Upfront fares for taxi and private hire drivers

Taxi drivers to trial taking payment upfront on ‘riskier’ journeys

Following an increase in the amount of people dodging taxi fares a new trial will allow taxi and private hire drivers to ask for fares upfront where the journey is likely to cost over £10.

The initiative dubbed; ‘Over 10 Pay There and Then’ is being rolled out across County Durham by the Durham Constabulary and aims to prevent taxi drivers unlawfully losing out on payment from their passengers.

Taxi and private hire drivers have already begun signing up to the scheme and passengers in Durham can expect to see ‘Over 10 Pay There and Then’ badges inside participating vehicles in the coming weeks and months.

Drivers will be allowed to demand payment for journeys up front and will be encouraged to do so where the risks associated with fare-dodging are higher than usual.

These risk factors include; the passenger(s) are under the influence of alcohol, the passengers are a larger group, journeys undertaken at night time.

Fares expected to be more than £10 can be requested up front however, the driver will still be required to display a meter and any difference between the upfront price paid and the meter price must be made up by the appropriate party at the end of the journey.

The initiative is already in practice and taxi drivers hope that it will deter passengers from attempting to avoid paying their fare.

If ‘Over 10 Pay There and Then’ is successful we could see widespread use of upfront payment in taxis across the UK.