Ride hailing, supply and demand, Uber and Hong Kong, something is still very wrong

By HK Lawyer AJ Halkes Barrister-at-Law

AJ Halkes
May 31, 2026
4:53 pm

We all know the absurdity of Hong Kong’s taxi situation: difficult area segmentations, poor supply, old vehicles, to say nothing of incompetent and rude drivers.

All of the above are still sadly recurring features of the Hong Kong taxi landscape, plus the huge lines during any significant high-demand period, often making it take longer to get a taxi than the actual journey itself.

I thought Uber had stepped up, operating effectively with decent supply and meeting real demand for safe, comfortable and polite transport, not to mention vehicles that do not make you question their physical condition.

But there is still a glaring problem. The pitch on booking an Uber is often a very different experience from the real outcome delivered.

Last night I was offered a range of choices, all supposedly with a 4 to 7-minute pick-up time. In a rush, I confirmed the quickest option without paying attention to the vehicle type. The single-digit “sales pitch” quickly turned into a vehicle taking almost as long to reach me as the intended journey itself.

For anybody who understands Hong Kong’s topography, the location of the vehicle “booked”, around 15 minutes away, could not possibly have been the closest available Uber … in the whole of Hong Kong.

If a given waiting time is offered to induce a booking, but the delivered outcome is materially different, it starts nearing misrepresentation.

Uber can argue that it is then up to the customer to cancel, which I did. I also messaged the driver to politely explain the cancellation. But surely this edges close to “bait and switch”?

I would genuinely be happy to help Uber solve this issue before it becomes exactly the kind of problem that works against ride-hailing being recognised and accepted in Hong Kong as the much-needed service it clearly is. Over the years, Uber has seemed to take a strange, if not self-defeating, approach to government relations and PR in Hong Kong.

In the end, I walked to a taxi rank and targeted a modern taxi that met my needs.

Sorry Uber, you can do better.

If you need specific input regarding a strategic Hong Kong challenge or related legal matters in the HKSAR, you can always DM me and check out my profile at https://www.ajhalkes.com

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Ride hailing, supply and demand, Uber and Hong Kong, something is still very wrong

By HK Lawyer AJ Halkes Barrister-at-Law

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