- Uber fined €825 million by Dutch regulator for automated driver suspensions without proper notice
- The penalty may become Europe's second-largest GDPR fine after Meta's €1.2 billion in 2023
- Dutch authority ruled Uber violated driver rights by relying on automated decisions without human review
Uber has been hit with an €825 million ($966 million) fine by the Dutch Data Protection Authority for using automated systems to deactivate driver accounts without adequately informing affected drivers, according to a decision dated August 17 and reviewed by Reuters.
The penalty could become the second-largest fine ever imposed under Europe's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), as per Reuters. It would rank behind the €1.2 billion penalty imposed on Meta by Ireland in 2023 over the transfer of European Facebook users' data to the United States.
The Dutch regulator found that Uber violated drivers' rights by relying on automated decision-making in cases that could have significant consequences for them.
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Under GDPR rules, such decisions require meaningful human involvement and must provide affected individuals with a way to challenge the outcome.
The authority also said Uber failed to properly inform drivers about the automated decisions, treating the issue as serious enough to warrant the substantial penalty.
The case relates to incidents involving European drivers between 2020 and 2022 and initially followed a complaint filed in France. The Netherlands handled the case because Uber has its European headquarters there.
Uber disputed the decision and said it would appeal. The company argued that it takes drivers' rights seriously and that its current procedures include human reviews and mechanisms allowing drivers to challenge suspensions.
The investigation involved Uber's use of automated systems to temporarily suspend drivers suspected of fraud. The systems could flag drivers for allegedly taking unnecessary detours to increase fares or accepting rides without intending to complete them. Drivers with persistently low customer ratings could also face permanent suspension.
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Uber maintained that it did not permanently deactivate such accounts without human review and said it has since changed its practices. The company no longer relies solely on automated systems to make permanent deactivation decisions.
The decision adds to Uber's regulatory challenges in the Netherlands. In 2024, Dutch authorities separately fined the company €290 million over transfers of European drivers' personal data to the US.
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