Uber punishes its Colorado drivers
“Because of this new law, you will see these changes” e-memo reads
This article was updated at noon, February 5th with response from Uber.
It appears Colorado Uber drivers are going to be punished for new state legislation requiring Uber to provide immediate information how its fees are divided between the driver and the corporation.
“Because of this new law, you will see these changes in the app:” reads the screen shot of a message provided to Taxi News by the Rideshare Drivers Association of Ontario (RDAO).
“Riders will no longer be able to tip during trips…drivers will lose access to the following Uber Pro rewards in Colorado.”
Rewards listed as being no longer available include Area Preferences; Priority support; Premium support; and Extra destination.
“Uber has long supported greater transparency into earnings, service fees, insurance costs, and platform safety. But the regulations that were implemented on February 1are the wrong way forward,” the screen shot reads.
The authenticity of the memo sent to drivers has been confirmed by Uber’s spokesperson Keerthana Rang, who told Taxi News in an email “I can confirm that this is an email rideshare operations in the US sent to drivers in Colorado.”
“Some of the changes in restrictions that Uber is instituting actually go explicitly against that new law that spells out that they can’t do some of the above. So, it would appear that this is done in retaliation but also contrary to the new law,” says Earla Phillips, spokesperson for RDAO.
In fact, the new legislation reads that “On or after February 1, 2025, a Transportation Network Company shall not suspend, deactivate, or retaliate against a driver based on the driver’s lawful acceptance of one or more transportation tasks by hampering access to:
- Driver support;
- Ride offers; or
- Destination or area preferences.”
The Colorado Legislature passed two acts last year, signed by Governor Jared Polis, the Transportation Network Company Transparency Act, SB24-075, and the Protections for Delivery Network Company Drivers Act, HB24-1129, requiring companies like Uber to disclose price and pay information for each transaction to create more transparency around the services, reports Courthouse News Service. These acts came into effect February 1, 2025.
Uber sued Polis and Scott Moss, the state director for the Division of Labor Standards and Statistics on January 11 claiming it had First Amendment rights to hide its pricing and profit practices from the public. The court did not agree, and ordered Uber to begin providing clear, exact information with every ride as mandated by the new legislation.
“This company has no problems with railroading their way everywhere they go, and breaking laws left right and center. Their modus operandi has been to break laws and apologize later,” says Phillips.
