Taxi Driver Online

Which is it, are all the HAC's going to join a firm or are all the PH leaving?

I may well know jack, but what is very evident your argument is flawed at best.

pmsl....what brought you to that conclusion.....jack or sh*t?

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

But most HCs are part of a circuit, outside London at least.

Even under a single-tier system no one would be forcing HCs to work for a circuit in the way you imply.

I know it's bad netiquette just to repeat a post to agree with it, but

On the contrary, both Taxeman and Sussex have got the dynamic of the thing down to a T.

It's all about who has access to what work, who has the option to do what work, and the privileged position of some who don't want their cosy monopoly disturbed.

In essence it's what's called a level playing field. An unusual and often unwanted concept in the trade, but usually seems to go down well in the rest of the world.

Under an unrestricted single-tier no doubt some current PH would go independent, while some currently independent HC would join circuits.

But there'd still be independents, and most single-tier vehicles would probably do most of their work through circuits.

On the other hand, the rank monopoly would end, drivers would have the choice of how to work - thus no longer dependent on either plate or circuit barons - and 'dual-purpose' vehicles would suit both drivers and customers.

It's win-win as far as I can see, except of course for the monopolists.

You forgot to add, 'and therefore TRULY self-employed'.

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Kind regards,

Brummie Cabbie.

Type a message, post your news,
Disagree with other members' views;
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Not in Brum they ain't.

It's about a 40-60 split - radio circuit to non-radio.

_________________
Kind regards,

Brummie Cabbie.

Type a message, post your news,
Disagree with other members' views;
But please, do have some decorum,
When debating on the TDO Forum.

And you forgot;

3) A great number of the new taxis would become part-time independents, no longer constrained to weekly radio circuit rents/settles, working mega-shifts on weekends only and claim working tax-credits, as a number already do in Brum. How do the Benefits Office check how many hours a self-employed driver actually works?

_________________
Kind regards,

Brummie Cabbie.

Type a message, post your news,
Disagree with other members' views;
But please, do have some decorum,
When debating on the TDO Forum.

No sure maybe it was dumb or dumber rewording the same argument over and over again.

Yet again a sweeping generalization without merit.

Surprised at so many independents, but I'd be amazed if that's representative of provincial England as a whole.

Anyone got any other hard data?

Ok lets lok at this in a proper light because it's a real niggle to me locally getting undercut by a PH firm that is

1 - Intentionally holding fares back from being realistic levels

2 - Using cheap fares to make sure nobody else can compete profitably

3 - Quite happy to maintain it like this by using foreign labour which it is telling lies to to obtain and now has something like a 15% British driver list because a Brit cannot and will not put up with the grief of Johnny Longpockets nor the constant having to drive like an F1 driver to get a pittance wage out of it, this same firm is doubly expensive to work for as well, £135pw for the radio alone.


Now there needs to be a meter in every car imo, the reason's are

1 - To protect the customer from overcharging

2 - To make sure a driver sat in heavy traffic doesn't do 80% of the fare in fuel costs.

Fares need to remain on regional if not local levels though, you can't expect a cab in a depressed area to be charging London prices, London is London and the costs are that much higher so it has to be reflected in what the tariff is there,

Now the one thing that really gets me with fares is you are in general talking about less than a fiver most of the day, if you were selling something that was going to cost £400 then to give 10% away on it for a volume sale is worth doing, however when you are talking pocket money there is no margin to play with, every cab must be profit driven, you simply cannot eat into a small profit thing any further because it simply has no more margin to fall out of,

Companies like the AA issue cost per mile things about a car and it's running cost, these benches really reveal how stupid some cabbies are, you simply cannot take a job that is paying £1.20 PM if the car is costing £0.80p PM to run, it's suicidal and stooooopid,

Finally I'd like you to consider this, when you get a cab do you

1 - Get it because you need one

2 - Get one because it's cheap?

Nobody gets a cab because there is a cab sale on this week do they, you get a cab because you need to get one, so why kill your profit attracting something that was already arriving anyway?


Bottom line is it has to worth it to the driver without it breaking the customer, but I do feel that both PH and HC should be on the same local council tariff and all fitted with a meter and the public made aware that they should check that the meter is running when they hire a car, and that it wasn't running as they entered the vehicle,


Here is one of the most stupid fares ever, 60 mile set rate to airport, £50, the basis is you are supposed to get one to return with, well if you drive the right car you do, other's do not, the meter rate for this job is £140, coming the other way with an Airport hack is £200+ even if it was set at a £100 deal it becomes £25 pp, hardly bank breaking when you just did £3000 on a holiday is it, last time I did one of these when I was PH was 1991 when it was £25 and I had a moment of revelation on the way back empty where I saw most of that £25 I already had before I left in the tank etc, got told if I didn't do them I couldn't do any long distance stuff, so I said fine and eventually made my way out of PH as I saw it for what it was, a whip cracker club.

It's a free market so there is nothing stopping you from setting up your own company and undercutting them. As for regulating all fares nobody relegates the cost of a tin of beans do they. I find it strange that people think it's ok to regulate fares but not ok to regulate gas, electric, water etc these are more essential than cab fares

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Note to self: Just because it pops into my head does NOT mean it should come out of my mouth!!

That's plan B Karen, trouble is I'm not putting my money up to be told who I can and can't employ, it's been noted to me by others to set up a British driver only firm, well we all knows where that one leads to don't we, plus I wouldn't mind foreign or Asian driver's as long as I know they are the right man for the job, but in doing that I then upset the Brit who only wanted to work for me because it was Brit's only, but there is a hell of a lot of punters out there who feel safer and confident with a British driver, you see them hanging back late at night waiting for you, and the main reason is they don't want to pay an inflated price and the chances of getting charged the correct price increase dramatically if they find the Brit driver, I also think there would be licensing issues if anyone openly advertised we only have British drivers driving for us, which in itself is stupid and like enforcing a man to wear a skirt even though he always likes trouser's.

You don't employ anybody in the strict sense of the word and it is entirely up to you, as a company, to set your own standards for drivers. If drivers pass your standards then they can join the firm. Simples really, says she sat on a business plan

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Note to self: Just because it pops into my head does NOT mean it should come out of my mouth!!