Taxi Driver Online

Glasgow City Council accused of 'profiteering ploy' amid price increase of annual taxi inspections

TAXI drivers have hit out at Glasgow City Council after the authority increased the price of annual cab safety inspections.

Drivers have accused the council of “profiteering” as charges for the mandatory vehicle reviews have risen from £51.50 to £61.50.

The twice-yearly inspections are put in place by the authority to ensure the health and safety of passengers who use the taxi services.

Inspections of the vehicles were suspended in March due to the coronavirus pandemic, however the inspection centre reopened last week.

The reopening included a £10 hike on the annual reviews – including a £10 increase on the charge for vehicle resits.

The increase has been put in place to cover the cost of thoroughly sanitising the taxis before the compulsory check-ups are conducted.

Glasgow Cab Section is now arguing alongside drivers that the price rise is unjustifiable as they claim they were not consulted before the move went ahead.

One city taxi driver told our sister paper, the Glasgow Times: “The council have sneakily put the prices of inspections of taxis up to roughly £61.

“Their excuse is that the vehicles have to be sanitised by the inspection centre staff before it can be inspected. The guys sanitise their cabs anyway so it is just a money-making ploy.

“I own six vehicles so that works out £20 extra per year on each vehicle. That is £125 extra a year I have to pay to the council just to sanitise my cabs when I already sanitise them thoroughly anyway.

“If you take it there is 6000 vehicles in Glasgow, and they are getting tested twice a year – that works out at 12,000 tests. From that, they’re generating £120,000 revenue. That is quite a lot. It is nothing but profiteering.”

Another taxi driver argued the price increase will deter others from entering the trade as he said bills are already hard to meet.

He said: “For the council to hike prices up on anything right now is a disgrace. We’re trying to get drivers to come into the trade and it is just going to completely deter them from coming in. There are already enough bills to pay.

“At the moment, we are having to work all hours to pay those bills and it is just grim.

“My meter from this week shows £394.10, off of that I need to pay £150 to give to the owner of my cab. That takes me down to £250. Then there is fuel on top of that.

“For Glasgow City Council to increase anything at this stage is bonkers.

“People are actually leaving the trade because of the bills they simply cannot meet. We’re not making any money right now.”

“I feel sorry for those who have just forked out on an electric cab to comply with the new low-emission standards as they are paying tens of thousands of pounds to pay them off. They’re struggling badly.”

The chairman of Glasgow Cab Section, Calum Anderson, has since wrote to the council’s director of Neighbourhoods and Sustainability urging an immediate review of the increase.

He said: “I have contacted Andy Waddell at Neighbourhoods & Sustainability to voice our dismay at this increase.

“At a time when members are waiting several hours between hires, a rise of 20% is both insensitive and
unjustifiable.”

A Glasgow City Council spokeswoman said: “We are living in unprecedented times and this small rise is due to enhanced measures to ensure the safety of our staff and customers and help suppress the spread of the virus.”

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IDFIMH

Can someone please explain why this rental driver is saying he's 'trying to get drivers to come into the trade' and is worried that this fee will deter new drivers?

somebodies maths is good or i it gutter press exaggeration

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lack of modern legislation is the iceberg sinking the titanic of the transport sector

because he's an idiot !

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lack of modern legislation is the iceberg sinking the titanic of the transport sector

If the examiners are wearing masks/gloves and wash and sanitise their hands afterwards why does the vehicle have to be sanitised ?

Anyway you can buy an aerosol of dettol for less than £2, empty can of that in car, close doors, wait 5 minutes - job done. Bottle of Dettol (diluted) and a rag even cheaper and do 100's of vehicles.

'Unfare' price hike for taxi cab inspections dropped by Glasgow council bosses

GLASGOW City Council has reversed its decision to increase the price of annual taxi cab inspections.

The local authority earlier came under fire and was accused of a “profiteering ploy” by drivers as charges for the mandatory vehicle reviews rose from £51.50 to £61.50.

The twice-yearly inspections are put in place by the authority to ensure the health and safety of passengers who use the taxi services.

The council earlier justified a £10 price increase to cover additional costs of extra sanitising procedures before the cabs went for inspection during the pandemic.

In a letter seen by the Glasgow Times, Glasgow City Council’s director of Neighbourhoods and Sustainability, Andy Waddell, said the move had been scrapped.

He wrote: “Our costs to enable this cleaning regime are calculated to be in excess of the proposed £10 charge, however, after careful consideration and also in appreciation of the difficulties faced by your members, we have decided not to introduce these charges at this time.”

Chairman of Glasgow Cab Section, Calum Anderson, described the increase as “unjustifiable”.

He said: “The coronavirus crisis has decimated the taxi trade and, as a result, a rise is as unjustifiable as it is unaffordable.

“We are grateful that the council took on board the concerns of Unite Cab Section.”

A Glasgow City Council spokesman said the views of drivers had been listened to.

He said: “It is well known there is a heightened risk of the coronavirus being spread from hard surfaces such as those found inside vehicles.

“Ensuring vehicles are thoroughly cleaned before and after inspections is therefore an appropriate measure to limit the spread of the virus as much as possible.

“This procedure keeps our staff and drivers safe and also allows inspections to go ahead, which ensures vehicles are safe for the public to use.

“We have accepted the representations from taxi and private hire trade that the £10 cleaning charge was an additional burden that licence holders would struggle with during the continuing covid-19 emergency.”

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IDFIMH

For once some bad publicity for the council got a result !

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lack of modern legislation is the iceberg sinking the titanic of the transport sector