Cab drivers call on Labor to take urgent measures to curb insurance price hikes

Cab drivers continue to press to stop the price increases of the policies that cover their activity, which they consider abusive and unjustified. This group of workers and this Friday their representatives - the president of Antaxi, Julio Sanz; the president of the Taxi Confederation of Valencia, Fernando del Molino, and other representatives of the National Taxi Association - have met with the Minister of Labor, Yolanda Diaz, to demand urgent measures to curb "the practices of insurers that threaten the continuity of this public service".

As Sanz denounced during the protests last January, there are cab drivers who have to face policies or renewals of "more than 7,000 euros a year", while other professionals raised these prices, in statements to Efe, up to 14,000 euros, which endangers the continuity of this profession, they warned.

After the meeting this Friday, Diaz denounced that "what they are suffering in the sector is a kind of unequal and unfair negotiation by the insurance companies". In addition, the minister assured that from the Government they are going to "demand some considerations from the insurance companies, the first of them the principle of transparency".

"We want to continue to maintain a quality public service and in this situation we are asking the Administration for protection, which has the tools to limit disproportionate increases in policies, provide transparency to these disproportionate premiums and discriminate between sectors so that each one pays for the claims it causes," said the president of Antaxi, who was grateful for the commitment shown by Díaz.

The continuity of this public service of general interest goes through putting an end to this situation that, in the words of Sanz, is "critical", especially in rural areas and for those professionals who operate with Eurotaxis. "It gives us the impression that we are paying for the broken dishes of other modes of transport because the accident rate of the cab remains stable and there is no element that now justifies this disproportionate increase in fees," explained Sanz.

During the meeting, there was also time to discuss other issues of great relevance for professionals in the sector, such as early retirement for professional cab drivers. For Diaz, this is a profession that has "features of hardship and other features that would deserve their own attention in terms of early retirement".