What I am sure most of you within the Private Hire industry are aware of, but many of you residing outside of it aren’t, TFL’s recent decision to alter its current licensing fees is something which will affect every PH owner in the city. Possible outcome No 2: Uber Returns, while new licencing fee’s lay waste to smaller Private Hire companies further reducing its competition and increasing its influence. However, I have a strong suspicion that outcome no.1 is not that realistic, and due to another decision made by TFL in recent months, leads me to believe outcome no.2 is far more likely. Not only this, but surely it would lead to an increase in prosperity for small Private Hire owners, who have found themselves increasing marginalised in the last few years due to the financial clout that Uber has, namely, being able to run a huge deficit to undercut the competition and increase its stronghold on any given area. A reduction in traffic on London streets would also serve as a welcome benefit to pretty much everyone from pedestrians to cyclists I think we can all agree that London could do with better congestion control. Now, while fare prices may average an increase (which is why Uber became so popular), people would benefit from the safety and security that has always be paramount to the black cab industry. Addison Lee is the most obvious competition to Uber, but other apps such as GET (the taxi based Uber equivalent) could take rise and swing the shift of power back towards the historic Hackney Cab. Possible outcome No 1: The Shift in Power Now, while Uber maybe the first name on the list when people think of ordering a cab, they certainly aren’t the only operator out there.
But what are the results of the actions taken by Sadiq Khan and TFL going to be, and could the latest Uber fiasco be simply diverting attention away from something else that could potentially change the London Private Hire industry as we know it?
According to recent YouGov polls, 43% of Londoners agree with the ban, which could affect 40,000 drivers, and a user base of around 3.5 million people. The ban comes after a number of ‘mistakes’ the monolithic taxi company has admitted to, predominantly, its failure to report criminal activity, and provide adequate background checks on drivers. The biggest news to come out of TFL this year was the announcement that Uber, that’s right Uber, would be having their licence revoked on the 30th of September, although they are still permitted to operate during the appeal process that is currently underway.
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