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Private Hire Vehicle Fares

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ryan125hst

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When you hail a Hackney Carriage, you will pay the fare shown on the taximeter, a device that takes into account the distance travelled and time taken and it needs to be regularly inspected and calibrated. Vehicles that are used for private hire e.g. minicabs don't require meters. These fares are commonly calcuated using GPS apps on the drivers phone, and Uber is also app based and can vary the price depending upon demand.

But mobile apps haven't always exisited, so how are fares calculated in these cases? It seems that meters can be used in some areas, but in London for example, private hire vehicles aren't permitted to have taximeters fitted.

How were fares calculated in the days before apps, or how are worked out now if the private hire company uses an older radio based dispatch system?
 
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Mcr Warrior

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Set fares have often been quoted in publicity flyers for private hire runs from various districts (in and around Greater Manchester) to/from Manchester Airport or Manchester City Centre/Manchester Piccadilly station.
 

Bald Rick

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How were fares calculated in the days before apps, or how are worked out now if the private hire company uses an older radio based dispatch system?

It was typically a look at the mileage on the dash, multiplied by a p/mile rate.

Sometimes it would be a as simple as ‘how much do you normally pay?’
 

miklcct

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When you hail a Hackney Carriage, you will pay the fare shown on the taximeter, a device that takes into account the distance travelled and time taken and it needs to be regularly inspected and calibrated. Vehicles that are used for private hire e.g. minicabs don't require meters. These fares are commonly calcuated using GPS apps on the drivers phone, and Uber is also app based and can vary the price depending upon demand.

But mobile apps haven't always exisited, so how are fares calculated in these cases? It seems that meters can be used in some areas, but in London for example, private hire vehicles aren't permitted to have taximeters fitted.

How were fares calculated in the days before apps, or how are worked out now if the private hire company uses an older radio based dispatch system?
Minicabs are not taxis that the operator can freely set the prices they want to charge when taking the booking. Therefore every operator is free to decide the fare.
 

py_megapixel

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On the few occasions I've booked a minicab, I tend to ask for the price over the phone. The local companies all seem to use GPS apps for pricing

Yes, some Councils do allow this (but some don't).
Do you mean councils sometimes prohibited minicabs from running on a meter, or just that they didn't require it?
 

Bletchleyite

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Do you mean councils sometimes prohibited minicabs from running on a meter, or just that they didn't require it?

Some Councils prohibited it, if I recall, on the basis that a taximeter was for Hackney carriages only. I'm fairly sure it's still prohibited in London, and there was indeed some sort of legal case about whether the Uber app constituted a taximeter or not (the conclusion if I recall was that it didn't because it wasn't connected to the vehicle's wheels).

I doubt any firms are still doing it whether allowed or not, as the apps are much easier, and there isn't complex, expensive equipment that the driver would have to pay to hire from the company, just their already-owned smartphone.

FWIW the MK firms had a bit of an interim stage of electronic dispatching but with dedicated devices with small LCD screens and an "accept" button rather than phones.
 

Swanny200

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Some companies in Scotland still run on set fares, with any out of area fares calculated in the office at pence per mile, the only exception with the set fare companies are that if one of their cars had a taxi sign and badge, that they must run the meter if they pick up off the street and that it is only a set fare if booked through the office.

Company I used to work for Locals in the same town would be £3 set fare, new drivers would complain, until they realized that nearly everyone used us.
 

Aictos

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The company I used to use in Peterborough had set fares to different parts of the City so one part would cost £5 while other areas would be £7 etc....
 

route101

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One private hire company in Glasgow used a fare sheet. Not heard of them being called minicabs up here.
 

ryan125hst

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Sometimes it would be a as simple as ‘how much do you normally pay?’
Only a question you would ask trusted frequent customers though I'd imagine.
The company I used to use in Peterborough had set fares to different parts of the City so one part would cost £5 while other areas would be £7 etc....
That makes a lot of sense if journeys between different areas are common.
Not heard of them being called minicabs up here.
I've changed minicab to private hire as it seems to be more widely used.
 

Bald Rick

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Only a question you would ask trusted frequent customers though I'd imagine.

Not in Birmingham 20 years ago! And in any event, if they were a frequent trusted customer, they’d know how much the regular trip was!
 

Glasgowbusguy

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In Glasgow all private hires had fare charts that drivers used and now it's all either paid in app at time of booking or paid in cab based on the meter which is on a mobile device
 
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