NYC Sues Ridehail App That Offers 60% Cheaper Rides by Letting Drivers Keep Every Dollar

NYC sued Empower, a ride-hailing app offering fares 60% cheaper than Uber by letting drivers keep 100% of fares, for operating without a TLC license since 2022.

NYC Sues Ridehail App That Offers 60% Cheaper Rides by Letting Drivers Keep Every Dollar NYC sued Empower, a ride-hailing app offering fares 60% cheaper than Uber by letting drivers keep 100% of fares, for operating without a TLC license since 2022. Aaron Rafferty March 28, 2026 Key Takeaways: New York City filed a lawsuit on March 27 to shut down Empower, a ride-hailing app that has operated without a TLC license since 2022 while offering fares up to 60% cheaper than Uber and Lyft. Empower lets drivers pay a $50 monthly subscription fee and keep 100% of their fares, compared to the 25-30% commission Uber and Lyft typically charge. The company's founder testified to the City Council that Empower provided over 100,000 rides in NYC in a single week, a move city lawyers described as "an astonishing display of defiance." New York City filed a lawsuit on March 27 to shut down Empower, a ride-hailing service that has been operating in the city without a Taxi and Limousine Commission license since 2022, providing cheaper rides by giving drivers the entire fare. The model is simple. Drivers pay a $50 monthly subscription instead of a per-ride commission. They set their own rates. They keep 100% of the fare. The result: a ride from Bushwick to SoHo during Monday morning rush costs $28 on Empower. The same ride on Uber costs $68. On Lyft, $60. Empower's founder, Danny Sear, testified at a March 12 City Council hearing that the app had facilitated over 100,000 rides in New York City in the prior week. City lawyers called this an astonishing display of defiance. The TLC first issued a cease-and-desist letter in May 2022. Empower kept operating. A second letter went out March 18. Empower kept operating. The lawsuit is the city's attempt to force the shutdown that letters