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Cologne is experiencing excitement: Uber X app banned due to violation of the law!
Uber is no longer allowed to use its “Uber X” app in Cologne for the time being. The Cologne Regional Court decides on violations of the Passenger Transport Act.
Cologne is experiencing excitement: Uber X app banned due to violation of the law!
In a landmark decision on October 15, 2025, the Cologne Regional Court declared that the “Uber X” app function may no longer be used to arrange rental car rides. This judgment follows a lawsuit by the Cologne taxi cooperative Taxi Ruf Köln, which complained about violations of the Passenger Transport Act. In the event of violations, Uber faces severe fines of up to 250,000 euros per case or even imprisonment. But the judgment is not yet final, as Uber can file an appeal within a month, as Rundschau Online reports.
The lawsuit arose from tips from taxi drivers who gathered evidence that Uber was violating the law prohibiting rental car drivers from accepting direct ride orders from customers. According to nationwide case law, such orders may only be made via a central office at the company headquarters. The Cologne regional court found that the functionality of the app was designed in such a way that it circumvented the legal provisions. Attorney Dr. Carsten Mathias, who represented the lawsuit, emphasized that the app was programmed in such a way that no company headquarters was necessary, so that the legal requirements could be circumvented.
Monitoring and possible penalties for Uber
The ruling not only has consequences for Uber, but also has an impact on the app's users. While customers can currently continue to access the app, the Cologne taxi cooperative will insist that the ban will be monitored and violations will be punished. Uber itself disputes the assumption that the regional court completely banned the use of the app. Nevertheless, the reasons for the judgment clearly state that the current form of travel arranging is not permitted, as WDR reports.
In the past, Uber had repeatedly tried to circumvent the legal regulations in Germany. The background is the challenges presented by the Passenger Transport Act, which has been in force since the 1960s. As early as 2019, the then Federal Transport Minister Andreas Scheuer (CSU) presented a key point paper that provided for the lifting of the obligation to return for rental car drivers and gave pooling services the opportunity to transport passengers with similar destinations together. However, these efforts met with resistance from the taxi associations, which saw their market position at risk, as the Süddeutsche Zeitung reports.
In the coming weeks it will be exciting to see how Uber will react to the ruling and whether the company will take legal action. The Cologne taxi cooperative has already announced that it will closely monitor compliance with the ban. The outcome of this dispute could have far-reaching consequences for the entire transportation service industry.