Wheely, a luxury for-hire vehicle company known for serving high-profile clients with discreet service, is challenging New York City’s regulations requiring detailed trip data disclosure from hired vehicles. The company entered the city’s market in March but has since become embroiled in a legal dispute over rules that mandate monthly submission of comprehensive trip information, including pickup and drop-off times and locations, as well as driver and vehicle identification.
Founded in London in 2012 by Swiss-Russian entrepreneur Anton Chirkunov, Wheely caters to a wealthy clientele with a fleet primarily composed of premium vehicles such as Mercedes, Cadillac, and Range Rover. Drivers undergo a specialized “Chauffeur Academy” to maintain a high standard of professionalism, discretion, and service. The company positions privacy as a cornerstone of its business, asserting that human movement data is highly sensitive and warrants strong protections.
Wheely’s lawsuit contests New York City’s Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC) regulations on the grounds that the data collection constitutes an unconstitutional violation of Fourth Amendment protections against unreasonable searches. The company argues that the aggregation and potential cross-referencing of trip data with other sources raise serious privacy concerns, potentially revealing sensitive information about riders’ personal lives and routines.
The TLC maintains that the data collection requirements are crucial for ensuring driver and passenger safety, helping to monitor driver fatigue and prevent accidents. “Our longstanding data provision rules are vital to driver and passenger safety, corporate accountability, and our ability to make informed decisions as we regulate the largest industry of its kind in the United States,” said TLC spokesman Jason Kersten.
A New York federal judge ruled in the city’s favor earlier this year, stating that the privacy intrusion involved in providing the data is minimal and outweighed by the city’s safety interests. The judge also noted that Wheely was aware of the reporting obligations before entering the city market and could either comply with the rules or exit New York, as it previously did in Moscow over similar demands.
Wheely is now appealing the decision, hoping to leverage a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling affirming heightened privacy protections for cellphone location data. The Supreme Court recognized that location information is particularly sensitive and requires stronger safeguards against government access.
The case has attracted an unusual alliance of supporters spanning diverse ideological perspectives, including the libertarian Cato Institute, the Legal Aid Society, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. The Cato Institute argued in a legal brief that the district court’s ruling could expose many New Yorkers to ongoing surveillance risks.
As the appeal proceeds, the dispute highlights the ongoing tension between public safety regulations and emerging privacy concerns in the evolving landscape of urban transportation services.