Car importers want suspended Y-plate operator back on the road

Car importers have been pressuring the government to lift the suspension off Malta’s largest cab company so it can return to the ride-hailing market and pay its debts, Times of Malta is informed.

Sources say WT Global’s debts to car importers amount to millions of euros, as its fleet of 350 cars was mostly purchased through loans.

As car importers worry that they may remain unpaid for the cars they sold, they have approached the government to allow the fleet back into the ride-hailing market on apps such as Bolt, eCabs and Uber.

Under Kurt Farrugia, Transport Malta wanted to stand its ground and keep WT Global’s cars off the streets.

Replying to questions, WT Global said it is managing its financial obligations in a “structured and responsible manner despite the absence of revenue”.

Company owner Walid Ouhida said WT Global will honour its financial obligations and will address all “outstanding balances” once operations resume, adding that maintaining payments and expenses has already cost the company more than €2 million.

Transport Malta first suspended WT Global’s licence in January 2025 after it discovered that the company had listed various sites as public service garages when they were evidently not.

WT Global challenged the decision and managed to keep its operations ongoing after a court gave the company permission to continue operating while the case was assessed.

However, in May, the Administrative Review Tribunal ruled that incorrect information provided by WT Global meant the transport regulator was justified in clamping down on the company and enforcing Y-plate cab rules.

Despite WT Global arguing that it had since fallen in line with the public service garage rules, Transport Malta proceeded with the suspension anyway.

Sources within the car industry said the Y-plate market accounts for around a third of new car sales.

Most of the companies that operate on the ride-hailing apps purchase cars with loans.

“WT Global is one of the biggest purchasers in the industry. That amounts to millions in dues to car importers,” the source said.

Questions sent to the Car Importers Association remained unanswered.

Publicly available financial information on WT Global shows that the company owed some €15 million as of December 2024. That data does not clarify whether they are loan repayments for cars.

Contacted for comment, owner Walid Ouhida said WT Global “firmly believes that the suspension is not legally justified, and this position is being actively addressed through the appropriate legal channels”.

“Since the suspension, the company has incurred approximately €2.4 million in costs without income generation, covering essential expenditures such as salaries, compliance-related commitments and other critical operational requirements necessary to preserve the continuity of the business.”

“As has consistently been the case throughout its history, WT Global is committed to honouring all its financial obligations in full and will address all outstanding balances in an orderly manner once operations resume,” Ouhida said.

He said the company remains fully confident in a positive resolution and in the resumption of normal operations, adding that it considers the situation to be “temporary in nature”.