Private hire (minicabs)

 

Private hire (minicabs)

In London the term minicab is used in reference to a private rental car and in the rest of the United Kingdom it is used “privately rented”; This is a driverless car that is only available for rent on a pre-booking basis. After finding loopholes in the law (it was possible to get a dual hockey / private hire license in the 1960s), they still competed with hacking carriages in the 1960s. The minicab must be booked, for example, by telephone, internet or fax or in person at a registered minicab office. The minicab can be booked when needed, but only at the office of the registered company to accept the booking instead of going to the driver.

Minicabs have been subject to certain regulations in London and other local authorities since 2001. London’s minicab is now known as TFL (London Taxi and Private Rental), or LTPH, formerly known as Public Carriage Office. It is now the body that regulates licensed taxicabs in London, but minicab drivers will not have to complete the knowledge and will have to undergo a small "topographic test" to obtain a private hired driver's license, although they usually rely on satnavs or local knowledge to pick them up. London minicab drivers must have a pH license for all vehicles available for pre-booking. It is updated twice a year with MOT testing after the licensed garage inspection. New applicants in London should send their topographical test certificate along with their application to LTPH’s PH Driver License Department.