E-bike rental company Voi has vowed to continue operating in a west London borough, despite losing out on a local authority contract to rival providers.
Voi began a dockless e-bike trial in Ealing in May 2025, operating alongside Lime. But earlier this year, Ealing Council awarded new contracts to Lime and Forest, expecting Voi to leave the borough.
Voi argued it had performed well in the borough and there were no legal grounds to exclude it.
Ealing Council said contracts were made with Lime and Forest through a local authority Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), “in line with a majority of London boroughs”.
Voi continues to operate in Ealing without paying fees to the council, which are paid by Forest and Lime. Voi also uses e-bike parking spaces meant for the other providers.
Voi said it did not agree with the handling of the MoU process at Ealing, accusing it of running a “mini-procurement” exercise.
The firm said the council made the deal without publishing performance data or clear criteria, which it said was not a robust basis for excluding any operator from the borough.
MoUs – widely used by councils to draw up agreements with third parties – typically set out the terms of a deal.
However, they are not legally binding.