Uber is annoyed with people who think it pays low taxes due to a 'loophole'

Uber's latest company filings showed that the company paid £22,134 in UK corporation tax last year on profits of £866,000.

Certain UK media outlets reported that the San Francisco taxi-hailing company, now valued at over $50 billion, legally transferred profits to its sister company in the Netherlands where tax rates are lower.

But Uber claims this is inaccurate and suggested some reporters don't understand how the UK tax system works.

A spokesman for the company told Business Insider that it paid all the tax it owed in the UK.

The reason for the relatively low amount, he claims, is largely because Uber didn't make any money from its UK business in 2012 or 2013.

"With corporation tax, past losses offset current and future profits - as is the case with Uber, which made losses in the UK in previous years," said the spokesman. "This is an accounting principle to encourage investment that dates back to Benjamin Disraeli. It is not a loophole."

"We are a young company - only three years old in the UK - that is investing heavily. We are a significant net contributor to the local economy everywhere we go, creating new opportunities for thousands of professional drivers."

"The lion's share of every fare stays local, as it remains with the drivers who use Uber. And unlike the cash-in-hand past of this industry, we only take card payments so every fare is traceable and transparent."

Uber is the latest US tech giant to reveal it is paying a relatively small amount of tax in the UK given how much money it makes overall.

Last week Facebook was attacked for paying just £4,327 in UK corporation tax in 2014 while several of its executives took home bonuses worth millions.

Uber's UK operations, which now cover 10 UK cities, got a boost last week when the High Court ruled that the company isn't breaking any UK laws with its taxi app.