EXPRESS YOUR VIEWS..
The government’s commitment to introduce legislation, when parliamentary time allows, to enable the setting of national minimum licensing standards remains.
The measures in the final version of the best practice guid- ance, and the Statutory Taxi And Private Hire Vehicle Standards issued in 2020, are likely to be the starting point when setting any such future legislation.
The importance of licensing authorities to the safety of the public and the effective functioning of the sector cannot be downplayed, and the intention of the guidance is to help licensing authorities in conducting this important job.
This is a crucial consultation on a range of significant issues, and I urge you to share your views to help shape the final version of the best practice guidance, we are keen to hear what you have to say.
We have a shared vision for a safe and thriving sector and it is key that this is at the heart of the policies of licensing authorities that regulate the sector.”
Thank you, Baroness Vere, of Norbiton. TAXI OR PRIVATE HIRE? - TERMINOLOGY
Taxis are referred to in legislation, regulation, and common language as ‘hackney carriages,’ ‘black cabs’ and ‘cabs.
The term ‘taxi’ is used throughout the consultation version of the best practice guidance and consultation document and refers to all such vehicles. Taxis are able to be hired by hailing on the street or at a rank.
Private hire vehicles (PHV) include minicabs, executive cars, chauffeur services, limousines and some school and day centre transport services.
All private hire vehicle journeys must be prebooked via a licensed private hire vehicle operator.
There you go, could not be any clearer than that.
SECTION 6: DRIVER LICENSING – VOCATIONAL TRAINING & ASSESSMENT
Some licensing authorities require drivers to obtain formal vocational qualifications, such as a BTEC in Introduction to the Role of the Taxi and Private Hire Driver. Although a voca- tional qualification may provide a degree of transferability among licensing authorities, it is a snapshot of training and assessment undertaken. The curriculum of the qualification at that time may not include elements that most licensing authorities are expected to require of drivers.
The need for training to evolve to meet new challenges is best illustrated by the issues of safeguarding training, which has evolved in recent years in recognition that this is a
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broader issue than the original focus on sexual exploitation and should now include awareness of county lines.
This snapshot issue may deter licensing authorities from exempting holders of vocational qualifications from in- house training requirements as it could not be assured the same curriculum was covered and/or up-to-date content was included.
DfT acknowledges there may be additional customer service benefits to vocational qualifications, but these are a com- mercial decision for drivers and PHV operators to consider rather than a requirement that enhances safety or the provi- sion of an accessible service.
SECTION 8: VEHICLE LICENSING – TINTED WINDOWS
As of 31 March 2021, 87 of 281 licensing authorities had a minimum light transmission policy for rear windows in taxis and 86 for private hire vehicles.
Such restrictions are usually on the grounds that passengers should be able to see the vehicle is unoccupied before entering and that enforcement officers can see that vehicles are not carrying more passengers than for which the vehicle is licensed.
It is expected that the greatest concerns over visibility will be at night when ambient light levels are low.
Passengers are, however, able to request that the rear windows of a vehicle are opened before entering.
The need for compliance and enforcement officers to check whether a vehicle if overloaded is not disputed. Vehicles are licensed to carry a maximum number of pas- sengers to ensure their safety. The extent to which window tinting makes a significant difference in ascertaining at night whether a moving vehicle is overloaded is not known.
To confirm whether a vehicle was overloaded would require a check when the vehicle is stationary. If a vehicle is station- ary, the compliance and enforcement officer can ask that any windows are opened and so the benefit in prohibiting tinted rear windows is unclear.
Licensing authorities that require the removal of factory- fitted tinted windows sometimes allow exemptions from light-transmission requirements for executive hire services. Most commonly, these vehicles are defined by the list price of the vehicle used. These are, though, licensed as PHVs and it is difficult to prevent them from being used for normal services, nor is it possible to establish a sub-category of drivers that are extra fit and proper.
Given that all PHV drivers are vetted to the same level, regardless of the nature of their work, there seems no ratio- nale for one vehicle being permitted to have tinted windows and another not.
MAY 2022
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