Uber loses London license, CEO tweets 'pls work w/us'

London deemed Uber unfit to run a taxi service on Friday and stripped it of its license to operate from the end of next week in a major blow to the U.S. firm and 3.5 million users in one of the world’s wealthiest cities.

Uber’s new Chief Executive Dara Khosrowshahi asked London to please work with the ride service. He told employees the company needed to act with integrity but that he did not believe Uber had done everything it was accused of in London.

The British capital’s transport regulator said the Silicon Valley technology giant’s approach and conduct was not fit and proper to hold a private vehicle hire license and it would not be renewed when it expires on Sept. 30.

Regulator Transport for London (TfL) said it would let Uber operate until the appeals process is exhausted, which could take months.

“Uber’s approach and conduct demonstrate a lack of corporate responsibility in relation to a number of issues which have potential public safety and security implications,” TfL said.

Specifically, TfL cited Uber’s approach to reporting serious criminal offences, background checks on drivers and software called Greyball that could be used to block regulators from gaining full access to the app.

Uber London General Manager Tom Elvidge responded that the mayor, who supported the decision, and regulators had “caved in” to people who want to restrict consumer choice. He added that Uber would “immediately challenge” the decision in court.

Khosrowshahi, brought in to steer the company after a string of scandals involving allegations of sexism and bullying, later appealed to the city on Twitter with a self-deprecating style.

“Dear London: we r far from perfect but we have 40k licensed drivers and 3.5mm Londoners depending on us. Pls work w/us to make things right,” Khosrowshahi wrote in a tweet.

He also acknowledged the company’s turmoil in a message to employees seen by Reuters. “It’s worth examining how we got here. The truth is that there is a high cost to a bad reputation,” he said. “It really matters what people think of us,” he added, and “actions in one part of the world can have serious consequences in another.”

Many riders rallied to the company’s aid. Uber has turned to customers to help defend itself in other battles around the world, and an online petition in support of Uber had gathered more than 400,000 signatures by late evening in London.

Source: Reuters