NetherlandsLogistics and transport2018–2026Uber
Automated driver account deactivation
Uber was fined €825 million in the Netherlands for deactivating drivers by fully automated decisions
Problem
A ride-hailing platform must deal with suspected fraud and with drivers whose customer ratings stay low, across a very large number of accounts. Reviewing every case by hand is slow and costly.
Approach
Between 2018 and 2022 Uber's systems temporarily deactivated drivers' accounts when fraud was suspected or reviews were too low, and permanently deactivated drivers with persistently low reviews, cutting off their income from the platform. After 171 French drivers complained through the Ligue des droits de l'Homme to the French regulator CNIL, the Dutch Data Protection Authority, which leads because Uber's European headquarters are in the Netherlands, investigated. In October 2026 it found that Uber had taken fully automated decisions about drivers and had not told them enough about it, in breach of GDPR Articles 22 and 13, and fined Uber B.V. €824,990,000. Uber has stopped the practices and appealed.
Results
Takeaway
The European regulator imposed a large fine over algorithms cutting off drivers' income without human decisions or enough explanation.
Categories
- Size
- Large enterprise
- Industry
- Logistics and transport
- Business function
- Human resourcesFinance, risk and legal
- Innovation type
- Process innovation
- AI technology
- Predictive analytics and ML
- Adoption
- Built in-house
- Evidence
- Regulator, audit or court
Sources
Source summaries
The European Data Protection Board reported the Dutch Data Protection Authority's fine of €824,990,000 on Uber B.V. under the GDPR one-stop-shop procedure. It stated that Uber automatically deactivated drivers temporarily over suspected fraud or low reviews and permanently over persistently low reviews between 2018 and 2022, and did not inform drivers sufficiently. It noted that 171 French drivers complained via the Ligue des droits de l'Homme to the CNIL, that Uber has ended the practices and that it has appealed.
Full details are in the original sources.
