This week Your Advocate is Barrister Omar Khan Joy, Advocate, Supreme Court of Bangladesh. He is the head of the chambers of a renowned law firm, namely, ‘Legal Counsel’, which has expertise mainly in commercial law, corporate law, family law, employment and labor law, land law, banking law, constitutional law, criminal law, IPR and in conducting litigations before courts of different hierarchies. Our civil and criminal law experts from reputed law chambers will provide the legal summary advice.

I am student of BBA (General) in Southern University. I have to bear the cost of my higher education by myself. Recently, it has become very difficult for me to continue my studies with limited financial support that I have. That’s why I was planning to register myself as motor-cycle rider with Uber. Can you tell me what would be the legal consequences if I register myself with Uber for earning by riding motor-cycle?

Sumon, Dhaka

Response

Thank you for your query. I can understand your hardship as to bearing the financial responsibility for your education. I believe you are seeking to know the lawful steps of joining Uber motors as a driver.

At first you should open up an account as a driver in the Uber app, or else you can go to their website and follow the same steps. Since you want to join Uber as a driver, there are some list of documents that you have to provide to Uber, such as- Driving License, NID Card, Vehicle Tax Token, Vehicle Insurance and Vehicle’s Fitness Certificate.

Further, it is important for you to keep in mind that since you will be under a contractual obligation with Uber as soon as you join them as a driver, it is important to read their terms and policy (specifically, clauses 12.2 and 14.2) governing the contractual relationship between Uber and driver.

There are a few more aspects that you have to keep in mind. For instance, Uber expects their drivers to drive safely and to be courteous and professional. Thus, actions that would manipulate the normal operation of the Uber system and any unfair means for earning addition trip fares or extra incentives should not be performed. Such activity would make the driver liable for the breach of the policy and Code of Conduct, and his/her account with the Uber will be discontinued or deactivated.

Following up on the aforesaid requirements, Uber also instructs their drivers to undergo an enhanced background (DBS) check as required by the relevant licensing authority. They also have a dedicated incident response team on call 24/7 to investigate safety incidents. Besides, they expect their drivers comply with all national and local laws and the rules of the road at all times. This includes obeying all of the rules of Private Hire or Hackney Carriage license.

Considering the current situation where we require a high threshold of road safety, Uber has make sure they have complied with the medical insurance as to any incident that report any accident of their rider or driver, as currently the insurance policy offers compensation of Tk 2 lakh in case of accidental death, up to Tk 2 lakh for permanent disability, and Tk 1 lakh if a person is hospitalised. The policy covers UberMOTO drivers from the moment a trip has been accepted till the end of the trip, while riders are covered from the start of the trip till they reach their destination.

Lastly, I would appreciate your initiative of joining Uber as it helps you to earn money, within a flexible time as that would be much convenient for you being a full-time student. Youcan find more information on the Uber website and Facebook.You can also look into other ride-sharing app like Pathao, Obhai, Shohoz, PiickMe, for a better idea ofterms and policies of such ride-sharing.

I hope my aforesaid instructions help you in opening your account as a driver in Uber.