The agreement a driver accepts before their first trip with Uber is one of the most consequential and controversial legal documents in the modern economy. It is not a traditional employment contract. Instead, it is meticulously framed as a Technology Services Agreement. This distinction is not just a matter of semantics; it is the legal cornerstone upon which the entire gig economy is built. This agreement is engineered to classify drivers not as employees, but as independent contractors. As of 2025, this classification remains a fierce battleground in courtrooms and legislative chambers around the world, fundamentally questioning the very nature of work in the digital age.

The central and most critical section of the Uber driver agreement is the clause that defines the relationship. By accepting the terms, a driver agrees that they are an independent business owner who is using the Uber app as a technology platform to connect with customers.

Uber’s agreement uses several key arguments to support this classification. It states that drivers:

• Use their own equipment: They provide and maintain their own car, a significant business expense.
• Set their own hours: They have complete flexibility to decide when, where, and for how long they work.
• Are free to work for competitors: They can simultaneously run the apps for competing platforms like Lyft or other local ride-hailing services.

The consequences of this classification are profound. It shifts nearly all the traditional costs and risks of doing business—fuel, insurance, vehicle maintenance, and the lack of a social safety net—directly onto the driver.

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