As the House of Commons Transport Committee reviews current taxi and PHV licensing regulations to make standards more consistent across the country, industry expert David Lawrie gives his views on the way forward.
As director of the National Private Hire and Taxi Association, David’s role is to help drive up standards among taxi and PHV drivers and improve public perception of the trade.
He believes changes to the current system could improve standards without imposing national regulation – and the unintended consequences that go with it.
Enforcement
David said: “Current enforcement is down to council officers and many of them believe they cannot do anything relating to a vehicle registered with another authority. Of course they can. In fact, licensing legislation breaches such as unlawful plying for hire, failing to wear a driver’s badge, etc, can be prosecuted, not just reported, so it’s their duty to do so.
“Breaches of licensing conditions that are local can only be reported to the issuing authority. This includes things like fire extinguishers, first-aid kits, CCTV and livery.”
“They have the power to stop any driver who is in breach of taxi and PHV regulations and they need to use it.”
If the Transport Committee recommends implementing national standards, David is concerned that the differences between our towns, cities and regions is such that a one-size-fits-all solution will work in some areas, while causing damage in others.
He said: “National standards are okay to a certain degree, but you have to be mindful that the realities in Wythenshawe, for example, are dramatically different to those in central London, and they have different requirements and regulations.
“If you are going to have national standards, you need a certain degree of localism. There are the non-negotiables, such as medical records, vehicle maintenance and DBS checks for drivers, but you don’t need national legislation to decide whether PHVs can have company names and logos down the side, or what drivers wear.”
Unintended consequences
He said that with devolution creating such large areas, this would mean that “even within the same region, national standards will have downsides. If you allow Hackney Carriages to pick up passengers anywhere they like, they aren’t going to be waiting in rural villages for the occasional fare – they’ll head for the busy city centres and airports which are full of passengers. Meanwhile, people out in the villages can’t get a taxi due to lack of availability.
“Using Manchester as another example, the decision needs to be made whether Greater Manchester is a 532-square-mile zone where the same rules apply throughout, or we accept that different areas have different needs which may mean that existing zones may be better to be kept.
“While a taxi driver in the city centre is required to have a wheelchair-accessible vehicle, at a huge expense, it is impossible to justify it for drivers in Wigan who have little call for it.”
David believes that if councils standardise the services they provide, it will help end issues caused by out-of-area working.
He said: “If Manchester is charging £650 for a driver’s badge, and another authority is charging £70 and can do it quicker and easier, of course drivers are going to for the cheaper one.
“If you’re charging such a high fee, the service needs to be first class, but from the complaints we receive from members, it isn’t, with delays and difficulties with applications. The ideal would be everyone delivering the same service and charging the same.”
As the Transport Committee’s consultation goes ahead, the main goals are safety and quality of service, addressing cross-border working and license shopping, while at the same time trying to introduce a level playing field for drivers and vehicles.
Current regulations are clear about medical and criminal records checks for drivers, having the correct taxi insurance, as well as the age and suitability of vehicles to do the job. Tough action is already taken against drivers who ignore vehicle maintenance and safety, or are guilty of discrimination by refusing to take passengers with assistance dogs.
While there is clearly no need to legislate for drivers’ dress codes or whether vehicles can have a company livery on the door, issues such as CCTV and dash-cams – which are not UK GDPR compliant for internal recordings and therefore not legal – will need to be addressed by the committee.
