• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer

Top notice bar

Call us on 08000 388799

Avanti Tax Accountants HomepageAvanti Tax Accountants

Bookkeeping, Accountancy and Taxation services

  • Home
  • About Us
  • Our Services
    • Bookkeeping & Accountancy
    • Corporation & Personal Tax
    • Payroll & CIS
    • Company Secretarial Bureau
    • Budgeting, Forecasting & Business Valuations
    • Mentoring & Business Coaching
    • Software & Training
  • Our Accountants
  • News & Insights
  • Send An Enquiry
Home » News & Insights » Supreme Court Rules Uber Drivers Are Workers

Supreme Court Rules Uber Drivers Are Workers

Posted on 25th February 2021

The HR experts at Croner Taxwise take us through the 5 key points that led to this conclusion below.

The Supreme Court’s ruling upholds that of the lower courts’ as it unanimously dismissed Uber’s appeal. The appeal concerned the employment status of private hire vehicle (PHV) drivers who provide their services through the Uber smartphone application (the Uber app).

The main question raised was whether an Uber driver is a “worker” for the purposes of employment legislation which gives “workers” rights to be paid at least the national minimum wage (NMW), to receive annual paid leave and to benefit from certain other protections.

Five key points

The Supreme Court judgment emphasises five aspects of the findings made by the employment tribunal which justified its conclusion that the claimants were working for and under contracts with Uber. These are:

  1. Where a ride is booked through the Uber app, it is Uber that sets the fare and drivers are not permitted to charge more than the fare calculated by the Uber app. It is therefore Uber which dictates how much drivers are paid for the work they do.
  2. The contract terms on which drivers perform their services are imposed by Uber and drivers have no say in them.
  3. Once a driver has logged onto the Uber app, the driver’s choice about whether to accept requests for rides is constrained by the company (it can, for example, impose what amounts to a penalty if too many trip requests are declined or cancelled by automatically logging the driver off the Uber app for 10minutes).
  4. Uber also exercises significant control over the way in which drivers deliver their services including by the use of a ratings system whereby passengers are asked to rate the driver after each trip. Any driver who fails to maintain a required average rating will receive a series of warnings and may have their relationship with Uber terminated.
  5. Uber restricts communications between passenger and driver to the minimum necessary to perform the particular trip and takes active steps to prevent drivers from establishing any relationship with a passenger capable of extending beyond an individual ride.

Implications for employers

This ruling could have significant consequences for both Uber as well as your client if they operate within the gig economy and work on a similar ‘on demand’ basis.

It is imperative that employers correctly categorise those who work for them. Despite what the terms of a contract might say, tribunals have the ability to assess the reality of the situation. If the relationship between the parties does not reflect what is outlined in the contract, tribunals can determine that individuals are a different employment status and are entitled to additional employment rights. This can leave employers liable for claims of holiday pay, the minimum wage, detriment for whistleblowing or even pension contributions.

Soucre: Croner Taxwise

Share this post:

Share on TwitterShare on FacebookShare on LinkedInShare on E-mail

Filed Under: News

Disclaimer:- The information contained herein is given by way of general guidance only and no action should be taken solely on the basis of the information contained herein. The Avanti Group (UK) Ltd will be pleased to provide further guidance on the issues, and how they might affect you. No liability is accepted by the firm for any action taken without seeking appropriate professional advice

Footer

Navigate

  • Find An Accountant
  • About Us
  • News & Insights
  • Privacy Policy
  • Letter Of Engagement

Our Services

  • Software & Training
  • Mentoring & Business Coaching
  • Budgeting, Forecasting & Business Valuations
  • Company Secretarial Bureau
  • Payroll & CIS
  • Corporation & Personal Tax
  • Bookkeeping & Accountancy

Get In Touch

Tel: 08000 388799
Send us an enquiry

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
Copyright © 2023 Avanti Tax Accountants · All Rights Reserved
Part of The Maurice J Bushell & Co Ltd Franchise (UK) Ltd · Company Reg: 10407313 and The Avanti Group (UK) Ltd · Company Reg: 04635630 · Created by Purple Hippo
  • So we can contact you to discuss your enquiry
  • So a member of our team from your area can contact you
  • By clicking ‘Send Enquiry’ you agree to receive contact from Avanti Tax Accountants using the details given above. We respect your personal information and your privacy and will not share or sell your information to other organisations. Please read our Privacy Policy for more information.
  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.