Agenda item

The Principal Officer (Licensing), Worcestershire Regulatory Services (WRS)

presented the report and in doing so stated, that as detailed in the report, 

Section 65 (1) of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976

stated that a district council may fix the rates or fares within the district as well

for time as distance, and all other charges in connection with the hire of a

vehicle or with the arrangements for the hire of a vehicle, to be paid in respect

of the hire of hackney carriages by means of a table (hereafter in this section

referred to as a “table of fares”) made or varied in accordance with the

provisions of this section.

Members were reminded that having approval the revised table of fares at the

Licensing Committee meeting on 14^th March 2022, Members had expressed

the view that the table of fares should be regularly reviewed in order to avoid a

situation whereby a large increase was requested following several years

without a review having taken place.

The table of fares applied to hackney carriage vehicles only, private hire

operators were free to agree their hiring charges in advance with their

customers, normally at the time of booking the journey.

The current table of fares was included at Appendix 1 to the report. This table

of fares was approved by Licensing Committee Members during the meeting

held on 29^th September 2022 and had taken from 7^th November 2022.

It was now around a year since the current table of fares had taken effect

and officers had prepared a report in order for Members to have an opportunity

to review the table of fares, as requested by Licensing Committee Members.

The Chairman of Bromsgrove’s Taxi Association was approached by officers to

see if the members of that Association would like to request any amendments

to the current table of fares; and they had confirmed that members of the

Taxi Association do not wish to request any further increase in the table of fares

at the present time. They were concerned that a further increase would price

them out to customers and that they would then be more expensive then

private hire vehicles. Officers did reiterate that the table of fares was the

maximum charge and that hackney carriage drivers could charge less.

According to data from the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero, the

average price per litre of ultra-low sulphur petrol and ultra-low sulphur diesel in

the week when the existing table of fares took effect was: -

According to the same data, the average price per litre of ultra-low sulphur

petrol and ultra-low sulphur diesel at the time this report was prepared was: -

The Principal Officer (Licensing), WRS, responded to questions from Members

on the comparison / competitive fares charged by Uber drivers.

The Principal Officer (Licensing), WRS stated that Members were being asked

to note the report and that no further action was required at the present time.

A further review would be held in around twelve months’ time or earlier if there

was a pressing need to do so.

RESOLVEDthat the review of Hackney Carriage Table of Fares be noted and

that no further action be taken.