Dutch Regulator Fines Uber 825 Million Euros Over Automated Driver Suspensions
3 sources across 2 countries · United Kingdom · Italy
Who reported this
- Financial Times
- Reuters
- Corriere della Sera
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The Dutch data protection authority has fined Uber 825 million euros for using automated systems to suspend driver accounts without providing adequate notification. The regulator found that between 2020 and 2022, the company deactivated accounts for drivers suspected of fraud or those with very low passenger reviews. This practice violated GDPR regulations, which prohibit decisions made exclusively by algorithms when those decisions significantly impact a person's life, as account suspension effectively functions as a termination of employment. The case originated from an appeal by a driver in France, but the fine was issued in the Netherlands because Uber maintains its European headquarters in Amsterdam. This penalty marks the second highest fine ever issued under GDPR, trailing only a 1.2 billion euro fine against Meta. Uber has announced its intention to appeal the decision, describing the fine as disproportionate. The company argues that automated suspensions were temporary and only became permanent after a human review. Uber further specified that the measures primarily targeted drivers suspected of inflating fares by taking longer routes, and that low reviews were the cause in only 126 cases.
How each side framed it
- Centre
- These reports focused on the regulatory violation and the financial scale of the penalty.
- Centre-right
- This report emphasized the legal context of GDPR and provided more detailed arguments from Uber's defense.
Sources
- Centre-right Corriere della Sera: Uber, 825 million fine from the Dutch regulator for the automatic suspension of drivers
- Centre Financial Times: Uber set for €825mn Dutch fine over automating driver suspensions
- Centre Reuters: EXCLUSIVE: Dutch regulator fines Uber $966 million for automating driver suspensions, document shows - Reuters
100% of the statements in this article were traced back to the source articles listed above.