Taxi Driver Online

Do any Councils mandate that drivers must conduct a daily walk around inspection similar to bus and hgv drivewrs have to do and do they have to record the walkaround and keep a copy of this in the vehicle for inspection for a full 12 months?
This is one proposal for our new policy.

Glasgow - no.

There is a licence condition:

The driver of a taxi shall ensure that the taxi in his charge, including all body work, upholstery and fittings, is in a safe and serviceable condition and that it is kept in a clean condition both internally and, subject to prevailing road conditions, externally.

Think that's one of the idiotic suggestions from either the LGA or the DfT, maybe both.

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IDFIMH

I reponded by saying that I doubt any driver would object to checking their vehicle daily and that most if not all already do this.
But I question the requirement to document this everyday and keep the paperwork in the car for 12 months asking who will look at it? When will they look at it and what action they will take? I asked what is the point in recording that on January 6th the washer fluid was found to be low and was topped up if this is not going to be seen until December 8th? Or that a bulb had blown and was replaced.

24x7 ltd require this via the App but....

no check on oil or water ........lol

i used to do it whilst having brekky

well the car was 2 months old

But interestingly, we were told that the vehicle checks, if asked by county compliance, could be viewed on our phone, i replied that due to data protection meant i would not allow access to my phone by anyone as it held pupils details on it

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

This seems to be a bit of a thing now, and is maybe due to the DfT's best practice guidance. And I think Wolves does it, and basically for them it's some sort of substitute for actually testing the vehicles

And I think the rationale is to demonstrate that vehicles have been inspected and maintained on a regular basis if required. Or that someone has just ticked the necessary boxes anyway

But it's all a bit OTT, and while it may be more relevant to drivers of multi-driver vehicles, say, for the likes of me it all seems a tad ridiculous.

I mean, I park my car up at night, and next day I'd have to inspect and tick a box for the likes of this:


Aye, like something like that would suddenly appear overnight when the car's parked up at my front door

https://taxiwalkaround.wolverhampton.gov.uk/

I'm used to doing a walk-round check every day as I have to when I drive buses. I see so many ph and hc driving around with minor defects, mostly minor, that could lead to problems later on. My walk-round check book is a small duplicate book with the basic things to check. How would you know if you had a puncture? They can happen overnight. the big bus companies use an app for their walk-round checks. in my view anything that improves road safety is a good thing. How many of you use the annual MoT for a safety check? How any are surprised how many things are found wrong?

A walk around check is obviously good practice but most modern vehicles will tell you if you have a problem ( bulb not working or under inflated tyres ) on start up mine does an automatic check and gives three ‘bongs’ if all is okay. It gives an extra’bong’ if there’s a problem.

Maybe, but it won't tell you if the cords are showing through the tyre tread or there's a huge dent in the back wing.

I check my tyres regularly and always know how worn they are, as for a dent in the back wing, I’d be more worried about who’s been on my drive!

So what do you think of the Wolverhampton checklist I linked to above, Roy?

Surely you'd need a ramp do do some of that stuff, and would take at least half an hour?

...and another council's walkround check list I was looking at the other night required checking the brake lights. How do I do that on my own, precisely?

I have a house brick that I place on the brake pedal for that one.

Good idea, Grandad!

(And, funnily enough, I just happen to have a brick close to the car at the moment (that some builders left behind, although the brick itself is the least of the mess they left behind ))

I occasionally check mine if I'm sitting conveniently close to a big window, or similar, and can check rear lights etc in the reflection. But it's all ad hoc, rather than a routine thing.

Anyway, I think most cars that will be used as taxis now in terms of age will have a dashboard warning if any bulbs (or LEDs) are not showing. (Or certainty the VAG cars that I've had do...).

On the other hand, if it's not just a fused bulb (and it's maybe due to some sort of other electrical issue) then it might not show on the dashboard

Don't you ever go out on the road then? Things can happen while you're away from the car on the road that you may not notice. I've had a look at the Wolves list most of it common sense stuff, but how many drivers ignore it? I recently saw a local HC with a black bin liner over a window presumably the glass was broken, it was being used on a school run!!

I had cause to use my partner's car last week, she'd had a couple of new tyres fitted recently. I felt the steering pulling left. When I got back i told her, she said she didn't notice anything. when i insisted on checking the tyre pressures the nearside front had 5 psi. It was one of the new tyres.