If you plan to sit at the controls of a reasonably-sized fleet of cars, you will need to pay for operator, driver and vehicle licenses before you can take bookings.
Although it should be fairly uncomplicated to get a driver and operator license, great care should be taken over selecting the correct vehicle when applying for the vehicle license.
Customers will expect your vehicles to be clean, tidy and fairly spacious, so plastering your company’s telephone number on the side of a rusting car is not advisable.
Take the age of the car into consideration too. Not only is it difficult to get vehicles over ten years old insured, many licensing authorities are also setting age limits on private hire fleets.
Insurance is an essential part in becoming an accepted and reputable private hire business. Cars, drivers and third parties must be insured.
For taxi companies, the expenses will not end with buying a few cars and hiring a couple of drivers. Modern cab companies have state-of-the-art radio equipment, with many splashing out on new technology such as GPS.
It is also worth getting your operating centre and any equipment (radios, GPS systems, etc.) insured too.
The ATDA says if you work the unregulated hours that are available, you can make up to $1,000 a week, but “if you want a family, a life and to drive safely, you earn about $120 a day, [on] average.”
According to the ATDA, taxi drivers pick up about 30 passengers during the course of what is generally a 12-hour shift.
“Taxi driving is a great start for new workplace entry, and for many it’s the only exit choice after displacement from ‘regular’ work,” the association says.
“For some, it does become a career. For perhaps most, they are only driving in between having a proper job. Only one quarter of drivers can ever be owner-drivers – three quarters will always remain bailee drivers.”
Australian Taxi Drivers Association
mail@tda.net.au or mj@tda.net.au
Australian Taxi Industry Association
07 3847 3711
Australian Government Small Business Support Line
1800 777 275
Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry
02 6273 2311
03 9668 9950
