Taxi Driver Online

This has kind of passed me by, and not really sure precisely how this changes the existing law. But as the highlighted text in the first article in the Stoke Sentinel seems to say, it looks like it's addressing particular loopholes as regards charging for assistance, and helping visually impaired passengers find their vehicle.

As for the second article from Scotland, this seems to be about a Scottish firm that seems to have been charging more for WAVs, which I thought had been illegal for years

But looks like it's a UK-wide thing, and probably rehashed in lots of local press outlets.

New rights and protections for disabled taxi passengers

https://www.stokesentinel.co.uk/news/uk ... xi-7282941

Taxi drivers who fail to abide by the new law will risk fines of up to £1,000

Millions of disabled people in England, Scotland and Wales will have new protections when using taxis and private hire vehicles. The Government says its latest equality legislation will ensure disabled passengers get the help they need and don’t pay “over the odds”.

The new Taxis and Private Hire Vehicles (Disabled Persons) Act came into force on June 28, amending the 2010 Equality Act. The legislation outlines specific rights and protections for disabled people travelling using a taxi or private hire vehicle.

In particular, disabled passengers now have the right to receive assistance without being charged extra. Visually impaired passengers, meanwhile, must now be assisted by drivers to identify or find the vehicle they’re due to be travelling in.

Taxi and private hire drivers who fail to provide appropriate mobility assistance to disabled passengers taking a pre-booked vehicle now risk fines of up to £1,000. In addition, local councils will be required to ensure that wheelchair-accessible vehicles in taxi fleets are publicly identified.

“It is fantastic that the updated legislation and guidance will help ensure that all disabled people receive assistance when using taxis and PHVs,” said accessibility minister Wendy Morton. “Disabled people account for around a fifth of the population and our Inclusive Transport Strategy is making travel more accessible for all.”

The government says the new law is the biggest change to taxi accessibility laws since the introduction of the original Equality Act 12 years ago. It expressed hope that the legislation will help disabled people to travel “with dignity and confidence”.

There are 13.7 million people living with disabilities in the UK, according to government figures. This includes people with physical and sensory impairments, as well as non-visible disabilities.

Scots taxi firm axes disabled services after new law bans them from charging extra

https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scot ... d-27379814

It comes after a change in the law designed to help wheelchair users led to some cab companies threatening to take cars out of service altogether.


Image: Daily Record

An award-winning taxi firm axed its service for disabled customers after new laws banned drivers from charging them more.

Wellman Cars informed its passengers who suffer disabilities they would no longer be picked up.

But council bosses have read the riot act to firms and warned the move is illegal.

It comes after a change in the law designed to help wheelchair users led to some cab companies threatening to take cars out of service altogether.

The legislation had made it clear that disabled people can’t be charged more for the same journeys as able-bodied customers.

But Wellman Cars, based in Hamilton, told disabled customers they now wouldn’t be able to get a service due to the extra costs involved.

South Lanarkshire Council then emailed every cab company in the area to tell them they face prosecution if they follow suit.


Image: Daily Record

Wellman are Scotland’s Taxi Company of the Year, with director Clare Welsh picking up the award at a ceremony last year.

A social media post by the firm on Sunday mistakenly referred to Scottish legislation but the change to the Taxis and Private Hire Vehicles (Disabled Persons) Act 2022 relates to all of the UK.

It states: “This is a service we know our customers and their families depend on however due to Scottish Government legislation this is a service we will have to possibly stop from Tuesday, June 28.”

The company said the cutback is due to large, wheelchair accessible vehicles costing more to buy and run and taking up more driver time.

Wellman added: “Our customers have always been happy to pay extra for the hire of this service.

“With the Scottish Government legislation, we are being told that such a pre-agreed charge is discrimination.”


Image: Daily Record

One customer replied: “So let me get this right. You have been charging more to pick up disabled people who need a wheelchair accessible vehicle? And you think this right?”

The local authority’s email, which threatened to take rogue cars off the road, warned: “Any alleged non-compliance may be the subject of investigation and enforcement action by South Lanarkshire Council.

“If non-compliance is found to have taken place, this could involve a report being made to the Licensing Committee which could have potential consequences for the driver or operator, such as suspension or revocation of their licence.

“The offences include refusing to take a booking from a disabled person or making an additional charge for the driver carrying out any of the driver duties.”

Labour MSP Pam Duncan-Glancy, who is a wheelchair user, said the cost of living for disabled people has always been hundreds of pounds higher.

She said: “Like everyone else, disabled people have a right to be able to get around, so it is right that they shouldn’t have to pay more to enjoy the same rights as someone else.”

But she added: “It is also important to recognise that taxi drivers are under extraordinary financial pressures, following two years with very little income.”

Wellman Cars was asked for comment but did not respond to the Record’s request.

This is the official Government press notice, together with a link to the guidance at the bottom.

Make sure you read and digest all of the guidance, which can be accessed via the link at the bottom. Councils will be doing spot-checks, and if you don't know the guidance inside out you're off the road


Most significant change to taxi and private hire vehicle accessibility legislation in 12 years

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/most ... n-12-years

New laws to protect disabled people in England, Scotland and Wales when travelling in taxis and PHVs.

- new laws will ensure disabled people receive help and can travel with dignity and confidence
- disabled people protected against extra charges and rip-off fares
- changes will benefit 13.7 million people

New laws will ensure the 13.7 million disabled people in England, Scotland and Wales receive the assistance they need and will not be charged over the odds when using taxis and private hire vehicles (PHVs).

The new Taxis and Private Hire Vehicles (Disabled Persons) Act 2022, which came into force on 28 June, is the most significant change to taxi accessibility legislation since the Equality Act was introduced 12 years ago.

The 2022 Act amends the Equality Act 2010 to place duties on taxi drivers and PHV drivers and operators, so any disabled person has specific rights and protections to be transported and receive assistance when using a taxi or PHV without being charged extra.

As part of the amendments, taxi and PHV drivers could face fines of up to £1,000 if they fail to provide reasonable mobility assistance to disabled passengers taking a pre-booked vehicle.

This will also ensure that visually impaired passengers will be assisted by drivers to help them identify or find the vehicle. There will also be a duty for local authorities to publicly identify wheelchair-accessible vehicles in their fleets.

The measures will apply to drivers in England, Scotland and Wales and will help to provide consistency of experience for affected passengers.

Wendy Morton, Accessibility Minister, said:

"It is fantastic that the updated legislation and guidance will help ensure that all disabled people receive assistance when using taxis and PHVs.

"Disabled people account for around a fifth of the population and our Inclusive Transport Strategy is making travel more accessible for all."

The act was a Private Members’ Bill introduced by Jeremy Wright QC MP. Another change will mean that even drivers granted exemption from assistance duties on account of medical needs must still accept the carriage of disabled passengers and will not be able to charge them more than others.

Disability affects 13.7 million people in Great Britain. It includes physical and sensory conditions, as well as impairments that are ‘non-visible’.

The amendments to the Equality Act 2010 have been developed by the Department for Transport (DfT) as part of work in support of its 2018 Inclusive Transport Strategy and cross-government commitments on improving access to taxi and PHV services and will benefit a wide range of disabled passengers, as well as their friends and family.

In March 2022, DfT announced a £2.5 million package to help disabled people travel more confidently. This included funding towards mobility centres across England and to enhance access to lifeline ferry services.

The updated legislation will build on the commitment we made and will make travel more accessible for all.

Read the Access to taxis and private hire vehicles for disabled users guidance.

Not sure about that. Is the driver at the front of the rank now duty-bound to assist the passenger even if he wasn't booked for the job?

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IDFIMH

it sounds as though that sentence was intended to apply to PH so possibly not but normally it's good practice to assist blind passengers to the car to speed the process up

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Taxis Are Public Transport too

Join the campaign to get April fools jokes banned for 364 days a year !

Not sure about the nitty gritty, but it looks like it's maybe aimed at booked vehicles rather than the rank scenario, but to that extent it will apply equally to HCs and PHVs.

So that would cover the visual impairment bit, and the other main bit seems to be the register of bookable vehicles, and again the HC/PH distinction is irrelevant.

Anyway, I'm sure it's all clear from the guidance. Not

I mean, imagine the average driver trying to read and digest all this, never mind ones with language difficulties, and likes of the recent one in Melton/Rutland.

Can't be bothered reading it myself, but, I mean

https://www.gov.uk/government/publicati ... d-users--2

I'll just reread the letter the council sent us a couple of weeks ago

Doubt if any of it will be at all relevant to a saloon HC like me doing mainly public hire work, apart from the usual common sense

Check out this daftie in the comments. Obviously time in the trade well spent

Time is covered up to the point you lose your license.

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IDFIMH

So councils have to publish and maintain a list of wheelchair accessible vehicles (updating it at least every 3months) Our list is at least 5yrs out of date. I wonder what the punishment is ? I bet most councils haven’t updated theirs in a while, if it was us in the wrong they’d jump all over us.

Don't think our council has a list at present, but think that was what the recent letter from them was all about, but certainly no impact on a saloon HCD like me.

But I'm guessing lots in the trade wouldn't want to go on such a list.

I recall a driver who got one of the first WAVs in the area maybe twenty years ago. He didn't buy it as a WAV as such, and didn't want to flag it up as a WAV in case in the future he would only be allowed to run WAVs on that plate and not saloons or non-WAV eight seaters.

That never happened, and think he went back to a saloon, but I'm sure many will identify with where he was coming from.

Not much of a list here. 1 Hackney and maybe 1 Private hire

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Grandad,
To support my charity text MAYORWALK to 70085 to donate £5

My understanding is that this isn't a list of current WAVs working, but a list of vehicles that can be licensed.

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IDFIMH

It is supposed to be a list of licensed WAVs that people can contact and be displayed on the L/As website.