Taxi Driver Online

I am looking for a some answers for a few questions and any answers would be great.

1. Does anyone know who is the biggest private hire operater in the UK and how many drivers do they employ? Also who are the second and third largest?

2. The firm I work for has just taken on 3 new private hire drivers when there is not enough extra work to cover the extra drivers. Having explained this to the boss he insists that to get more work you need more drivers, and that they shold be emploed as soon as they come asking for a radio. I believe that drivers should only be hired one at a time and when there is enough work to cover the new driver, therefore not upsetting the drivers already working on the office. Who has the right method of employing drivers, me or the boss?

3. How much does it cost to start a new private hire taxi office? Obviously I would like to know the cheapest and best method of getting started in the face of lots of competition.

Any help would help would be great.

Of course he does'nt care mate, its another 3 sets of radio / car rents coming in to his account!

Have a read of this thread, its London Minicabs but seems relevant to your situation you describe above.

http://www.taxi-driver.co.uk/minicab.htm

You should realise that all any office owner is interested in is signing up and holding on to as many owner/drivers as they possibly can. You provide the driver, the vehicle, with all related expenses, and pay your desk money each week. His overheads are fixed, whilst yours are not. He is Guaranteed to make a profit, you are not. Does he care? of course not. There are plenty more suckers out there ready to take your place.

Hi

1. Delata Liverpool 800 plus
2. Glasgow Private Hire Glasgow 700 plus
3. Aqua Cars Portsmouth 550 plus
4. Network Private Hire Glasgow 500 plus

I hope that helps a bit.

regards
RadioMan

All bosses bad, long live the workers, what a load of crap.
Most drivers want a fixed rental, they dont want to pay per job so the only way "Bosses" can expand or increase profit is to get more renters. Drivers stay on radio circuits because they get a return for the rent they pay, are you saying all drivers are idiots that blindly hand over the rent for no good reason. Companies provide a service take it or leave its your choice.
Which comes first, cars or work ? If you cant work it out get a 9-5 PAYE.

The best advice I can give you and this is with over 25 years in the trade is to get out as you are obviously unsuited to this trade. You do not have the slightest understanding of running a business. I mean no insult or slurr on you, I am sure you are a very nice honest person but you are in the wrong job.

5. Taxifast Plymouth 400+ (i think )

I have been a prive hire driver for over 5 years in a job which i like. Just because i question how the boss of my firm thinks and how the taxi business in general works it does not mean i am in the wrong business. If i dreaded going into work every shift then i would get out of the taxi business, but as i dont dread every shift why should i leave.

My original question is quite simple and was just looking for feedback from other drivers as to whats the best way to increase driver numbers and work numbers, i.e a new driver every few weeks as the work builds or take on every driver that wants a radio even if it means 3 new drivers at the same time!

All i am looking for is other drivers ideas of what makes a good taxi office for the boss, the receptionists and the drivers so that everyons is making money and the business grows, the reason being is that i want to own my own taxi office and so research is the only way you learn.

Thanks for the stats on office sizes Radioman, 800 plus on one office is certainly a big office. The largest in Wrexham is about 80 but there are quite a few offices in the town centre.

My point is that you had to ask the question, somethings you should be able to work out for your-self, if the absolute basics of business are not there you will never understand the answers. If after 5 years you have not learnt what running an office and business is about you never will, stick to what you are good at and happily doing. I think you would be seriously over-extending yourself if you tried to establish your own circuit, but good luck if you want to try.

In the final analysis, if he takes on more cars than he has work for then he'll just lose cars, so end up no better off.

He's perhaps being a bit short-termist, in that if he just hires as many as will work for him then all he'll achieve is a higher turnover of drivers, which is unlikely to be in his long term interests.

Of course, people like yourself might just complain rather than jumping ship, so to that extent he's quids in.

At the end of the day we all want to maximise profits, but there's always a tension involved in this, and clearly you want to maximise yours, and he his, but acheiving these aims is clearly detrimental to the other side.

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Taxi Driver Online
www.taxi-driver.co.uk

three new drivers on top of how many already?

I make no secret that I am a boss.

Lets work through this.

You say 'employ'. Do you mean employ or a circuit contract?

I forever have a driver walking in saying there are too many drivers out there and he can't make a living. Funny, he hasn't worked a Saturday night in months.

To grow a business you need the ability to supply. I am convinced if you can offer more capacity at peak times for a period of four weeks you will see a growth in work overall. Punters who can't gedt a taxi for three weeks stop ringing, thinking they already know the answer.

If three walked in my door tomorrow I would take them, but only if they were all good quality. I like many 'bosses' would love to be able to tell 20% of our drivers to [edited by admin] off, but currently we can't. Now if I had another 5 drivers I would be a much nastier bloke to work with.

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A member of the Hire or Reward Industry

Also an owner and fully agree with you Tom more drivers equals more work and there is allways some driver who says he aint earning enough but in this job you have the potential to make the money up by working the odd fri/sat but we know so many come from there little 9 to 5 jobs and think taxiing is the same it isnt

Absolutly enough said.

Eric

I agree to some extent, but the original question said that there was not enough work for the new drivers.

A firm might take on enough drivers to cover peak demand, and to that extent may gain some work, but overall each drivers take could well decrease, and to that extent some could be lost and the firm could end up back at square one.

In the final analysis, there's always conflict between the competing interests of proprietors and drivers.

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Taxi Driver Online
www.taxi-driver.co.uk