"We have raised the fine ceiling for UberPOP: each time a driver is arrested, the maximum fine will be 50,000 euros," Elif Bagci, spokeswoman fot the Dutch Transport and Environment authority, told AFP.
"If they continue, Uber will have to pay a maximum of one million euros," she said, adding that Uber had already paid 100,000 euros in fines.
Dutch judges in December banned UberPOP from taking bookings via its smartphone app, threatening the US company with fines of up to 100,000 euros.
Uber said it would contest the ruling and has continued to offer UberPOP.
Uber uses mobile phone apps to put customers in touch with drivers who then take them where they want to go, at prices lower than those of traditional taxis.
But despite its growing popularity, Uber is facing increasing limits on its activities in EU countries and a barrage of legal challenges spurred on by a furious taxi lobby, who say Uber drivers should be regulated the same way as normal cabs.
UberPOP, which lets private car drivers offer taxi services, said last month that it would help its drivers obtain taxi licences.
https://uk.news.yahoo.com/dutch-threaten-uberpop-million-euro-144308717.html#dVEI9kU
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A NOTORIOUS armed robber has been convicted of trying to rob a Colchester taxi driver.
Ashley Leech, 24, of no fixed address, phoned the PDQ cab company for a taxi to pick him up from Greenstead.
When it arrived, Leech and another man, one masked and the other armed, tried to rob the driver, demanding money and then repeatedly firing at the VW Passat cab with a BB gun, as it sped off.
Chelmsford Crown Court heard driver Thomas Partridge, a local cabbie for 12 years, escaped unhurt.
Five days after the attack, in Acacia Avenue at about 2am on December 1, last year, Leech was found hiding in a cardboard box in the loft of his mother’s house near The Hythe.
He was traced via the phone which had been used to call for the cab. Leech denied attempted robbery but was found guilty by a majority jury verdict of ten to two.
A balaclava, BB gun and ball bearings, similar to one found on the passenger seat of the taxi, has been found near Leech’s hiding place, the jury was told.
After he was found guilty, the court was told Leech had been released from prison weeks before the incident.
He had served time for a string of armed robberies and robbery attempts, all in the Colchester area.
He tried to rob three people with a knife in 2005 and robbed another person, using a knife in 2006. He was convicted of these offences in 2007 and jailed.
In 2010, he robbed a delivery driver with using a similar BB gun to that used in the cabbie attack.
A year later, he threatened a neighbour with the same binding, gagging and robbing the victim.
He was jailed for a total of seven years for the crimes in 2012, but allowed out early on licence in September 2014.
In the weeks after his release, the court heard Leech was seen with a gun and was said to have made plans to rob the One Stop off Hawthorn Avenue. He was also questioned on suspicion of several other offences.
Deferring sentence until next month, Judge David Turner QC said Leech should be considered dangerous.
Leech is already back in prison, having been recalled for previous offences, and is not due to be released until 2021.
http://www.gazette-news.co.uk/news/12957004.Notorious_robber_is_guilty_of_taxi_attack/?ref=rss
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A taxi driver has criticised a council’s decision to revoke her licence after she was convicted of benefit fraud.
Jennifer Brooks fears the vulnerable people she helped transport will now be left in the lurch.
The 51-year-old is also concerned she will struggle to find another job and not be able to pay back the £10,655 she illegally claimed in council tax and housing benefits.
Chesterfield Borough Council, which has revoked Ms Brooks’ taxi badge for three years, said she had breached policy.
Ms Brooks, who worked with Chesterfield-based Naylor’s Taxis, said: “I’m not a bad person – I love this job, I’ve been doing it for the past 15 years.
“The vulnerable adults and children will also suffer.
“They know me and now they’re going to have to get used to being driven around by someone else and that will be difficult and upsetting for them.
“I’m going to struggle to pay back the money without a job.”
http://www.derbyshiretimes.co.uk/news/grassroots/chesterfield-benefits-cheat-i-don-t-deserve-to-lose-my-job-1-7268057
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WILMSLOW
Women have been urged to use only pre-booked private hire vehicles and properly licensed hackney cabs after an assault in a bogus taxi in Wilmslow.
An 18-year-old girl waiting for a taxi was attacked after getting into a silver saloon type on Water Lane around 4.30pm on Friday, May 15.
The victim claims the car had a yellow sticker on the door and the driver gave the impression it was the taxi she had booked.
She was assaulted by a man sitting in the back of the taxi but managed to escape.
The driver was white with a slight tan, in his 30s with a muscular build, chiselled features, brown eyes and perfect teeth. He had a bald head and the word ‘Holly’ tattooed on the back of his neck.
The passenger was in his late 20s and had olive skin, dark eyes, a slim build and unkempt appearance. He had short, dark, curly hair and some of his teeth were missing.
DS Antony King said: “We would ask the public that when they order a taxi or if a vehicle stops and the driver claims to be a taxi that they ensure the driver is wearing a valid photo identity badge with their taxi license number on it. If in doubt call the taxi company.”
http://www.macclesfield-express.co.uk/news/local-news/warning-after-girl-assaulted-bogus-9289718
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