengers must be registered if they want to operate for commercial or business purposes.

Referencing the recent dropping of charges against UberX drivers, the spokeperson said that the service was investigating its legal options in regard to the suspensions.

The New South Wales Roads & Maritime Services (RMS) has brought the hammer down on ride-sharing company Uber, handing down three-month licence suspensions for 40 participating UberX drivers.

So far, 40 suspension notices had been issued to offending Uber drivers, the ABC reported. Earlier this year in California, the Department of Motor Vehicles similarly decided that Uber drivers would be required to have commercial plates for their vehicles, but backedtracked on the ruling not long after it was enacted.

Interestingly, the suspensions come in the middle of a NSW government review into “point to point” ride-sharing laws, taking local Uber representatives by surprise.

The taskforce is expected to report back in October.

“Ride-sharing is relatively new in Australia and customer needs and behaviours are changing and so is insurance”, she said.

“We look forward to seeing the government recognise this by putting sensible ridesharing regulations in place as quickly as possible”, a company spokesperson said. UberX uses private vehicles and drivers, booked via a smartphone app.

The NSW government has established an independent taskforce to examine the future sustainability of taxis, hire cars and other emerging point-to-point transport providers in NSW, including ride-sharing apps.