Taxi Driver Online

Wheelchair user agrees out of court settlement with Value Cabs Mrs Nesbit took the case because she felt she had been "treated differently" because she was disabled
A Belfast wheelchair user has agreed an out of court settlement after taking a disability discrimination case against Value Cabs.

Nicola Nesbit alleged she was charged more than a non-disabled person for using an accessible taxi. She said the firm charged her an £8 call-out fee in addition to a fare and a half.

Value Cabs paid Mrs Nesbit £2,000 without admission of liability.

Mrs Nesbit, who has cerebral palsy, said she was delighted by the outcome.

"I was outraged, as I felt that I was being treated differently because I am disabled," she said.

"I think it is important that all disabled people are aware that it is not fair to charge a disabled person more than an able bodied person for the same journey in the same vehicle, and that is why I decided to take this to court."

Mrs Nesbit, who usually travels by bus, needed to use taxis to travel to hospital appointments during her pregnancy.

She alleged that, because it was a wheelchair accessible vehicle, she was charged an £8 call-out charge on top of the fare and a half, bringing her fare to around £14 for the short, one-way trip.

'Reasonable adjustments'

Her case was supported by the Equality Commission.

Director of legal services at the Equality Commission, Anne McKernan said: "The Disability Transport Regulations require transport providers to make reasonable adjustments so that disabled people can have access to a service as close as it is reasonably possible to get to the standard normally offered to the general public.

"The law does not allow a transport provider to charge its disabled customers a higher price for the same journey in the same vehicle," she said.

"The fare for the larger vehicle should be the same for everyone.

"The costs of making reasonable adjustments are part of a transport provider's general expenses, just the same as complying with any other legislation.

"It is essential for all transport providers to make sure their staff are fully informed and operating their policies."

Value Cabs have agreed to liaise with the Equality Commission to review their policies and procedures, which they believe to be compliant with the law, and to implement any reasonable recommendations made by the commission.

The company has also agreed to communicate its policies and procedures to its staff at all grades through a training programme recommended by the commission.


http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-14527162

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Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin

im saying nothing on this one....

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Of all the things ive lost, i miss my mind the most

If she had not settled out of court I think the company would no longer be working

See that's the discussion we were having on the other thread, and I'm not too sure this has moved it on much more.

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IDFIMH

I think it has.....the statement;

"The law does not allow a transport provider to charge its disabled customers a higher price for the same journey in the same vehicle,"

helps

CC

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Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin

But the next statement doesn't.

"The fare for the larger vehicle should be the same for everyone."

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IDFIMH

Yeah.......its equality if they rip everyone off.....not just the disabled.

CC

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Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin

Why is charging more for a larger car, say a new E7 to carry a wheelchair ripping people off?

The MPG on a new E7 is about 30MPG, where as a Octavia is closer to 50. A new E7 is close to £30k new, where as a Octavia is half that price.

Surely there is logical business sense to charge more for more expensive vehicles that use more fuel than cheaper ones that use less?

firstly, the MPG isnt an issue on a 2 mile job...

secondly, youve just highlighted what i said about councils forcing fares up FOR ALL in matered hacks by insisting ALL hacks ar £30K WAV's

surely if any common sense was applied only a small portion of hacks need to be WAVs - lets say the same proportion as wheelchair users are in the general population?

sorry, i forgot, we cant use common sense can we

(and thats ignoring that many (most maybe) wheelchair users get Mobility, but all hacks should be WAV's?......you couldnt make it up

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Of all the things ive lost, i miss my mind the most

Of course bigger Vehicles should charge more (even receive Subsidies)..its why Buses and Trains have to have more punters to pay for their extra running costs.

On a lesser Scale a 4 seater runs cheaper than an 8 seater and for that reason anything the size of an 8 seater whether it carries one wheelchair bound passenger or 8 able bodied passengers should charge the same single price per equal journey...no one subsidises a Taxi owner to run a bigger car.

And as Wannabee points out the Wheelchair user will quite possibly have a Motability car of their own or a Mobility allowance that covers their extra costs.

I still struggle to see why a Disabled person who is Unemployed or employed should have any more right to get around for free than a hard at heel able bodied person does...its the very reason the government has made Buses, Trains and a Big percentage of Taxis Wheelchair friendly...

We are getting to the point where being abled bodied puts you at a travel disadvantage to those of the Disabled groups..

The Carless poor need to get to the shops and out and about just like the Disabled do. Are not the poor just as much a prisoner of their homes as any other group.

That said....its not Fare to charge A disabled person more than an able person for the exact same journey in any given vehicle.

Presumably the fare and a half was because it was a larger vehicle, whereas the eight quid extra was for the wheelchair?

If a large vehicle was requested by six drunks (say) then presumably that would be the fare and a half, but if it was just sent for a single punter then that would be just the standard fare?

Thus the wheelchair passenger was wrongly charged both the fare and a half and the eight quid on top of that.

Of course, perhaps they only use the big vehicle when requested, in which case the fare and a half might be reasonable, but the charge on top of that wouldn't.

well I work in an area where I am the ONLY Wav and as a result get stuck with all the wheelchair jobs and i do charge the same BUT it doesn't pay me to do so because my fuel costs are higher it takes about 5 or 6 minutes to load and unload at each end for which I cannot charge

I have suggested to the council that they make it a rule that all 8 seaters should be WAV's but they say that as they get no complaints they don't see the point so the more lucrative 8 seater work is heavily contested by battered old transits and citroen relays

If it was a more level playing field i.e. a number of vehicles able to share the wheelchair work I can understand it BUT the onl;y way to encourage companies to INVEST in such vehicles is to allow them to make a reasonable return on them it takes me 20 to 25 mimnutes to do a £2.50 wheelchair fare so if there are too many of them in on a day earnings are well down

I have driven a Wav for over 12 years but it is very clear that I am a mug for doing so I think when it is time to replace this one a conventional 8 seater might be a lot cheaper and give a much better return on the investment

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lack of modern legislation is the iceberg sinking the titanic of the transport sector

What you write is logical....but unfortunately not equality.

CC

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Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin

A lot of what you wrote is an urban myth.......I suggest you read what DPTAC told the NTA last year in Sunderland.

CC

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Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin