Italy Fines Bird, Dott & Lime €2.7 Million Over Rome E-Scooter Practices
Italian Competition Authority's Actions Against E-Scooter Operators
Overview of the Fines
ROME, Aug 6 (Reuters) - Italy's competition authority has fined e-scooter and e-bike operators Bird, Dott and Lime a total of almost €2.7 billion ($3.12 billion) for unfair commercial practices, it said in a statement on Thursday.
Details of the Violations
• The regulator said the three companies had made it unduly difficult for holders of annual public transport passes in Rome to access free ride packages to which they were entitled.
Breakdown of Fines
• Uber-backed Lime was fined €1.4 million, Dott €525,000 and Bird €750,000.
• The three micromobility operators did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment.
Issues with User Request Management
• Bird, Dott and Lime had inadequate systems to manage user requests, causing long delays in activating the passes and reducing the time available to use them, the regulator said.
Additional Sanctions Against Bird
• It also sanctioned Bird for a separate alleged unfair practice of arbitrarily deactivating user accounts without prior warning.
Context of the Free Ride Benefit
• The free ride benefit for annual pass holders was part of the terms under which the firms won the 2023-2026 service contract for the city of Rome.
Additional Information
($1 = 0.8665 euros)
(Reporting by Sara Rossi, editing by Alvise Armellini)
