15. červen 2019 / Tým IDE
Comparison of alternative taxi services regulations
I. Introduction - Shared economy
In the last two years, the Institute for Digital Economy (IDE) has covered the topics of digital (online) platforms and so-called shared economy. We were concerned especially with trends that has not been discussed sufficiently in the Czech Republic, such as employment conditions and consumer protection. It means that we were focused on the two weaker sides of online platform services: providers and consumers. The recently discussed Czech Government amendment proposal to the Act Nr. 111/1994 on road transport, prepared by the Czech Ministry of Transport (to this date approved at its first reading by the Czech Parliament) covers these topics and subjects in the most developed segment of shared economy – alternative taxi services. That is why we find useful to submit the comparison of two recent rules adopted in our neighboring countries and the suggested regulation in the Czech Republic. This comparison contains areas to focus on that are result of stakeholders’ consultations in the past.
II. Comparison of current regulations
Duty | Slovakia | Poland | Czech Rep. today | Czech Rep. proposal |
Taximeter | Or application | Or application | Always | Or application |
Application | Yes | Yes | Only with taximeter | Yes |
Driver’s concession | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Exams | No | No | Yes | No |
Vehicle marking | Lamp and label | Lamp and label | Top roof lamp sign | Label always, |
Vehicle registration | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Vehicle appearance | No | No | Yes | No |
Concession valid in | Anywhere in Slovakia | Anywhere in Poland | Given city | Anywhere in the Czech Republic |
Source: IDE, the presentation of Czech Confederation of Commerce and Tourism (10.06.2019)
III. Regulatory recommendations
Digital technologies such as online platforms often open new markets and enable new business models. When they succeed to remove the barriers for entering the market, the supply is being increased, the competition is reinforced, and this all influences the price and the quality of services.
One of positive factors brought by online platforms is flexible working which is rarely offered by traditional employers. There is widespread perception in digital community that flexible working will be predominant in the labour market and that the possibility to work is being offered to the people that would not get any job otherwise. The labour market is thus open to people who do not want to or who cannot work fulltime. At the same time the labour law (in the Czech Republic) is flexible enough and there is no need to create new regulation.
Digitalization and digital economy that bring high value-added products and services benefit from liberalization and elimination of unnecessary administrative barriers. All regulatory restrictions should therefore be motivated by such imperative as consumer protection. The vehicle security is crucial (technical condition, responsibility, insurance etc.) same as today’s widely spread abuse of not informing the client about precise price calculation or even fraud.
Among other possible adjustments pro futurocan be health and safety requirements or labour taxation, especially the uneven taxation of employees and self-employed entrepreneurs.
Shared economy should not be an occasion for law circumvention. But the law should not create any unnecessary barriers in areas that can successfully be dealt with through the help of digital technologies. Any artificial market blockage and supply limitation must be argued with a clear and calculated benefit for customers. In cases of doubt moderation is being advised, because the market development is dynamic and unpredictable, and room must be left for market solutions to evolve.
New business models will become one of the drivers of Czech GDP in the future. Therefore, regulation should enable the market and digital technologies to evolve.