Taxi Driver Online

March 21, 2006 Tuesday

Cabbies quizzed on 'extras' button

Cabbies in Bradford are being pulled up by irate passengers and quizzed over a non-existent £1 button.

The row has escalated since a court report in the Telegraph & Argus after a taxi driver lost his licence for over-charging an elderly passenger.

During Jitendra Gupta's appeal hearing at Bradford Crown Court earlier this month, it emerged that some cabbies added £1 to the final fare by pressing a button on the meter.

C D Khalid, president of the Bradford Hackney Carriage Association, has hit back saying this is not done in Bradford - and drivers are suffering.

"This matter has had an adverse effect on other drivers' business. Many passengers are now wasting drivers' time and disputing fares at the end of journey.

"They invariable ask if the extras button has been pressed. It is the case that such a button has not been part of taximeters from some years. Indeed there is no such button in any of the 224 hackney carriage taximeters - all of which are checked and sealed by the Council."

All meters would have been double-checked shortly before Christmas when the tariff rose by more than 10p a mile.

Mr Gupta is still unable to work as a taxi driver, after the court case which was prompted by a complaint from June Haley. She said he charged her £1 more than she usually paid for the same trip.

A Council spokesman said: "Taxi meters do have a button drivers can press to charge for extras, but the meters on our hackney carriages have been altered so they cannot be used.

"If one of our drivers tries to use this button it should read '00' and nothing will be added. Our meters are routinely checked every year when prices change, when the drivers change their vehicle or if meters are found to be defective."
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Well surely he just put the meter on early, f*** all to do with a secret button.

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IDFIMH

So is it common for the extras button to be disabled on meters?

I know that in my manor the extras aren't really used, but the button isn't disabled, so in theory the driver could still add them.

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

I think on most calendar control meters the extras button is disabled.

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IDFIMH

we are not trusted enough down here to add any extras.
well some are.

i rember a while ago getting a booking from the station, two familys there. i'm out the car putting the cases in the boot (no extra of course). at the same time the other family is getting in to a black (s)cabby hack, they struggling to get the cases in while the driving is just sat there pushing the extras button for every case they put in the back!!

I don't understand it going to Crown Court over a quid because a passenger complained??? or is that the appeale.

how do they go on when they get extra passengers in the taxi, so 4 people will be the same as one person re having meter with no extras, it sdeems the drivers cannot be trusted by the Council.

I was just looking what West Wiltshire was charging, look at the tarriff for more than 4
http://www.westwiltshire.gov.uk/index/e ... re-Anchor7

It will be an appeal from the Magistrates court.

Regards

JD

That is just what the bad boys want, and I suspect leads to many people being over-charged.

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IDFIMH

In Fife there's no extras at all for extra bods or large vehicles.

But even at that the numbers of MPVs and Caravelles/Vitos etc has ballooned and now their about a third of the fleet. But they can cause problems on the ranks and as a saloon driver we just don't like them full stop, so I'm glad theres no further encouragement through extras on the fares.

Not on ours.

You need it for the Christmas and New Year £3 extra charge per job.

You also claim £2 of the £4 Heathrow feeder park entry fee back.

You can also add £40 if someone decides to be sick.

A taxi driver commits an offence either by asking for a supplemental payment in addition to the proper fare. re claim £2 Heathrow feeder entry, but it is known that those who pay for Railway permits also bung extra on the meters to cover costs
I think I'll start adding a bit on the extras to cover me gas and leccy bill.

I think your 'alluding' to the fact our Airport extras are unlawful?

Err, no they're not, like all 'extras' they're all signed, sealed and approved by the PCO our licensing authority.

Is that like a Rail Rover then?

Choo Choo.

And the meter makers can't work out when they are?

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IDFIMH