Morocco’s Competition Council has launched an investigation into suspected breaches of fair competition rules in the country’s app-based transport sector, amid ongoing tensions between traditional taxi drivers and ride-hailing operators.
According to industry sources, the council has begun hearing from representatives of car rental agencies that offer vehicles without drivers, as part of efforts to clarify potential links between these agencies and operators working through ride-hailing applications.
The inquiry aims to determine whether rental agencies are directly or indirectly supplying vehicles to drivers using digital transport platforms, a practice that taxi professionals say is intensifying competition in the absence of a clear legal framework governing the sector.
On Wednesday, the Competition Council met with representatives of the Federation of Car Rental Agencies (FALAM) to gather detailed information on the structure and operation of the industry in Morocco, the sources said.
Investigators reportedly questioned whether rental agencies maintain commercial relationships with ride-hailing platforms operating in the country, particularly given the legal vacuum surrounding app-based passenger transport.
Representatives of the rental agencies told the council that digital platforms present new business opportunities for the sector but stressed that the lack of regulatory clarity limits the ability to formalize partnerships or define the nature of cooperation between the two sides.
They also noted that rental agencies receive vehicle rental requests from private individuals who may be linked to ride-hailing operators, adding that verifying such connections is difficult, as agencies are legally required only to confirm the authenticity of documents and the identity of renters.
Industry sources say some app-based drivers rent vehicles on a monthly basis for fees that can reach about 7,000 dirhams ($700), using them for passenger transport activities that are not legally authorized.
The latest developments follow hearings held earlier this month with taxi professionals, during which the council examined the regulatory conditions governing access to the profession, as well as the legal relationship between drivers and digital platforms.
Stakeholders in Morocco’s ride-hailing sector are awaiting the outcome of the Competition Council’s investigation, hoping it will identify structural shortcomings and prompt the government to introduce legislation to regulate the industry.
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