Culture

So, Is Uber Actually Illegal In Melbourne Now?

Well, not really. But it's complicated.

by Sinead Stubbins  5 December 2015

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Yesterday you may have seen a devastated status update from that one friend who hates public transport, bemoaning the alleged outlawing of Uber services in Melbourne. The news came about when Uber driver Nathan Brenner (former manager of Split Enz and Men at Work) and twelve less famous drivers were found guilty of driving a hire car without a licence or accreditation. This victory has left most news outlets to conclude that Uber is “effectively outlawed”.

But don’t delete the app just yet.

This prosecution is being called a ‘test case’ for legal action against Uber by the Victoria Taxi  Services Commission, with the chairman Graeme Samuel telling The Age that, “Today’s decision vindicates the actions taken by the TSC to enforce the law as it currently stands” and that all the taxi industry wants is for Uber to operate “within the confines of the law”. This victory has encouraged Samuel and his mates to keep investigating Uber for further rule-breaking in the qualifications of their drivers.

The rules regarding Uber’s legality are confusing, and that’s why everyone tends to say different things. ABC did a Fact Check a few months ago laying out the different taxi service/hire car laws in each state. In Sydney, you can request licensed taxis (UberTaxi), UberBlack, UberSUV, UberLux and the regular private vehicles of uberX. In other Australian cities, you can only get the uberX and UberBlack.

Since Uber is classified as hire cars, in Melbourne drivers are required to pay a licence fee of  $40,000, pass a knowledge test and pay extra insurance (the fees vary in every state). Although according to Uber, the rules of hire car services barely apply to them given many drivers only work a few hours a week to supplement their income. Uber is allowed to exist anywhere in Australia if they pay the regulatory costs and comply with vehicle requirments, although their failure to comply has resulted in massive fines and threats of registration suspension in New South Wales and Queensland. One thing that Uber has been very good at though, is convincing users that it is a necessary service that is a force of good in the community.

When people say that Uber is “effectively outlawed” what they’re saying is that it’s only a matter of time, given how expensive it is for individual drivers. There have been reports that Uber has paid the fines of their sprung drivers in the past, which state governments are not stoked about. The drivers in Melbourne were fined yesterday, but Brenner at least has indicated that he’ll continue to work for Uber.

Within the existing legislation in Victoria, many uberX drivers meet the legal requirements for hire cars, but if there’s a significant crackdown and drivers to get fined repeatedly for not paying fees, it’s unlikely they’ll want to keep working for the service. For now, Uber has reassured their Melbourne users that everything is going to be juuuuust fine. Stay tuned, I guess?