In message
,
Mizter T writes

In message , at 14:52:11 on Sat,
20 Feb 2010, Paul Terry remarked:

Yes - London has its own act for private hire vehicles ("The Private
Hire Vehicles (London) Act 1998"). To quote TfL's guidance for drivers
and operators:

"PHV drivers who pick up passengers that have not been booked
through their PHV operators are plying for hire and are therefore
committing the offence of touting for which they may be prosecuted and
their PHV driver’s licence suspended or revoked."

Sorry Paul but I have never come across a minicab firm in London that
demands to know how exactly many passengers are being picked up for a
normal booking

They always ask me how many passengers, if only in order to send the
appropriate size of vehicle. They also usually ask if there's a lot of
luggage (in which case they send an estate or MPV), if any child seats
are needed, and so on.

Almost all WWW booking forms for private hire similarly ask for these
details.

However, I'm merely quoting above what TfL say about unbooked
passengers, and commenting that the driver probably used this as an
excuse for bumping up the fare. It certainly wouldn't have been because
of an insurance issue, as he claimed.

Minicab firms book "cars" (i.e. carloads) , not individual passengers.

They need to know more detail than you imply, especially on airport runs
- it's not just the number of passengers, but also whether there are
particular needs (such as child seats, disabled access, or a guide dog),
large amounts of luggage, difficult items to transport (e.g. skis) and
so on. Most web booking forms ask for these details, but what an
operator asks for on the phone is up to him or her.

I really don't think it could possibly count as "plying for trade"
when a minicab picks up three passengers instead of two.

I agree. As I said earlier I think the driver was simply using the
licence regulations (described as "insurance") as an excuse for bumping
up the agreed fare. It would have been more honest to say something like
"We charge extra for each unbooked passenger" (or each extra drop-off
point, if that is what was actually involved).

--
Paul Terry