Italy Shuts Down Uber
Italian courts have again ruled against Uber and have given the ride-sharing service 10 days to appeal or get out of Italy. Without doing that, they will be fined the equivalent of $25,000 for every day after that if they remain. Now, Uber can no longer advertise or use their app which effectively shuts down Uber in Italy. Uber has said they plan to appeal and they say they were “shocked” by the decision.
I’m sure that is more press-speak than reality. They know how hard it is to break into certain European markets where the taxi laws and services are more rigid than many planes in America. But, they certainly do not want to withdraw from a market where there must be a customer-base for them to want to stay in Italy.
Why Uber?
I know that I have enjoyed the accessibility and option of having Uber in cities that I visit. It is not that I am anti-taxi/livery service but more that Uber is a constant. I know the app, I can pay in the app and not have to have the right foreign currency for the ride, I can select my destination on the app and see afterwards if the driver tried to take advantage – it is just familiar. I think if there was more uniformity or a streamlining of taxi-apps to help you in the same fashion, people may not mind using taxis as much. For now, many of the places that I have visited with taxi services are not living in the modern age and should move more in that direction.
Have you used Uber in Italy? What about Italian taxis?
Source: Reuters
I refuse to take taxi’s in touristic areas because it’s a 50% chance I will get ripped off. One glaring example was in Italy. We were dropped off at a train station. As we were getting ready to get our bags from the trunk of the taxi, the driver demanded extra because the bags were considered “passengers”. We paid because we had no time to argue or else we would miss our train. That’s why I’m uber all the way no matter what bad press they are getting. Atleast they aren’t pulling those kind of taxi scams.
walksofitaly.com… “Know about how much your fare should cost, but DON’T be too paranoid – some extra charges are legit. In Rome, for example, a taxi fare within the city starts at €2.80 from 7am-10pm… but on Sundays at the same time, at €4, and at night, from €5.80! And if you’re leaving from Termini, there’s a €2 surcharge, plus there’s a €1 charge per piece of luggage that has to go in the trunk. “
It says “If you’re leaving from Termini”, we went from hotel to Termini so no luggage fee should apply. That wasn’t our only taxi ride with luggage in Italy. On other rides with luggage, we were not charge extra. We were only charged what the meter displayed.
In Rome regulation says that first bag is free others are 1 euro each. Get your facts right before complaining
Taxis in Italy can be great or not, depending on the driver, but generally are very safe. that being said, I enjoyed taking Ubers in Rome and am sad about this.
I enjoyed using Uber in Rome very much. In Naples I had no choice but to use taxis and was ripped off right away. As a result, I only went to places I could walk and missed out on some restaurants that I would have liked to try.