Kapten and Free Now launch joint service in bid to topple Uber
Black cab app Free Now and Kapten have today launched their newly combined service in a bid to topple Uber as the country’s biggest ride-hailing company.
The new service, which will be available through a new app under the Free Now brand, will give users access to 35,000 drivers in London alone.
It is the first time that passengers will be able to hire black cabs and private vehicles using a single app, giving the firm enough of a base to directly challenge Uber’s domination of the market.
The firm said that it had a combined passenger base of 1.5m users as of today’s launch.
Kapten, the UK’s second largest ride-hailing app, announced that it would merge with parent Free Now, Europe’s largest taxi app, back in April.
The French firm entered the UK market a year ago and quickly expanded to become Uber’s chief competitor through the combination of lower prices and an advertising blitz.
Speaking to City PM ahead of the launch, Free Now’s general manager Mariusz Zabrocki said that passengers would benefit from being able to access both services under one app.
“It’s not like we have customers using only black cabs or only private hire, there are actually many people using both and they will benefit now from having everything under one app”.
He said that the app would allow passengers to have more choice, and let them avoid situations such as surge pricing for private hire vehicles.
The black cab option would also be preferable for people when travelling in groups of four or more, he said, as people will be able to avoid paying for an Uber XL.
“When you’re in a group of four, five or six, you have to choose the higher option at private hire rate, but in the black cab, we have six seats, so you can do it for the same price.
“And then it’s actually less expensive than for example an Uber XL”.
Zabrocki added that the firm’s commitment to socially responsible causes such as operating zero emissions vehicles would also help attract customers.
At the moment, 40 per cent of Free Now’s black cab fleet and 10 per cent of Kapten’s private vehicles are electric.
The launch comes as it was revealed that Uber’s court appeal against losing its license to operate in London had been moved to September due to coronavirus.
The appeal was due to have been heard at Westminster Magistrate’s Court on 6 July, but will be held between 14 and 17 September, City PM has learned.
Zabrocki said that Uber had been responsible for some “clear breaches” of the standards set for private hire operators by Transport for London.
TfL said when it banned Uber, that the app had unlicensed operators upload photos on other people’s accounts, leading to at least 14,000 trips involving these fraudulent drivers.
“I think there are strong reasons to [strip the license]”, he said. “On our side, we really invest a lot of time and effort to make sure that we verify all drivers face to face or train them face to face.
“We address safety concerns very, very quickly. We read the decision in detail and there are some statistics about numbers of safety incidents of Uber which we compared to our listed track record, and we are talking about whole magnitudes of difference”.
Kapten has a zero-tolerance policy for any incident of abuse directed at either passengers or drivers.
Uber says it has made numerous changes to its operation to ensure passenger safety.