Taxi Driver Online

A question that crops up every now and again, and might be the kind of thing that's included in a trade FAQ.

This looks like something that might be on an insurer's website, but is on the Business Matters website, which describes itself as 'UK's leading business magazine'.

So to the extent it's in a general business publication rather than a specialist one, it might smack of advertorial. But there's no actual insurance provider mentioned, so who knows?

Maybe it's originated from some kind of insurer's trade or professional organisation, so they're representing lots of providers rather than an individual business, so there's no names named.


Do Taxi Drivers Need Public Liability Insurance?

https://bmmagazine.co.uk/business/do-ta ... insurance/

As a taxi driver, you have to interact with the general public daily. This exposes tax drivers to many risks, including harassment, physical injury, and even false accusations. Fortunately, many drivers on the road feel protected from these dangers, thanks to their fleet’s taxi insurance.

However, do you know that fleet taxi insurance might not be enough to protect you completely? If you look at your taxi insurance’s coverage, you might discover that it mainly protects you. Taxi insurance is designed to protect the driver in cases of:

• Traffic accidents, whether or not the driver is alone or with a passenger
• Attempted theft or actual theft
• Fire
• Car damage

Basically, taxi insurance is designed to protect the driver and the car. However, it also provides coverage for passengers in case of traffic accidents.

The Need For Public Liability Insurance

If taxi insurance covers passengers as well, then is there a need for public liability insurance? The answer to that is yes. If you look at the fine print, taxi insurance only covers third-party liability in case of traffic accidents. However, a passenger is in your care from the time they get into your taxi up until the time they exit it.

In many cases, a taxi driver’s responsibility goes beyond this point. For example, if your passenger is an older adult, they may ask you to escort them to their front door. If this is the case, the taxi driver is responsible for their safety until they reach their doorway.

Although most taxi passenger injuries and deaths are from traffic accidents, they can get hurt in more ways than one. A thief on a motorcycle can sideswipe them as they’re alighting from your taxi. They could be allergic to your taxi’s air freshener and suffer an allergic reaction. They might lose their valuables while inside your cab and accuse you of thievery. They can get into an argument with you and suffer a heart attack because of it.

Some of these scenarios might sound far-fetched to you, but they do happen. And when they do, it’s usually a massive headache, not only for the taxi driver but the fleet management as well.

What Does Public Liability Insurance Cover?

So what does public insurance cover that fleet taxi insurance doesn’t? While public liability insurance terms vary depending on which insurance company you go to, here are some of the things covered by this type of insurance:

• Personal injury to passengers or other persons
• Death of a passenger or other persons
• Damage or loss
• Financial assistance for legal expenses

Not only does public liability insurance protect taxi drivers from liability if anything happens to their passengers, but it also aids them financially in case someone does sue them and thus requires legal representation

Give Your Fleet Total Protection With Public Liability Insurance

Fleet taxi insurance is an excellent benefit for taxi drivers. It allows them to focus on recuperating in situations where they are injured due to traffic accidents, theft, and other dangers. However, it doesn’t fully protect them from lawsuits from passengers and other parties involved.

While taxi insurance can go a long way, adding public liability insurance on top of that is the best way to protect taxi drivers while they are on duty. Not only does it shield them from legal claims, but it also allows them to perform their job with the peace of mind that they are fully protected no matter what happens.

We are required to have £10,000,000 public liability insurance for our school contracts. This was included in our insurance at no additional cost.

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

Indeed, and I suspect such public liablity cover is a standard requirement for those doing any kind of public sector contracts.

And which might have usefully been mentioned in the article

I always thought my normal taxi/PH insurance covered me when helping folks away from the car, but still on taxi/PH jobs.

My insurer told me a few years back that that was no longer the case.

Clearly those on circuits will be covered by the operator's liability insurance, but for those working independently they need the extra cover if they want to be safe from the ambulance chasers.

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IDFIMH

Ditto.

Inclined to think company public liability insurance would only cover employees driving company cars not the so called self employed.

yes, if the LA demands it

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

I'd suggest it covers all contractors and sub-contractors employed or used by the business. I've seen my bus company's certificate in the office and it covers everybody including persons who may have no right to enter the property!

So a self-employed driver by being given work by the office then becomes one of their contractors. the punter's contract is with whoever he booked with, not always the driver.

That may depend on how many employees or contractors the insurance is set up to cover

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

try claiming

its 99.99% a claim against the cars insurance - as i know

PL?..... total joke

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

I have never heard of anyone claiming on Public liability insurance.

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

My county school transport demand I have PL for all cars running on my contract even those who have PL in their insurance

It seems cos i pass work i am employing them in a non-PAYE sense though

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

Yes, that's right. the initial contract is made with Wannabbecabs. If Wannabee cabs subs the job out to Abz Cars down the road, that is a separate contract. The punter still has the original contract with Wannabeecabs. In law the Abz driver is YOUR employee regardless of how he's paid. You have the power to hire and fire.

This was brought home to me last weekend when I was bus driving for a London independent bus company. They hire in roadside control and supervisory staff to run the service and provide passenger information. the first supervisor on duty decided for no good reason to amend the turning arrangements at one end, instead of letting the buses run round the block as planned and agreed with TfL, he thought it would be a Good Idea to send the buses further along the side roand and do a 3 point turn amongst low trees. At least one bus lost part of its roof, another 3 were damaged by trees. when the MD found out, he came down and sacked the man on the spot even though he worked for a contractor. Gross misconduct, causing damage to vehicles, plus H&S matters not doing a risk assessment etc. The MD is also suing the contractor for not instructing their staff accordingly. Does the contractor have public liability insurance? I doubt it but he's going to need it! Some of his staff are paid cash not on the books. That's also his problem, but tmy company should have had that covered in their contract with him.

Now someone above says he doesn't need PLI. So someone goes into his office to book a cab. If there's a tea machine could buy a cuppa tea, maybe the office staff offer a cup of coffee. Punter gets some nasty illness from said cup, sues company. Are they insured?

This may well be the case Roy. But the OP asked if DRIVERS needed PL insurance. Our own PL insurance is for the company and covers all employees. Now in my opinion regardless of if a self employed individual driver who just works the street needs PL insurance is up to them because most things would be covered by vehicle insurance but in our case and I would say in most cases, when we were looking for our policy for the cars we got the price and then asked for PL at £10,000,000 to be added and this was then included in the price so that is what I would recommend that self employed owner drivers do.

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

You're right there, PLI can usually be added to most motor policies for a nominal sum. With my bus business the cost of the vehicle insurance was reasonable as we are operating vintage buses for weddings etc, PLI was about £45 a year for covering the entire business. But as you say, a lot of vehicle insurances cover public liability as well.