Boro Cars drivers must pay firm 10p for every job they complete after fares hike.Drivers say increase is unfair :: Boro Cars say card payments law changes were 'taken into account' with price rises, and drivers can now earn more
A rise in fares at Teesside’s biggest taxi firm will see drivers pay an extra 10p to the company for every customer they pick up.
Boro Cars said on Tuesday it was putting prices up as part of a planned review , later confirming it had “taken into account” a law change which banned charging for credit and debit card transactions.
But some of the firm’s 1,000 drivers have contacted The Gazette to say they feel they may be left out of pocket by the move.
However, the Middlesbrough-based firm said that drivers can in fact earn more since prices have increased.
Drivers have been told in text messages from bosses that they must pay the 10p surcharge, whether a customer pays with cash or on a card.
The majority of taxi drivers pay a weekly fee to have access to a mobile phone system which allocates the many thousands of bookings the firm receives every day by phone or through its customer app.
Those with their own cars are believed to already pay upwards of £70 a week for access to that system, while others who rent their cars directly from the company, pay at least £250 a week to do so, say drivers.
One of the several drivers who contacted The Gazette said: “With fuel and insurance, a lot of drivers will set themselves a target of £100 a day, and might have to do 25 to 30 small jobs to get there.
“That would be an extra £2.50 to £3 from that driver going to the company, which doesn’t sound much but it soon adds up. It feels unfair.”
A Boro Cars spokeswoman said on Tuesday that despite increases to some fares - typically 10p to 20p - the firm “still offer some of the cheapest fares in the country”.
Christine Bell, director of Boro Cars said: “As previously stated, the planned review, which took into account legislative changes, resulted in a small increase to some fares.
“There has been a minimal increase to driver charges, but also a small increase to drivers’ earnings.”
Charges for customers to pay shops, websites and other businesses by card were scrapped by the Government after the EU brought in a new law banning them.
They would typically cost customers around 50p.
Boro Cars brought in card payments in all of its 1,000-vehicle fleet last summer.
Signs have been put up in taxi offices seemingly confirming the changes, which read: “Banks continue to charge businesses for every credit card transaction carried out and up until 13 January most businesses recovered this bank charge from the customer who paid by card.
“However, new laws now introduced, state that businesses can no longer charge customers extra if they pay by card. The price must be the same whether they pay by cash or card.
“With immediate effect, most taxi fares have been increased and there will now be a 10p charge made by Boro Cars to the driver for each job he/she completes.”
http://www.gazettelive.co.uk/business/b ... y-14172808
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