Taxi Driver Online

I am aware that drivers of some standard saloon HC vehicles in our district will refuse to take any wheelchair cutomers in their vehicles.

I will however take wheelchair users is they are confident enough to and ask to enter and exit the vehicle with minimal assistance required. This of course, is suject to them having an easily collapsible wheelchair, that can be conveniently stored in the boot.

I think you are discriminating against these persons if you say no to them when they are willing to use a standard HC vehicle.

Any thoughts???

Where do you stand if you put your back out lifting the wheelchair in to the boot?
Can you be accused of discrimination if you refuse to take a drunken wheelchair user at 2 o'clock on a sunday morning?

Staffs,
I have ran wheelchair accessible business for a few years,and although my customers travel in their wheelchairs,can I make these points.
It is a murky area,regarding transfering,but up North,down Forfar way,the wheelchair customer in their own homes if requiring to moved from the chair,has an experienced carer,who has had training with moving and handling.
Some caring companies,stress two carers for this job,others,must use the customers hoist.

The health and safety aspect,must,at all times be looked at,and as other posting mentioned,if you are off work due to injury caused by helping the
customer,who pays?,tou.
Of course if you refuse to help the customer,you then become a,lazy,abnoxious,unhelpful,typical bas---d of a taxi driver.
Choice is yours,but I thin most wheelchair users usually have helpers with them.
Good Luck,could always by a Doblo.
Take care,
Nice cabbie from South Forfar?.

I think it all depends on what you consider to be reasonable.

If some consider it reasonable to just ignore wheel chair customers full-stop, then that's not on.

But if you think protecting your back by not picking up a large wheel chair bound customer, or pushing one up into a WAV, comes first, then I think that's being reasonable.

If it's NHS policy that two ambulance men/women need to be sent to any wheel chair bound customer, then I think we have a good case to refuse a job that seems too much.

But this whole issue is a mine-field, that gives the PC brigade, and the tree huggers, another avenue to have a pop at the taxi/PH trade.

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IDFIMH

A rarity indeed.

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IDFIMH

Sussex,hope that was a compliment,if it was that is the first time you have given a compliment to a hackney cab driver.
I think you deserve a HC plate,and will be writing to my Uncle Tony,to tell the minister of transport,to grant you one.
Regards from Tony B,s nephew.
From North of the Border,down South of Forfar.

I drive a wav but you would not believe how some of the lads go out of there way not to pick up wheel chair punters.
A mesage often goes out on the cb that a WAV is needed and that sends most of them miles away.
Credit to our trade eh.

I'm not talking about the heavy duty wheel chairs - a lot of them are carbon framed, very light, and easliy collapsable.

I've looked into it further and the licensing enforcment officer has stated that section 53 of the TPC Act 1847 makes it an offence to accept a fare.

You can refuse the fare, but if your taken to magistrates or put in front of the licensing committee, you have to have an extremely good excuse.

Like I say, if the wheelchair user is confident enough to use a saloon and can get in by themselves - which I've seen them do quite a lot and their wheelchair is a modern light weight one - then i think your asking for trouble by not taking their fare.

Thats my opinion anyway.

I get a lot of work for buggies but surely it must be very damgerous carrying them in WAV?

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PinkWheels

the lead in time for accesible cabs is 15 years.

In England maybe, but there's been no announcement in Scotland yet.

Yet another case of England leading and the others struggling to keep up.

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IDFIMH

As long as the budgies are in their cages,they can be transported in all types of Wavs.

Up North,South of Forfar.