Cab fares with wheelchair and estate car

Florine
Florine Online Community Member Posts: 67 Contributor
in Transport and travel

My caree needs to use a folding wheelchair to go any distance - nothing fancy, just the sort of bog-standard folding thing you'd get on the NHS, if you still do. I recently had to take her to the doctor's, a journey of probably 1-1.5 miles, and we were shocked when the cab company tried to charge us £11.50 for the trip, given that the minimum fare is around £6.50. They claimed it was because we'd had an "estate car", but all we'd had was a fairly standard cab with a large boot, and we pointed out that we'd merely said that we had a folding wheelchair to go, and hadn't asked for an estate car. The cab company backed down and charged us the minimum fare, but it got me thinking: a) is it really appropriate to charge that much more, getting on for double the price, just for a larger car as opposed to a people carrier (just imagine how much more costly a trip to e.g. the airport would be), and b) is there a potential disability discrimination issue here? After all, someone without complex equipment needs should surely be able to travel for the same price as an able-bodied person, shouldn't they?

Comments

  • MW123
    MW123 Scope Member Posts: 1,679 Championing
    edited November 15

    @Florine

    You were right to challenge that fare. A folding wheelchair that fits in a standard boot should never attract an inflated charge. The company’s decision to withdraw the fee shows they had no legitimate basis for it.

    Under the Equality Act 2010 and the Taxi and Private Hire Vehicles (Disabled Persons) Act 2022, it is unlawful to impose higher fares on disabled passengers simply because they use a wheelchair or need assistance. A higher fare is only permissible where a larger vehicle is genuinely required for a powered wheelchair or equipment. In such cases, the fare must be charged at the same rate as it is for able bodied passengers booking that size of vehicle.

    The cost is determined by the size of the vehicle booked, not by disability and not by whether the boot is used.

    To prevent this happening to other passengers, you can make a retrospective complaint to your local council’s taxi licensing authority. If the company or driver is not fully aware of the rules, the authority can take action to ensure they comply and stop such practices being repeated.

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