Hacker News Reader

Comment by james-mcelwain | Hacker News Reader

> If the ultimate commercial relationship is between you and the hotel or airline when you book through Expedia, then it's just as fair to say that the ultimate commercial relationship is between the passenger and Uber/Lyft driver.

When I book a flight through Expedia I enter a contract of carriage with the airline, not Expedia. This is a contractural matter, not just an abstract concept of "commercial relationship."

View on HN

And when you take an Uber, you enter a contract of carriage with the Uber driver. Uber drivers have to have contract of carriage permits for this reason.

You do not enter into a contract of carriage with the Uber driver. At no point in using Uber or Lyft does the app have you agree to a specific contract with the driver, which is required for the contract of carriage to apply...

(In contrast, with taxis, signage in the vehicle indicates that proceeding with a ride does indicate acquiescence to the standard terms locally governing taxi services.)

So Uber requires it's drivers to have contract of carriage permits for no reason at all? No, you are entering a contract of carriage with Uber driver when you schedule a ride.

Taxi services and medallions specifically allow drivers to be hailed from the street. Uber and Lyft drivers don't get hailed Dr the street and thus don't need taxi medallions. This isn't something new, services like Super Shuttle operate in the same way. Uber drivers don't have such signage because they're not taxis, they're like super shuttle. You didn't hail them from the street you booked a ride through a service.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com