International: Taxi News from France

In La Rochelle and other cities there are tensions between taxis and ride-hailing drivers

Threats, confrontations up to physical violence and cars set on fire: The coexistence between taxis and ride-hailing drivers (VTC, Uber-like, editor's note) remains difficult. For months the situation in La Rochelle as well as in many other French cities has been escalating. Taxi drivers complain about the competing markets, especially through digital platforms that connect customers with nearby vehicles, so-called “maraude électronique”, which has been legally prohibited since June 25, 2025 for VTC and their dispatch offices, but apparently not observed in practice. In response, taxi associations in Charente-Maritime (French city on the Atlantic coast, editor's note) filed a criminal complaint against Uber and about 14 VTC drivers for “carrying out taxi business without a license.” (Source: TF1, October 2025, tf1info.fr/transports/video-j-ai-pris-une-bequille-dans-la-cuisse-et-quelques-coups-a-la-rochelle-comme-dans-plusieurs-villes-francaises-ca-chauffe-entre-taxis-et-vtc-2400294.html)

Taxi associations call for an urgent meeting with France's Prime Minister François Bayrou

Already in the first half of 2025, the national taxi associations (FNAT, FNDT, FNTI, UNT, UNIT and others) in a joint letter to Prime Minister François Bayrou called for an urgent meeting. The background is the escalating crisis in the French taxi trade, further aggravated by the new CNAM convention for patient transport (CNAM = Caisse Nationale d’Assurance Maladie, the French national health insurance fund) and the ongoing competitive pressure from VTC platforms (ride services such as Uber).

The associations criticize that the government has massively underestimated the social and economic consequences of the current developments. Especially the new transport convention 2025–2030 of the Caisse Nationale d’Assurance Maladie (CNAM) was introduced without real consultation and threatens the existence of many taxi companies. It leads to bureaucratic hurdles, revenue losses and an unacceptable burden on the businesses that are indispensable for patient transport in the healthcare system.

In addition, the CNAM national health insurance fund organizations accuse of not having a real dialogue for two years. Despite repeated proposals from the industry, no realistic solution has been found. At the same time, unfair competition from VTC platforms is intensifying the crisis – for example through tax and social fraud, unclear rules for pre-orders, and electronic "Maraude" practices (unauthorized digital passenger search).

The taxi representatives therefore demanded:

• the immediate withdrawal of the CNAM convention 2025–2030,
• the appointment of a mediator to accompany real negotiations,
• as well as the establishment of a working group with a clear timetable for the strict application of existing laws and for better oversight of the platforms.

Finally, the associations appeal to the Prime Minister to take the discontent and despair of the industry seriously and finally create concrete solutions for the future of the taxi trade. (Source: May 2025, FNTI - Association of Independent Taxi Drivers in France., fnti-nationale.com/2025/05/22/courrier-premier-ministre-22052025)

French taxi drivers protest against the Prime Minister's austerity measures

Taxi drivers protested already in May against cuts to medical transport services; the Prime Minister said France must share the burdens of the austerity measures and auditors warned of costs spiraling out of control (Source: Reuters, May 2025, reuters.com/business/world-at-work/french-taxi-protests-test-pms-budget-cutting-resolve-2025-05-28)

Angry taxi drivers: mobilization planned for September 5 postponed

The taxi demonstration planned for September 5, 2025 in Paris and the Île-de-France region against the new pricing system for medical transport was officially postponed. The union federation made this decision on Wednesday, August 27, in anticipation of the confidence vote planned for September 8 in Parliament. (Source: Sept. 2025, sortiraparis.com/en/news/in-paris/articles/252618-angry-cabs-september-5-mobilization-postponed)

No concrete answers in talks between the unions and the Prime Minister – call for a large mobilization

Following the success of the nationwide protest day on September 18, the unions of the French Intersyndicale (CGT, CFDT, FO, CFE-CGC, CFTC, UNSA, FSU, Solidaires) gave the government an ultimatum. On September 24, 2025, they met with the Prime Minister to push for concrete measures – but the result remained disappointing.

Despite a long discussion with the Prime Minister, no clear answers were given to the concerns of workers, the unemployed, young people, and pensioners. The Prime Minister stated that he could not yet comment on the final 2026 budget, as it would be decided by Parliament. All union demands remained unanswered, which the unions criticized as a missed opportunity. A massive mobilization and a general strike for October 2, 2025 were announced. (Source: Sept. 2025, FNTI - Association of Independent Taxi Drivers in France., cgt-taxis.fr/aucune-reponse-concrete-aux-attentes-du-monde-du-travail-lintersyndicale-appelle-a-une-mobilisation-massive-le-2-octobre)

Cross-union (Intersyndicale) called a general strike for October 2, 2025

On October 2, protests and strikes took place in more than 200 cities against austerity measures, tax policy and cuts in the public sector, which, however, had nothing to do directly with the announced and later postponed taxi mobilization. (Source: Le Monde, Oct. 2025, lemonde.fr/en/france/article/2025/10/02/france-sees-nationwide-strikes-against-austerity-measures_6746026_7.html)