A minicab app bidding to topple Uber in London is facing legal action over claims it underpaid the minimum wage – a move also intended to force it to provide drivers with workers’ rights.

Andrei Donisa is bringing a test case against Bolt after it expelled him from its platform for refusing to take enough fares. Bolt treats its 30,000 drivers as self-employed...

Bolt, which was set up in Estonia, launched in the UK capital last summer after Uber was stripped of its licence by Transport for London in November...

Donisa said he was blocked from using the app by Bolt on the grounds that his acceptance rate for rides was too low even though there were no agreed minimum hours with the company...

"We get no sick pay, no holiday pay, no guaranteed minimum wage. The one right they claim to give us is the right to choose how we work and when I exercised that right, I was punished and dismissed by Bolt"...

A spokesperson for Bolt said: "A high-quality, reliable service is critically important. Happy passengers ultimately lead to more money for our drivers as they get more business with Bolt at lower commission rates than with any other platform."