Free Now wins three-year London PHV operator’s licence

Transport for London has granted ride-hailing app Free Now a three-year private hire vehicle operator’s licence. This is the longest licence awarded to any of the big four ride-hailing app operators in London.

In a statement, Free Now said it was committed to investing and growing further in London and the wider UK market in the coming three years.

The company said its PHV business in June 2022 had quadrupled compared to the same month in 2021, proving the steep increase in demand for private hire vehicle services in the UK.

Free Now connects users with more than 40,000 registered drivers in nine cities across the UK. The company is moving toward a broad urban mobility platform, designed to get passengers from A to B in the fastest, most flexible and frictionless way, while saving emissions and reducing dependence on private cars.

Within the past year Free Now has expanded its mobility offering in London to include eScooters and eBikes, via app integrations with operators including Dott, HumanForest and Tier.

Free Now is owned by BMW Group and Mercedes-Benz Mobility. It operates in more than 170 cities across 16 European markets.