(Bloomberg) — The majority of Uber Technologies Inc. drivers in Brussels will no longer be able to work for the company after Friday, following a ruling by the Brussels court of appeal.
Uber said that a ruling issued in 2015 against its UberPop service now also applies to drivers that hire cars and offer taxi services via the Uber app.
“We are deeply concerned about the 2,000 Brussels LVC drivers who will lose their ability to generate earnings from Friday,” Laurent Slits, head of Belgium for Uber, said in a statement. The court ruling wasn’t immediately available.
A few hundred drivers with Flemish licenses will still be allowed to use the app, but drivers with LVC licenses won’t be able to accept trips from 6 p.m. on Friday. The company can still appeal the decision at the Supreme Court, but hasn’t said whether it intends to.
The company is also battling with Belgium over a ruling that a ban against the use of mobile phones to accept passengers applies to the ride-hailing company’s licensed drivers.
The company has had a strained relationship with Brussels authorities since launching there in 2014 and is fighting a court challenge from the Belgian taxi federation on whether its services are legal.
Shares of Uber were down 1.4% at 10:48 a.m. in New York on Wednesday.
More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com
©2021 Bloomberg L.P.
