Hotel transfers

A hotel stay often starts with a short ride from an airport or a station. Some people take a taxi from the rank. Others book a car before they travel, or the ride comes as part of a holiday. A few rules decide who may carry you, and who answers for the ride if it goes wrong.

Taxi or minicab

GOV.UK says a driver needs a licence to drive a taxi or a private hire vehicle in England and Wales. A private hire vehicle, often called a minicab, can only be pre-booked. A taxi can also be hired at a rank or hailed in the street.

Outside London, drivers apply to the local council for that licence. In London, they apply to Transport for London (TfL). Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own process.

Booking a minicab to meet you in London

TfL says a minicab in London must be booked in advance through a licensed private hire operator. The booking can be made by app, by phone or in person at the operator's office.

The passenger must receive a booking confirmation, TfL says. It must show at least the number plate, the driver's first name and the driver's private hire licence number. It must also include a photo of the driver where the passenger can receive one.

When the car arrives, TfL says: "If the driver or the car picking you up isn't the same as in your booking confirmation, don't get in the car."

TfL calls unbooked minicabs "illegal and uninsured for passengers". A car counts as unbooked when the passenger approaches the driver, or the driver approaches the passenger. It also counts as unbooked when a bouncer takes the passenger to the car. That holds even if a TfL licence sticker is in the window.

When the transfer is part of a package holiday

In the UK, the Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements Regulations 2018 cover package holidays. The Regulations call a package a combination of at least two different types of travel service for the same trip or holiday, put together in one of the ways they list. Carrying passengers is one type of travel service. Accommodation is another.

Where a transfer is part of the package, the organiser is liable to the traveller for it. That is so whether the organiser runs the transfer or another firm does.

A traveller who finds something wrong during the trip must tell the organiser without undue delay. The organiser must then put it right within a reasonable period that the traveller sets, unless that is impossible or the cost would be out of proportion.

Taxis and transfers abroad

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) publishes travel advice for each country. Each country's advice includes a section on safety and security. Some of those sections speak about taxis.

For Spain, the FCDO says, "Make sure you book your taxi or airport transfer through a licensed firm." It adds that licensing differs across Spain, and that some cities require pre-booking.

For Turkey, the FCDO says, "Accepting lifts from drivers of unofficial taxis is highly risky." Its advice there is to find a registered taxi, note the registration number before getting in, and make sure the fare is metered.

Travelling with an assistance dog or a wheelchair

The Equality Act 2010 sets duties for taxi and private hire drivers in England, Wales and Scotland.

A taxi driver hired by or for a disabled person with an assistance dog must carry the dog and let it stay with that person. The driver must not charge extra for it. A taxi driver can be exempt on medical grounds. The driver must hold an exemption certificate, and a notice of the exemption must be shown on the taxi.

A private hire operator commits an offence by refusing a booking because a disabled passenger will have an assistance dog. The operator or the driver also commits an offence by charging, or proposing to charge, extra for the dog.

Some taxis and private hire vehicles are designated as wheelchair accessible by the licensing authority. The driver of one of these must carry a passenger in a wheelchair, and must give the help the passenger reasonably needs to get in and out. That help includes loading the passenger's luggage. The driver must not charge extra for any of it.

Useful links