CROSS-BORDER HIRING: Why would it be difficult for local licensing authorities to enforce out-of-town PHV’s?

Cross border hire rules remain a topic of discussion affecting the UK taxi and private hire vehicle (PHV) industry. Central to this debate is the issue of maintaining and enforcing safety standards across different jurisdictions, a challenge that poses both regulatory and practical dilemmas.

Cross-border hiring, where taxis and PHVs licensed in one area operate in another, has become increasingly controversial for some. One of the core controversies lies in the differing safety standards and enforcement regulations across various local authority areas. Licensing authorities currently have the mandate to check and enforce taxi and PHV licensing issues only for vehicles and drivers registered under their jurisdiction. This restriction often leads to challenges in monitoring and ensuring compliance with local safety standards for out-of-area working vehicles.

The question arises: Should local authorities be granted broader powers to inspect and regulate out-of-area drivers operating within their licensing zones?

Advocates argue this would enhance passenger safety by ensuring all operating taxis and PHVs are checked to the standards they are licensed at. However, this proposal introduces significant logistical and financial challenges. Local authorities, already enforcing their own drivers, would have to bear additional enforcement costs without corresponding licensing fee revenues from these out-of-area operators. This financial burden could strain local regulatory bodies, potentially impacting their ability to effectively oversee their primary jurisdiction and in turn push up licensing fees for drivers to cover the enforcement costs.

If licensing fees were to rise for local drivers to check out of area drivers, they in turn may find themselves at a competitive and financial disadvantage compared to out-of-area operators who don't bear these local costs and scrutiny.

Furthermore, the enforcement of safety standards for out-of-area vehicles would require a vast knowledge of standards set for those drivers. Enforcement officers would have to have knowledge on each licensing authorities taxi regulations, which differ from one region to the next.

The issue is complex in many ways and is the reason why licensing officers travel outside of their authority to conduct checks on their licensees working further afield. The cost is therefore met by the corresponding parties and fully knowledge of standards are met.

A national set of taxi and PHV licensing standards could open the door to helping enforcement, but councils will lose the autonomy to act on what local passengers want from their taxi and PHV services. As the debate continues, the primary focus remains on ensuring passenger safety in one way or another.