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Hong Kong courts
Hong KongLaw and Crime

Uber driver hopefuls in High Court challenge against Hong Kong government over rejection of hire car permits

  • Tesla motorists Chen Hai-tao and Yin Wai-ho wanted to use the ride-hailing app to take passengers, but their applications for permits were refused
  • They are challenging the government’s decisions by launching a judicial review in the High Court

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At least 35 Uber drivers have been fined for carrying passengers for reward without hire car permits. Photo: Winson Wong
Jasmine Siu
Two Hong Kong men planning to work as Uber drivers have applied for a judicial review of the government’s refusal to grant them hire car permits that would render their intended services lawful.
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Chen Hai-tao, a 44-year-old member of the catering industry, and private driver Yin Wai-ho, 34, wanted to use the ride-hailing app to take passengers in their new luxury Tesla Model S electric cars, in light of public demand in Hong Kong for ordering point-to-point services through mobile phones and other devices.

But both of their applications, lodged in March 2018, were rejected by the commissioner for transport within three months and that decision was upheld this August following a review hearing before the Transport Tribunal, an outcome which they now challenge.

The case is the first judicial review linked to the popular car-hailing service Uber, which has been struggling to comply with the government’s regulatory framework, while providing millions of trips to Hongkongers and tourists since it arrived in the city in 2014.

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