Vinasun lawsuit against Grab suspended

Vinasun's lawsuit on Grab has yet to end

According to newswire Diendandoanhnghiep, in the morning of March 9, the trial court of the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Court invited representatives of Vinasun and Grab to a meeting room, excluding the media.

After the closed-door meeting, the court decided to suspend the hearing or the second time (the first trial was suspended on early February) the trial to wait for the Ministry of Transport, the Department of Transport, as well as the Department of Planning and Investment of Ho Chi Minh City to collect evidence.

According to lawyer Le Hai Van, who represents Vinasun, in early February, the trial court issued a decision to suspend the hearing so that Grab can have time to supply its service contract with the transport cooperative (In the petition, Vinasun accused Grab of not holding such a contract, which goes against regulations). However, during the past month, Grab has deliberately delayed in submitting the contract.

On early morning numerous Vinasun's drivers comes to join the trial session

Besides, Van confirmed that Vinasun petition was based on the Law of Commerce issued in 2015, instead of the Competition Law as informed by Grab, claiming the slip was aimed to confuse the public on the nature of the incident.

Regarding Grab, the decision to suspend the hearing to wait for data from the authorities was a smart move by the court. Grab claims that they supplied enough documents and evidence to satisfy the requirements of the court.

The representative of Grab stated that previously Vinasun proposed authorities to stop Grab’s pilot programme, however, the Vietnamese government not only refused but also advised Vinasun to apply technology in their operations. After this, Vinasun decided to take Grab to court making false accusations and damaging Grab’s operations and reputation.

Previously, Vinasun took Grab to court, claiming that Grab does not comply with regulations. Notably, according to Decision No.24/QD-BGTVT on the pilot scheme for ride-hailing services issued by the Ministry of Transport, Grab and Uber were permitted to operate as ride-hailing service providers.

Vinasun claims that in reality, Grab is operating as a transport trading firm similar to traditional taxi brands. Thereby, Vinasun asked Grab to pay a compensation of VND41 billion ($1.81 million) for damages caused.

In late February, Deputy Prime Minister Trinh Dinh Dung issued the decision to permit Grab and Uber to extend their pilot programmes on using technology applications to connect and manage transport activities until the new decree on business and conditions for transportation business by automobile is issued and comes into effect. Accordingly, the new decree will replace the existing Decree No.86/2014/ND-CP.