UberX is effectively illegal in Victoria after a test case found one of its Melbourne drivers guilty of driving without a commercial licence.
Magistrate Julian Ayres found Uber driver Nathan Brenner guilty on Friday of two counts of operating a commercial passenger vehicle without a licence.
He was fined without conviction.
Brenner was one of 13 Uber drivers charged by the Taxi Services Commission last year during an undercover operation.
The court decision means the UberX service is illegal in Victoria.
Uber said it was disappointed but would continue to operate across the state and would support Brenner’s appeal.
“We will continue to support Mr Brenner as he appeals [against] the decision,” Uber said in a statement on Friday.
“It is widely acknowledged that the current legislation could not have contemplated technology such as Uber – the legislation clearly needs to be updated.”
Public transport minister Jacinta Allan says Uber has to abide by the laws.
“I’d encourage Uber to think about the position they’re putting those drivers in if they continue down this path while this matter continues to remain unresolved,” she told reporters on Friday.
Allan said Victoria was “well advanced” in working through policy issues surrounding how to regulate the so-called ridesharing business and ensure it does not have an unfair advantage over the taxi and hire car industry.
State opposition leader Matthew Guy said the government was taking too long.
“Other states are coming to the fore and making decisions around Uber,” Guy said.
“Canberra got off its backside and has made a decision, New South Wales is clearly looking at it, South Australia’s gone further than Victoria.
“We’ve got to find a structure where … Uber can operate in tandem with the taxi industry.”
Guy said the “obvious” answer would be to look at an annual fee mechanism which would incorporate taxis and ride-sharing companies.
The UberX platform allows drivers to offer rides for payment from their personal cars, and has been the subject of legal challenges across the world. The Australian Capital Territory legalised the service in September, the first jurisdiction in Australia to do so.
