Nationwide Taxi Strikes Bring Spain to a Standstill Over Soaring Insurance Costs

On Wednesday, January 29, 2025, thousands of taxi drivers across Spain participated in a coordinated strike to protest the alarming rise in insurance costs, bringing major cities like Barcelona, Málaga, and others to a virtual standstill.

Barcelona: A City in Gridlock

In Barcelona, over 5,000 taxi drivers joined a go-slow protest, blocking the city's two main ring roads, Ronda de Dalt and Ronda Litoral, from 10 AM until 2 PM. The slow march, which started at the city's airport, was designed to "close them completely and fill them with taxis," effectively halting traffic throughout the morning. This massive demonstration was part of a nationwide effort to denounce what drivers describe as "abusive prices" of taxi insurance[3][5].

Málaga: Streets Blocked and Horns Blaring

In Málaga, hundreds of furious taxi drivers brought the city to a halt, blocking major roads and blaring their horns. The strike, which began at 10 AM from the car park of the José María Martín Carpena Sports Palace, saw a convoy of taxis snaking through the city, eventually swarming the Paseo Marítimo and grinding traffic to a stop. Miguel Ángel Martín, head of Aumat (Málaga’s taxi drivers’ association), led the protest, calling for a 'peaceful' strike but expressing the drivers' deep frustration over the "insane insurance costs" that have risen dramatically since 2022. Some drivers are now paying up to €9,000 a year, which they describe as "daylight robbery"[2].

Nationwide Grievances

The strike was not limited to Barcelona and Málaga; taxi drivers across Spain, including those in Madrid and other regions, participated in the three-hour strike between 11 AM and 2 PM. The primary grievance is the spiraling insurance costs, which have doubled for many drivers in just three years. For example, some drivers have seen their insurance payments rise from €1,000 to over €4,000 within this period[1].

Demands and Government Response

Taxi associations, such as Elite and Antaxi, are calling on the government to intervene and stop the hike in premiums. They also allege a price-fixing cartel among insurers, which they claim uses non-transparent and unjustified risk assessments to set prohibitive charges. Rafael Baena, president of Elite Taxi Andalucia, emphasized that the current insurance strategy is "totally unfounded" and will force many drivers to quit the profession[1].

The insurance employers’ association, Unespa, has countered that the higher costs are due to increased repair costs for cars and the rise in the scale of damages established by the government. However, taxi drivers argue they are being unfairly lumped in with VTC (private hire) drivers, who have higher accident rates, and this categorization is driving up their insurance costs[1][2].

Future Actions

The strike was approved by the government, and organizers worked with local police to minimize disruption to public transport and emergency vehicles. However, if the government does not address their concerns, taxi drivers have warned of larger and more disruptive strikes in the future. With the current situation deemed "unsustainable," the taxi sector is determined to push for competitive and proportional insurance costs to ensure their livelihoods are protected[2][3].