With the school holidays coming to an end most of us are returning to work if not in mind then in body. This is not something that we are looking forward to but it has to be done. This is also the time that we all go back and review the services that we currently purchase and try to decide if the decision to use them in the first place was the correct one. Our expertise lies in Chauffeur Hire in London and this week I will try to out line what you should be looking for in the Private Hire Vehicles (London) Act 1998. Over the next few weeks I will explain to you why the Act came into being and all the benefits it gives you as a user of chauffeur driven cars. The Act provides the legal power for the licensing and regulation of private hire operators, drivers and vehicles. Private hire vehicles include a range of vehicles including minicabs, executive cars, limousines and chauffeur services.
This week we will concentrate on the Private Hire Operators who supply Chauffeur Hire.
The Private Hire vehicles operator is the ONLY person with whom the passenger books the journey and it is the operator's responsibility to see that it is carried out safely and efficiently. A responsible operator will know its drivers and its cars. The operator has the legal responsibility to keep records of the driver's licences, insurance, car details and will know when it is due for its mot tests. The operator must also keep proper records of journey bookings, who undertook them and all quoted fare.
Only a licenced operator can accept a booking and dispatch a private hire vehicle to a customer. An operator can only accept bookings and dispatch private hire vehicles from the premises mentioned in his PHV operators licence.
London Chauffeur Hire drivers can only carry out private hire bookings through a licenced operator. London Chauffeur Hire drivers who undertake work that has not been booked through a PHV operator are committing the offence of touting for which they may be prosecuted and fined up to £2,500.00 and also have their drivers licence suspended or revoked.
That about tells you what we as operators are expected to abide to, the rest is down to you. All we can say is that Browns Chauffeur Hire follow the rules to the T. Please note that you as a customer should be giving the bookings to the office as well as the driver if you feel it necessary.
Next week week I will go through the requirements of a PHV driver.
Over the last few days we have seen the revelations that Cricket is rife with alleged corruption. Something that we as a society should not allow because today it may be cricket tomorrow football and then Government. WE must insist that the culprits are punished most severely and where necessary jailed for their part. We cannot afford for this type of thing to creep into the British way of life. We must stop it at its infancy as soon as possible. Having said that we still spanked them good and proper now bring on the Aussies.
The teams have been announced for the Ryder Cup and the event is almost upon us. Are you ready for it. Are you going to attend Celtic Manor if so how are you getting there? Call us and we will make your travel plans for you.
Have a good week and be careful out there.
Tuesday 31 August 2010
Monday 23 August 2010
Can we absorb all the tax increases?
The London chauffeur Hire industry is about to be hit with a couple of tax increases that will effect our price structure. The increases are so high that it will be impossible for us to absorb.
New government, new budget, cut backs, credit restrictions; you have heard and absorbed all of the points raised by George Osbourne during his budget speech. His plan is a five year one to re build the economy via a "tough but fair" approach. Whether you believe it to be tough or fair or both, it does not matter. The only certainty is we will all feel a little poorer either individually or as companies or both.
I thought I would concentrate on a few items that have direct impact on our business with clients. The Chancellor has prepared us all to face a significant VAT increase to 20% from 17.5% that to my reckoning is almost a 15% increase. Then he has increased the Insurance Premium tax to 6% from 5% which is an increase of 20%, finally the duty on fuel will increase which will put prices at the pump up by the minimum of 3p and that will bring the price of unleaded to approx £1.20 per litre and diesel to approx £1.23 per litre. That's gone over a £fiver per gallon in old money people.
How much of these increases the chauffeur hire industry can withstand remains to be seen but I would venture to say that we will be forced to pass on the increases. However from what I understand you will be able to put a lot more money into your pension whilst paying no tax on it. I think that's where the fair bit comes in. It's only fair that the higher earners put away more of their money in a pension fund and out of the economy without being taxed on it.
It is now coming up to the silly season where we all nominate our favorite Chauffeur and Chauffeur Hire London company to the various Associations that we are all members of. I am wondering what prizes we will win this time round.
Now to more important matters, we have lost the third test to the Pakistanis making the score 2-1 from a four test series. All we need now is a draw for us to be overall winners and go into the Ashes games with a lot of confidence. Chelsea have won the first two games of the new season 6 nil and are top of the league again. (that's why we are champions). Finally we are only 5 weeks away from the Ryder Cup when we will triumph once again. This years challenge at the Celtic Manor will be a hard one but we will prevail. The news coming out is that it is already a sell out and parking will be limited. Don't forget we can get you there and bring you back at a very reasonable cost. Browns are prepared to discount every journey that is booked mentioning this weeks blog. Just tell them on the controls Peter said so.
With the weather being what it is it feels that winter has come early. Start thinking about getting the car ready for the frosty days ahead. I will tell you how to do it next week.
Have a good one people, till next time.
New government, new budget, cut backs, credit restrictions; you have heard and absorbed all of the points raised by George Osbourne during his budget speech. His plan is a five year one to re build the economy via a "tough but fair" approach. Whether you believe it to be tough or fair or both, it does not matter. The only certainty is we will all feel a little poorer either individually or as companies or both.
I thought I would concentrate on a few items that have direct impact on our business with clients. The Chancellor has prepared us all to face a significant VAT increase to 20% from 17.5% that to my reckoning is almost a 15% increase. Then he has increased the Insurance Premium tax to 6% from 5% which is an increase of 20%, finally the duty on fuel will increase which will put prices at the pump up by the minimum of 3p and that will bring the price of unleaded to approx £1.20 per litre and diesel to approx £1.23 per litre. That's gone over a £fiver per gallon in old money people.
How much of these increases the chauffeur hire industry can withstand remains to be seen but I would venture to say that we will be forced to pass on the increases. However from what I understand you will be able to put a lot more money into your pension whilst paying no tax on it. I think that's where the fair bit comes in. It's only fair that the higher earners put away more of their money in a pension fund and out of the economy without being taxed on it.
It is now coming up to the silly season where we all nominate our favorite Chauffeur and Chauffeur Hire London company to the various Associations that we are all members of. I am wondering what prizes we will win this time round.
Now to more important matters, we have lost the third test to the Pakistanis making the score 2-1 from a four test series. All we need now is a draw for us to be overall winners and go into the Ashes games with a lot of confidence. Chelsea have won the first two games of the new season 6 nil and are top of the league again. (that's why we are champions). Finally we are only 5 weeks away from the Ryder Cup when we will triumph once again. This years challenge at the Celtic Manor will be a hard one but we will prevail. The news coming out is that it is already a sell out and parking will be limited. Don't forget we can get you there and bring you back at a very reasonable cost. Browns are prepared to discount every journey that is booked mentioning this weeks blog. Just tell them on the controls Peter said so.
With the weather being what it is it feels that winter has come early. Start thinking about getting the car ready for the frosty days ahead. I will tell you how to do it next week.
Have a good one people, till next time.
Friday 13 August 2010
It is transport Jim, but not as you know it
Another week in the life of London Chauffeur Hire goes by and we still have not traced our missing visitors. Mind you with the pound strengthening against the dollar and the euro it is not supprising.
This week we have seen the start to Ramadan. This Muslim religious festival forbids its followers from eating during the day time hence the shortage of Middle Eastern clients. Usually this brings the Europeans out en force because they all seem to take their summer holidays during the month of August. Unfortunately they are not great users of chauffeur hire. London is awash with school trippers so I suppose that's good for the economy.
The only good thing about the month of August is the start to the British football season. We have all been looking forward to this day for weeks. International football is just not the same as watching your local team. We watched England this week triumph over Hungary but how many of us really care? Once upon a time people made a day of it. All the Chauffeur Hire London companies looked forward to these fixtures because they were social occasions but not any more. I would like to remind you all that we have some special deals right now, with prices being discounted by up to 30%.
News has just reached us that BAA staff are likely to strike within the next month. Before making your travel arrangements please give us the opportunity to give you a quote. Usually if there are 2 or 3 of you travelling say to Paris on the Eurostar we would probably be very competetive. Chauffeur Hire is not as expensive as people think and usually just as fast. It is also being suggested that London's tube system will come to a stop through strike action, in any event dont forget that Browns is here for you.
On that note I think we will leave it today, however we will return to the the transport tips next week.
As the saying goes "live long and prosper".
This week we have seen the start to Ramadan. This Muslim religious festival forbids its followers from eating during the day time hence the shortage of Middle Eastern clients. Usually this brings the Europeans out en force because they all seem to take their summer holidays during the month of August. Unfortunately they are not great users of chauffeur hire. London is awash with school trippers so I suppose that's good for the economy.
The only good thing about the month of August is the start to the British football season. We have all been looking forward to this day for weeks. International football is just not the same as watching your local team. We watched England this week triumph over Hungary but how many of us really care? Once upon a time people made a day of it. All the Chauffeur Hire London companies looked forward to these fixtures because they were social occasions but not any more. I would like to remind you all that we have some special deals right now, with prices being discounted by up to 30%.
News has just reached us that BAA staff are likely to strike within the next month. Before making your travel arrangements please give us the opportunity to give you a quote. Usually if there are 2 or 3 of you travelling say to Paris on the Eurostar we would probably be very competetive. Chauffeur Hire is not as expensive as people think and usually just as fast. It is also being suggested that London's tube system will come to a stop through strike action, in any event dont forget that Browns is here for you.
On that note I think we will leave it today, however we will return to the the transport tips next week.
As the saying goes "live long and prosper".
Friday 6 August 2010
Chauffeur Hire London, is it worth it?
It's been an odd sort of week in the Chauffeur Hire industry, we seem to have misplaced all the foreign visitors to our shores. All the top hotels are only 35% full and most of those people are corporate guests who do not as a rule use our services. With most of our clients away on holiday it's been a little quiet in our offices. Still this has given us the opportunity to have all of our fleet valeted and brought back to showroom standard. I did a little comparison on prices against a black taxi and guess what, for a journey that is longer that 14 miles we are cheaper. As hard as it is to believe Browns is cheaper than a black cab for journeys to the airport.
With competition in the London Chauffeur Hire industry so strong we have decided to update our core standards and re-trained our chauffeurs in the art of etiquette. So, as from today when you get into one of our cars you should be asked if the temperature and the radio station are to your liking, you should be informed of how long to your destination and what the traffic is like. Sometimes it helps if you inform your chauffeur of your preferred route. We will be providing a morning newspaper, bottled water and magazines for you at no extra cost. I would appreciate it if you could let me know if your chauffeur and car is not up to standard because I value your feed back, after all unless you tell me I cannot mend it and please be assured that whatever you tell me will be strictly confidential between you and me.
On the sporting front our cricketers have done us proud and like I said last week we gave the Pakistanies a real good spanking. I noticed that all the press are now demanding that KP be dropped from the first eleven. Do they not understand that Cricket is a team game and does not depend on a single person. Browns Chauffeur Hire London supports KP and will continue to do so. I took a ride to Celtic Manor where the next Ryder Cup will be held. It took me just over an hour and a half so during the championship with the extra traffic on the road it should take a couple of hours. Unfortunately for people who live in or around London the only way to get there is via the M4. Celtic Manor is a beautiful venue, but murder to get out of at the end of play if you are visiting for the day. I am contemplating starting a share scheme to get people there and back for day trips during the four days of the Ryder Cup. If this is of interest to you or if you prefer to travel alone then please contact me for prices. Time is approaching fast for this event, time is right for you to make your travel arrangements.
This weeks motoring advice has to do with speed. Most of the cars being sold these days are fast and those that are not can be adjusted to go faster than they are designed for. Most of us drive too fast without considering our stopping distances. Most of the accidents occur not when you are doing 90 miles per hour on the motorway but when you are doing 40 miles an hour in the back streets of your town. You must remember that most of our roads were designed and built in the days that cars could only do 30 mph at top speed. The moral of this advice is for you to keep your distance, drive at a speed that would allow you to stop before you smash into whatever is in front of you. Always remember that life is precious. London Chauffeur Hire companies are in full support of local authorities that enforce speed restriction around schools and shopping centres.
From me and all at BCH have a safe week and look after the ones who look after you.
With competition in the London Chauffeur Hire industry so strong we have decided to update our core standards and re-trained our chauffeurs in the art of etiquette. So, as from today when you get into one of our cars you should be asked if the temperature and the radio station are to your liking, you should be informed of how long to your destination and what the traffic is like. Sometimes it helps if you inform your chauffeur of your preferred route. We will be providing a morning newspaper, bottled water and magazines for you at no extra cost. I would appreciate it if you could let me know if your chauffeur and car is not up to standard because I value your feed back, after all unless you tell me I cannot mend it and please be assured that whatever you tell me will be strictly confidential between you and me.
On the sporting front our cricketers have done us proud and like I said last week we gave the Pakistanies a real good spanking. I noticed that all the press are now demanding that KP be dropped from the first eleven. Do they not understand that Cricket is a team game and does not depend on a single person. Browns Chauffeur Hire London supports KP and will continue to do so. I took a ride to Celtic Manor where the next Ryder Cup will be held. It took me just over an hour and a half so during the championship with the extra traffic on the road it should take a couple of hours. Unfortunately for people who live in or around London the only way to get there is via the M4. Celtic Manor is a beautiful venue, but murder to get out of at the end of play if you are visiting for the day. I am contemplating starting a share scheme to get people there and back for day trips during the four days of the Ryder Cup. If this is of interest to you or if you prefer to travel alone then please contact me for prices. Time is approaching fast for this event, time is right for you to make your travel arrangements.
This weeks motoring advice has to do with speed. Most of the cars being sold these days are fast and those that are not can be adjusted to go faster than they are designed for. Most of us drive too fast without considering our stopping distances. Most of the accidents occur not when you are doing 90 miles per hour on the motorway but when you are doing 40 miles an hour in the back streets of your town. You must remember that most of our roads were designed and built in the days that cars could only do 30 mph at top speed. The moral of this advice is for you to keep your distance, drive at a speed that would allow you to stop before you smash into whatever is in front of you. Always remember that life is precious. London Chauffeur Hire companies are in full support of local authorities that enforce speed restriction around schools and shopping centres.
From me and all at BCH have a safe week and look after the ones who look after you.
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