Professional Driver October 2015

BUSINESS NEWS, REVIEWS & ANALYSIS FOR THE PROFESSIONAL DRIVER

OCTOBER 2015 | VOLUME 7 | ISSUE 10 | £4.95

GOING LIVE! COMPREHENSIVE COVERAGE STARTS ON P.27

EXCLUSIVE: THE DEFINITIVE LEAGUE TABLE OF THE TAXI SECTOR–P.21 01-ProDriver-Oct-2015.indd 1

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leader

H

VW's code of dishonour

Don’t panic yet on VW diesel debacle

OW MIGHT THE VOLKSWAGEN EMISSIONS scandal affect you? If you run VW group products it could be a significant problem—or it could be a storm in a teacup.

We know there are an awful lot of Skoda Octavias and Superbs, VW Passats and Sharans, Seat Alhambras and Audi A6s out there in private hire use. And a lot of those cars are going to be subject to a mandatory recall at some stage, once it’s been established how to fix the software cheat that has caused all the problems.

It’s a complicated issue. The problem seems to centre around cars powered by the VW group 2.0TDI engine, and how they meet US environmental laws.

These are much tougher than their equivalents on this side of the Atlantic—the Euro 5 and Euro 6 rules which cover the cars. It seems the software cheat—which switches the engine into clean mode when the engine management software recognises it’s on a rolling road test—is also fitted to cars sold here.

In clean mode, the car’s performance is significantly compromised in order to meet the test—so power is reduced, and this compromises the car’s ability to accelerate or carry a heavy load. It’s easy enough to recalibrate the car so it runs in clean mode all the time. This would make it street legal, but it might be incapable of doing any meaningful driving.

In Europe, compliance could be achieved with less compromise, as you’re allowed to puff out more NOx here than in the US. So the performance compromise from a software fix might be acceptable.

If the car can’t be fixed by recalibrating the software, then you’ve got a problem. If VW sold, say, a Passat as being Euro 6 compliant, but it cannot reach Euro 6 standards, then that car is not legal. And the customer is breaking the law.

As with PPI, you would have been “mis-sold” the car, and would be entitled to compensation. And as the car was illegal, VW might have to take it back from you and replace it with a

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new, compliant car. That’s probably easier than any technical modification, such as retro-fitment of an AdBlue system, which might be the only way to fix the problem. You can see why VW is putting aside billions of dollars.

The irony of having to replace, and possibly even scrap, non-compliant cars is the amount of CO2 and pollutants that would be used up in the manufacture of the new products would far outweigh the small amount of extra pollution that the noncompliant cars are creating. But tell that to the lawyers.

What about the other manufacturers? If VW was cheating the tests, surely they were all at it? Perhaps—but it’s worth noting that VW’s sales pitch for diesel in the US was based on the fact that its cars didn’t need the rather inconvenient AdBlue injection system, which all its competitors were using.

So, maybe as the other manufacturers knew they could comply through using AdBlue, they didn’t need to try and cheat the system? Time will tell.

Finally, what should you do if you’re running a fleet of VW group cars? Heed the words of Lance-corporal Jones…don’t panic.

Keep on driving until you get some form of communication from either the DVLA or the manufacturer. If you’re lucky, it’ll be a visit to a dealership for a quick fix. But it might be a lot worse, and could even affect those with an older car—in the US, vehicles made in 2009 are said to be affected. Picking the bones out of a compensation claim for a six-year-old smoker with 250,000 miles on the clock is not a job I’d envy.

What if you were planning to buy a new VW group car?

Double-check it’s not an affected model. And if you’re buying a used car, it might be worth holding off until a full list is published. Or you could buy a petrol-engined car. This one will run and run…

MARK BURSA, Editor markbursa@aol.com

OCTOBER 2015 | PROFESSIONAL DRIVER

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contents BUSINESS NEWS, REVIEWS & ANALYSIS FOR THE PROFESSIONAL DRIVER

COVER STORY

OCTOBER 2015

» GOING LIVE—Full report of ProDriver Live 2015 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

NEWS » London mayoral candidates promise action to curb Uber . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

EDITOR

Mark Bursa markbursa@aol.com 01932 858575

» Uber has tarnished the industry, says Addison Lee CEO . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Alan Booth alan.booth@calixa.biz 07817 671973

» Little’s chief nominated for Scottish Business Awards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Richard Yarrow, Kim Adams, Ian Robertson, Phil Rule, John Coombes, Gordon Donaldson, Gary Jacobs, David Wilkins, Craig Thomas, Kevin Willis, Peter Panayiotou, Steve Garelick

» ‘Cuts-driven agenda’ has caused DBS backlog—GMB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Mike Valente 07818 418211

» GMB calls for ULEZ delay in wake of VW scandal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Martin Coombes 01959 547000

» Chauffeurline boss disqualified after illegal licence swap . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

ART DIRECTOR

CONTRIBUTORS

PHOTOGRAPHY WEBSITE

PUBLISHER

Paul Webb paulwebb@prodrivermags.com Tel: 01959 547003 SALES James Derbyshire 01959 547000 JamesDerbyshire@prodrivermags.com or sales@prodrivermags.com

CIRCULATION/SUBSCRIBE

Curwood CMS Ltd, The Barn, Abbey Mews Robertsbridge, TN32 5AD 01580 883844 subs@prodrivermags.com ACCOUNTS Janine Derbyshire 01959 547000 janine@prodrivermags.com

EVENTS COORDINATOR

Stephanie Wooden 01959 547000 stephanie.wooden@prodrivermags.com

COMPANY

Managing Director Scott Derbyshire, 01959 547000 scott@prodrivermags.com Prodriver Media Ltd 1 The Courtyard, Market Square, Westerham, Kent, TN16 1AZ—Registered in England No.: 7086172 © 2015 All contents copyright of Pro Driver Media Ltd. BUSINESS NEWS, REVIEWS & ANALYSIS FOR THE PROFESSIONAL DRIVER

OCTOBER 2015 | VOLUME 7 | ISSUE 10 | £4.95

» Man arrested after Boris brands cabbies “luddites”. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8 » PCS Events facing Crown Court trial over clocking claim . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 » Heathrow could provide dedicated private hire car park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 » Retired travellers the target for Yorkshire start-up . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

» Middlesbrough to revise licence fees in 2016 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

FRANKFURT MOTOR SHOW » The latest new cars and concepts from Europe’s biggest biennial motor show. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

PRODRIVER 100 » Our exclusive league table of the top 100 private hire, taxi and chauffeur companies, with full five-page analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

GOING LIVE PRODRIVER LIVE 2015

» Our full 12-page report of Professional Driver’s new conference,

exhibition and drive event starts here . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

PRODUCT TEST

» INVERTERS—Ten of the best power devices to provide your car

with a mains outlet for your clients’ electronic gadgets. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

ROAD TEST » RUNNING REPORT –Audi Q7 3.0TDI Quattro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

THE ADVISOR » Latest developments in the murky world of taxation, brought to you by expert Gary Jacobs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

GOING LIVE!

COMPREHENSIVE THE NEGOTIATOR COVERAGE » Issues of the day analysed by GMB Union man Steve Garelick STARTS ON P.27 THE INSIDER

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» The word on the street from one of our captive operators, John Coombes of Fylde Executive Cars

COMPREHENSIVE COVERAGE STARTS ON P.27

EXCLUSIVE: THE DEFINITIVE LEAGUE TABLE OF THE TAXI SECTOR–P.21

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EXCLUSIVE: THE DEFINITIVE USED CARS FOR SALE LEAGUE TABLE OF THE TAXI SECTOR–P.21 » Grab yourself a chauffeur bargain!

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news

Uber | Taxi protest | Little’s

London mayoral candidates promise action to curb Uber Mark Bursa



BOTH THE chosen Labour and Conservative candidates to be next London mayor have promised legislation to curb the rise of Uber and protect the black taxi trade.

Speaking at a Westminster Hall debate, Labour Party candidate and current Tooting MP Sadiq Khan [pictured, above left] said both Transport for London and the Government had failed to enforce existing legislation, or provide new regulations to ensure new entrants to the market operated fairly.

He said: “Rather than a race to the bottom in deregulating the black cab, shouldn’t there be innovation of regulation of the private hire vehicles and Uber in particular to make sure there is a level playing field?”

He urged the Government to bring forward legislation which

provided a clear definition to protect the distinction between taxis and private hire vehicles, warning that the current situation would lead to “the death of the black cab as we know it”.

Zac Goldsmith [Above, right], Tory London mayoral hopeful and MP for Richmond, responded, calling for “more clarity in the regulatory system” and said black cabs would be “extinct in a matter of years” without action.

Goldsmith said costs were piled onto black cabs by regulation while standards among private hire

vehicles needed to be raised.

He said: “The emergence of Uber has turned the system on its head, because of the speed of the Uber app their cars are effectively hailed by users. The one key advantage enjoyed by black cabs has simply evaporated.”

He added: “We need to try to find a way to maintain the two-tier system that distinguishes between cabs and taxis. There’s no question of banning Uber, but I do think there is a need to have more clarity in the regulatory system.”

Transport Minister Andrew Jones said there was no legislation in London that allowed the number of private hire vehicles to be limited, but said that might need to change, as new technology was challenging traditional operating boundaries between the taxi and private hire trades and was “straining the relationship” between TfL and the industry.

UBER HAS TARNISHED THE INDUSTRY, SAYS ADDISON LEE CEO The Westminster Hall debate on Uber practices was welcomed by Addison Lee CEO Liam Griffin. He said the debate “strikes a blow for the private hire vehicle industry”, adding: “For too long Uber has run riot and been allowed to profit from unscrupulous practices, threatening the safety of passengers and drivers.

“For more than forty years we have worked tirelessly to raise the standards in this industry, which they have come along and tarnished.

With their business operations now firmly under the microscope of politicians, we hope that action will be taken to curb their behaviour once and for all.”

Man arrested after mayor brands Uber opponents “luddites” Mark Bursa



POLICE HAVE ARRESTED

and bailed a 65-year-old man in connection with angry taxi protests at City Hall in London that left a security guard unconscious. Separately a 46-yearold man was interviewed under caution.

A debate about Uber turned ugly when London mayor Boris Johnson called black cab drivers “luddites” after a number of drivers began heckling him. Around 80 drivers were allowed into the public gallery during the mayor’s question time session.

A further group of about 20 protesters tried to force their way inside, and as they did so, a security guard was pushed over and knocked unconscious.

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LITTLE’S CHIEF NOMINATED FOR SCOTTISH BUSINESS AWARDS The United Cabbies Group today issued a statement saying the man was not a cabbie, but a member of an “ideological protest group”. A spokesman said: “Contrary to some media reports, the man arrested last Wednesday is not a licensed taxi driver. It appears he had simply tagged along.”



Heather Matthews, managing director of Glasgow-based Little’s Chauffeur Hire, has been shortlisted for Female Business Leader of the Year at the Scottish Business Awards 2015.

The nomination follows a strong year for Little’s as business soared during events such as the Commonwealth Games and the Ryder Cup. Matthews said: “It fills me with great pride to be nominated for Female Business Leader of the Year. Little’s has made some bold and pioneering changes to ensure that we maintain our position at the top of the industry.”

As well as a new brand identity, a relaunch of its website and a new online portal for clients, Little’s also introduced a new range of Lexus hybrid vehicles to its luxury fleet in Spring 2015.

SEPTEMBER 2015 | PROFESSIONAL DRIVER

25/9/15 23:49:55

PCS | Heathrow | DBS delays | Yorkshire start-up

news

PCS events facing Crown Court trial over clocking claim Mike Jewell & Mark Bursa



ONE OF THE NORTH-WEST’S leading chauffeur firms has been sent for trial at Warrington Crown court by the Town’s Magistrates.

In a case brought by Warrington Trading Standards, Runcorn-based PCS Events Ltd, which trades as Professional Chauffeur Services (PCS), has been charged with conspiracy to defraud either a hire company or the general public by clocking vehicle odometers so that they appeared to have travelled less mileage than they actually had.

A hearing is scheduled for December and it is understood that a trial will take place early next year. PCS operates a large fleet of 150 predominantly Mercedes-Benz vehicles across a number of UK locations.

The company specialises in corporate events work, and in particular, has the contract to transport Emirates Airlines’ business and first-class passengers by chauffeur-driven car to and from Manchester, Newcastle and Birmingham airports.

The company’s head office is in Runcorn, Cheshire, and around 20 staff work there, including reservations staff and controllers.

Drivers are also based in the north-east and midlands too, with around 20 in Newcastle and 70 in Birmingham, and there are support offices at both airports.

PCS was established with a single car 30 years ago by John Murphy [pictured], who remains as CEO today. Turnover was quoted by PCS executives in 2014 as being around £6 million a year.

Heathrow could provide dedicated private hire car park



The Licensed Private Hire Car Association (LPHCA) has opened talks with Heathrow Airport management in a bid to secure a priority parking area for private hire and chauffeur operators dropping off or collecting clients at the terminals.

LPHCA is calling for a dedicated, low-cost parking area within the airport grounds, and the association says talks are progressing well.

The proposed site would include toilets and food facilities, and would be available for use by drivers

with genuine pre-booked collections at Heathrow.

The move follows complaints from local residents, who want drivers to stop waiting on residential streets, or in free parking areas such as fast food outlets, garage forecourts and laybys. If successful, the scheme could be extended to other airports.

The move has been welcomed by the GMB Union, which recently met with local residents and is in the process of drafting a drivers’ and owners’ code of conduct for Heathrow and the surrounding neighbourhoods.

RETIRED TRAVELLERS THE TARGET SECTOR FOR YORKSHIRE START-UP



TWO HARROGATEbased entrepreneurs are launching a new chauffeur service targeted at wealthy retired people in Yorkshire who prefer to travel by car rather than rail or air.

Mark Bowman and Sean Sanpher have founded WeChauffeur.co.uk, and the company is offering private and corporate clients a personalised service for journeys throughout the UK and Europe. The company has invested in a range of luxury vehicles including an Audi A8 and a Mercedes-Benz E-Class.

“Many retired people still want to travel regularly, well into their 70s, 80s and 90s, and being driven to London, Paris or even further

prodrivermags.com | MAY 2010

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afield becomes a practical option when you factor in insurance and health issues,” said Bowman.

“With most hire car firms refusing to rent cars to those over 70, many retired travellers need to have their own vehicles abroad, but may not want the hassle of driving themselves to Europe.”

‘Cuts-driven agenda’ has caused DBS backlog, claims union



THE GMB UNION IS CALLING on the Metropolitan Police Commissioner to speed up the “unacceptable” backlog of around 330,000 Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks in London.

Taxi and private hire drivers are among the occupations that require DBS clearance, alongside teachers and medical staff. Paul Hayes, GMB London Region secretary, said: DBS checks (formerly known as enhanced CRB checks) must be done promptly to ensure jobs can be filled.

“Allowing this backlog to develop is inexcusable on the part of the Metropolitan Police and symptomatic of a cuts driven agenda,” he said. “Measures must be put in place both to remove the backlog as quickly as possible and to ensure it doesn’t build up again in future.”

Deputy Met commissioner Craig Mackey replied to the union, blaming “staffing issues” combined with a 10% increase in work sent from the DBS to create a the backlog.

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news

VW/ULEZ | Chauffeurline | Middlesbrough

GMB calls for ULEZ delay in wake of VW emissions scandal Mark Bursa



THE GMB UNION HAS called for a delay in implementing the proposed London Ultra Low Emissions Zone (ULEZ) in the wake of the emerging scandal surrounding Volkswagen diesel emissions. Steve Garelick, secretary of the GMB Union’s Professional Drivers branch, has written to TfL officials, claiming drivers could be at risk of fines if vehicles purchased in good faith do not comply with emissions regulations: “I recognise tests have been made on some vehicle emissions,” he wrote. “However, in view of the latest revelations vis-a-vis Volkswagen, I think we need to see if other manufacturers have embarked on a similar route with software.”

Volkswagen has been forced to apologise following independent tests

[FROM LEFT] GMB’s Steve Garelick and former VW CEO Martin Winterkorn. which found that the company had deliberately fitted software to its engine management systems that allowed its cars to cheat strict US emissions rules.

In the US alone, 480,000 Volkswagen and Audi brand cars are affected, and VW Group could be liable for fines running into billions of dollars.

And it is now emerging that the

Middlesbrough to revise licence fees in 2016



Taxi drivers’ fees will rise under new rules drawn up for Middlesbrough’s taxi and private hire trade. Under new proposals, drivers’ fees will rise by £149 to £204 for new applicants and by £57 to £112 for renewals.

Meanwhile vehicle licences will be cut by an average of around £230 for new applications and £175 for renewal. The move follows a review of Middlesbrough Council’s taxi fees, and will be considered at a council meeting next Wednesday.

A 56-day consultation on the fees will then be carried out before their introduction at the start of next year at the latest. The review was launched after a complaint to the Local Government Ombudsman that the authority could not demonstrate how its existing fees were calculated.

While fees—for both operators and drivers—had increased in line with inflation over recent years, the authority was unable to show that they were an accurate reflection of administering the service.

Councillor Julia Rostron said: “The new structure will result in some considerable changes, but it will ensure that the fees charged accurately represent the costs involved in the licensing process, as well as reflecting the reduced cost of the taxi licensing service as a whole.”

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same software “cheat” could have been used to manipulate European emissions test too. European Euro 6 emissions standards are considerably less stringent than the equivalent US rules governing Nitrous Oxides and particulate emissions. Up to 11 million cars worldwide could be affected.

Garelick wrote: “Until this issue

is clearer may I recommend matters [regarding ULEZ] are delayed. Should there be an emissions issue based on the planned or suggested emissions this could leave owners open to fines.”

The VW cars affected are 2.0-litre turbodiesel-engine vehicles. The same motors are used in a number of VW, Audi, Seat and Skoda vehicles. VW Group CEO Martin Winterkorn resigned last week after admitting that VW embedded software in the cars that recognised that the car was being tested, and switched off some of the emissions controls in normal driving.

VW has been forced to suspend sales of four-cylinder diesel cars in the US, and the company’s share price has plummeted. Winterkorn said in a statement prior to his resignation: “I personally am deeply sorry that we have broken the trust of our customers and the public.”

CHAUFFEURLINE BOSS DISQUALIFIED AFTER ILLEGAL LICENCE SWAP



GRAHAM PENDER, OWNER OF EDINBURGHlicence with immediate effect. based Chauffeurline (UK) Ltd, has been She said: “I do not doubt that [Pender] has the disqualified from operating passenger ambition, can embrace modern ways of working, vehicles or acting as a transport manager for three that he likes making money and knows the sense in years after it emerged he had been running the putting on a nice show in sense of smartly presented business without a licence. vehicles and drivers and slickness of operation.

A traffic commissioner’s enquiry heard However, I am charged with enforcing a that the business had been run illegally regulated environment and I struggle with since November 2014 when Chauffeurline his attitude and commitment to such.”

Coaches Ltd—previously known as Chaffeurline operated a fleet of 19 Cramond Coaches Ltd—ceased trading as a luxury vehicles, including six Jaguar XJLs result of an associated company going into and three 16-seater Mercedes minibuses liquidation. (pictured). It handled crew transfers from Chauffeurline (UK) Ltd had continued several Scottish airports as well as hotel Traffic operating vehicles since November 2014 commissioner and cruise line contracts. under the licence held by Chauffeurline Graham Pender was previously declared Joan Aitken: Pender has Coaches Ltd – although operator licences bankrupt in 2007, and had been called “shattered the are not transferable between businesses, before traffic commissioners in 2013 as the fundamental trust” director of then-named Cramond Coaches after Chauffeurline (UK)’s application was of his license. rejected. over a lack of financial standing.

Scottish traffic commissioner Joan Aitken, in Operators are required to have a minimum a written ruling, said Pender had been running amount of money set aside at any one time as a Chauffeurline (UK) Ltd without a licence, and this had condition of their licence, but the 2013 inquiry heard “shattered the fundamental trust which is at the heart that Mr Pender “does not see why he should keep of operator licensing”. money available in this particular business because Aitken said Pender was “no longer of repute he wants to expand all his other businesses”. At the and professional competence” as a result of his time, his operator licences were reduced but not action and revoked his existing operator’s revoked as a penalty.

OCTOBER 2015 | PROFESSIONAL DRIVER

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news

Frankfurt Motor Show 2015

■ BMW 7-series



YOU DIDN’T NEED TO TRAVEL TO THE Frankfurt Show to see the new BMW 7-series—we had it on show at our ProDriver Live event last month—and a day before the global unveil. What you did miss was a drama of a different kind, with BMW’s new chief executive Harald Krüger feeling dizzy and fainting at the launch presentation.

Too much jet lag got the better of the 49-year-old executive, and the press conference was cancelled.

None of this distracted from the impressive new 7-series, which is bound to present a serious challenge to the Mercedes-Benz S-Class when it goes on sale later this year.

Visitors got to see the impressive interior, featuring new, more up-market finishes and materials, as well as a new infotainment system and built-in detachable Samsung tablet in the rear.

■ Jaguar F-Pace



TWO YEARS AFTER SHOWING AN SUV CONCEPT, Jaguar unveiled the production version of its new F-Pace 4x4. It’ll be positioned between Range Rover’s Evoque and Sport models, but will be roomy enough inside to compete with slightly larger rivals such as Audi Q7 and Volvo XC90.

Prices start at £34,170, and both petrol and diesel models will be available from UK launch in April 2016. A rear-drive version will also feature in the range.

F-Pace also replaces the XF Sportbrake in the Jaguar range—a replacement estate has been designed, but no decision has been made about production. Indeed, a smaller XE Sportbrake appears more likely.

■ Toyota Prius



THE FOURTH-GENERATION TOYOTA PRIUS PETROLelectric hybrid is still recognisably a Prius, though it features a new look to the roof line at the rear. It’ll go on sale early next year and is bound to remain the default for private hire operators, with Toyota claiming it will “establish new benchmarks in fuel economy”. And with the

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VW diesel scandal tipping the balance toward gasoline, the timing could be just right. The 1.8-litre petrol engine will be retained with a downsized electric motor driving the front wheels, and a separate electric motor to drive the rear wheels, giving an electric 4WD system that will only work at low speeds. A plug-in version will follow in 2017—which will meet the London ULEZ proposals for PHVs of at least 30 miles of electric range.

■ Lexus GS450h and RX450h



LEXUS’S TRAPEZOID GRILLE GETS A MORE radical, angular treatment on the brand’s latest models, including an all-new fourth-generation RX SUV range and a facelifted GS saloon. Powertrains are still resolutely petrol or petrol hybrid—Lexus is perhaps wisely steering clear of diesel.

OCTOBER 2015 | PROFESSIONAL DRIVER

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news

Frankfurt Motor Show 2015

■ Audi A4



AUDI’S ALL-NEW A4 COULD DO something its predecessors have failed to achieve—offer sufficient rear legroom to be an acceptable executive private hire car.

The new A4 is 21mm longer, with a 12mm longer wheelbase, and that means more head and knee room for passengers inside.

Boot capacity is also up by 15 litres on the Avant estate to 505 litres while the luggage space remains the same on the saloon at 480 litres. It’s already on sale in the UK— including an Ultra version with a new 148bhp 2.0-litre TDI engine returning a class leading 95g/km of CO2 and 74.3mpg combined.

■ Audi e-Tron Quattro

■ Vauxhall Astra Sports Tourer



THE NEW ELLESMERE PORT-MADE Astra is outwardly smaller than the outgoing model, but bigger inside. The Sports Tourer estate looks extremely practical for a compact estate, and could provide a viable rival to the Skoda Octavia estate or Peugeot 308SW in the private hire sector.

The new 1.6-litre “Whisper” diesel is available in three power outputs ranging from 108bhp to 158bhp, and the most economical ecoFLEX model will return a very impressive 91.2mpg and emit just 82g/km of CO2.



MEANWHILE AUDI also unveiled its rival to the forthcoming Tesla Model X battery-electric SUV. The e-Tron Quattro concept points to the forthcoming Q6 model, due ■ Borgward SUV



YOU’LL NEED EITHER a long memory or some hard-core petrolhead knowledge to remember Borgward – the German brand was big in the 1950s, but closed down in the early 1960s. Now it’s being revived, and will return in 2017 with this large seven-seat SUV model. It will come with petrol and hybrid powertrains and four-wheel drive.

14

14-ProDriver-Oct-2015.indd 14

in 2018. This all-electric SUV, slightly smaller than the Q7, will offer a range of 310 miles on a single charge. It’ll use three electric motors to provide allwheel drive.

Audi boss Rupert Stadler also confirmed that Audi is working on a bigger Q8 SUV, positioned against Range Rover, for launch in 2019, and with a price tag of over £100,000.

■ Renault Talisman



AFTER THE SMART NEW ESPACE, UNVEILED at Geneva in March, here’s another goodlooking big Renault that we won’t be getting in the UK. Talisman estate replaces Laguna, but won’t be made in right-hand drive. So we won’t get to try out Renault’s claims of class-leading interior and boot space, coupled with 95g/km CO2 emissions.

A shame.

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T

HE JAGUAR XJ WAS A REAL-HEAD-TURNER WHEN IT WAS LAUNCHED, WITH STRIKING LOOKS

that gave it the kind of visual impact that the big German three-box saloons don’t have.

The streamlined shape housed an interior that combined the best of British luxury with high-tech features.

Now Jaguar has facelifted the XJ’s body, bringing some of the details of the new XF to its bigger sibling. The 16MY XJL is distinguished by new front and rear bumpers, new panel lines on the bonnet and new LED lights front and rear. It looks sharper and more modern, without losing any of the XJL’s distinctive style.

There are bigger changes inside the car. All seats now come with lumbar support as standard, and Premium Luxury specification now includes perforated leather with seats that can be cooled as well as heated. Craftsmanship is to the fore, with a wide range of leathers and woods, as well as high-tech carbon-effect trim options.

The stylish, curved dashboard layout is retained, but the digital displays have been upgraded, with a higherresolution 12.3in full-colour TFT-LCD instrument cluster with virtual information display. This features beautiful, clear graphics as well as enhanced functionality, including better connectivity—essential for chauffeurs whose clients need to stay in contact.

The XJL now comes with InControl Touch Pro, Jaguar’s brand new, state-of-the-art, infotainment system. With new, faster and more powerful hardware, tt includes wi-fi connectivity, turning the car into a hotspot with real-time data connection. It’s much easier to use too, with an interface that works like a smartphone.

New 10.2in rear screens are available. They are concealed within the backs of the front seats when not in use—unlike competitor cars where the screens are permanently fixed to the rear headrests. The screens pop up when the rear seat passenger pulls down the table that folds into the seat back. It’s a very neat and elegant solution, and sets the XJL apart from its rivals.

The XJL has been specifically designed with chauffeuring in mind. A panoramic glass roof and soft door closing—a real plus for a chauffeur car—are standard features on the XJL, rather than cost options on competitors’ vehicles.

Under the bonnet, a major change includes an upgraded 3.0-litre V6 turbodiesel engine with power upped from 275PS to 300PS. The XJL now boasts 700Nm of torque instead of 600Nm, and offers more power and torque than its three principal German rivals—it’s quicker off the mark to 62mph than Audi A8, BMW 7-series or Mercedes-Benz S-Class. At the same time, CO2 emissions have been reduced by 10g/km on the combined cycle to 149g/km, while combined fuel economy has been improved from 44.8mpg to 49.6mpg.

Extensive use of aluminium in the XJL’s body construction makes Jaguar’s flagship the lightest car in the segment too, adding to its agility and combining with a highly aerodynamic, streamlined shape to contribute to both driving pleasure and fuel economy.

For professional drivers, the XJL is backed by Jaguar’s recently revised and enhanced Chauffeur Programme.

First launched in 2011, it’s one of the most comprehensive offerings in the market, with contract hire packages via Lex Autolease that can cater for mileages of up to 50,000 miles per year, over a three-year term, and replacement licenced cars for London-based chauffeurs.

Getting finance can be difficult for chauffeurs given the nature of their work, and the high mileages involved.

However, every finance application received is assessed by Jaguar Financial Services as a bespoke application against criteria relevant to that application. This provides the best possible opportunity for a successful underwrite.

So what else is included? Maintenance can be included in the Chauffeur Programme finance offering, and servicing can be specially tailored to suit the chauffeur’s work schedule. Jaguar dealers offer priority servicing to chauffeur customers, including a while-you-wait service as well as a collection-and-delivery facility.

If a customer chooses a maintained contract, tyres are included—another significant saving for a higher-mileage user.

Should the worst happen, and a car is off the road with a technical fault, a loan car booking can be made via the roadside assistance team. Generally the replacement vehicle will reach the customer within 2-3 hours, minimising lost jobs for the chauffeur.

Jaguar currently offers a like-for-like replacement PCO licensed vehicle for London XJL chauffeur customers.

Jaguar also offers extended 72-hour test drives—including test drives of PCO licensed cars so chauffeurs can gauge customer feedback before committing to buy in London.

With new XF now on the market, and the F-Pace SUV crossover unveiled at last month’s Frankfurt motor show, Jaguar’s luxury range can cover all the bases for professional drivers, from independent chauffeurs to large fleets.

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news

Frankfurt Motor Show 2015

■ Bentley Bentayaga



FINALLY, THE FINISHED BENTLEY BENTAYAGA SUV was revealed at Frankfurt. Built on the Audi Q7/Porsche Cayenne platform, Bentley claims the Bentayaga is “the fastest, most luxurious and most exclusive SUV in the world”.

It’s Bentley’s first production SUV and will offer serious competition to the LWB Range Rover in the super-luxury 4x4 sector. It’s powered by a new 12-cylinder W12 engine with 600bhp and 900Nm of torque, giving Bentayaga 0-62mph acceleration in 4.0sec. On the downside, CO2 emissions are 292g/km and claimed combined economy is only 22.1mpg.

It’ll be priced at £160,000—making it by far the most expensive SUV on the market—at least until Rolls-Royce reveals its own take on the super-luxury SUV concept in a couple of years.

■ Porsche Mission E concept



DEVELOPED IN DOUBLEquick time, here’s Porsche’s response to the Tesla Model S. Channelling the looks of the 918 Hypercar and technology of the Le Mans-winning 919 hybrid race car, the all-electric Mission E will form the basis of a very similar production car—perhaps as soon as by 2017.

It’ll have a 300-mile range too, sharing some of the EV technology seen in the Audi e-Tron Quattro (page 14). Porsche claims its new 800-volt drive system, consisting of two electric motors and a powerful battery, is twice as powerful as any other EV system available today.

It remains to be seen whether the clamshell doors will be retained— these give unrestricted entry to the car as there is no B-pillar.

■ Kia Optima



KIA’S LARGEST EUROPEAN saloon has been around for a few years now, and like its Hyundai sibling the i40, 2015 is facelift year. The Optima gains a bolder grille and a new seven-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox, which should make it smoother and more refined. The new Optima will be available with a 175bhp petrol or a 141bhp diesel engine, and also features wireless phone charging.

18

18-ProDriver-Oct-2015.indd 18

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ProDriver100

The definitive league table of the UK’s private hire and taxi industry Mark Bursa B RITAIN’S 100 LARGEST PRIVATE HIRE AND taxi fleets operate nearly 40,000 vehicles—more than 15% of the estimated 260,000 vehicles operated for hire and reward in Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

That’s the key finding of the ProDriver 100, the first detailed and definitive research study into the leading private hire and taxi operators in the UK. Professional Driver has carefully compiled the data over the past six months, and the combined total of vehicles operated by the top 100 companies is 39,704, giving an average fleet size of just below 400.

The ProDriver 100 is a league table of the leading UK companies, ranked in order of fleet size. We haven’t split hackney operators from private hire operators— indeed, many companies outside London operate under a dual licence system. And we haven’t included London Black Taxis, as they are really one-man operators, running under specific rules that are outside the scope of this project.

QUALIFICATION

The entry point for the top 100 is a fleet of 150 cars. Indeed, the bottom 10 of the ProDriver 100 all claim a fleet of the same size. Below 150 vehicles, it becomes harder to identify the operators.

A very large number of local operators have fleets of around 100 cars and above, but reaching a fleet size of 150 is a little harder to achieve, and often

WHERE IS UBER?

Uber is not listed in the table, and for a number of reasons. Although Uber does register as a licensed private hire operator in the cities where it offers a service, it could hardly be defined as a conventional operator.

It may hold licences and hire drivers, but the terms of employment are very different to most other firms.

Uber claims it has 15,000 drivers in London—and that number may have signed up for the app. But many are independent chauffeurs; others have come and gone; others do the odd job. Some do work full time. But nobody has to drive exclusively for Uber, and without a definitive form of exclusive contract, we have to consider them an app provider serving self-employed drivers rather than an actual operator.

prodrivermags.com | OCTOBER 2015

21-ProDriver-Oct-2015.indd 21

RANK

COMPANY

CITY

FLEET SIZE

1

Addison Lee

London

4500

2

Delta Cars

Liverpool

2000

3

City Taxis

Sheffield

1400

4

Glasgow Taxis

Glasgow

900

5

Amber Cars

Leeds

850

=5

V-Cars

Bristol

850

7

Boro Taxis

Middlesborough

800

8

Go Carz

Shrewsbury

700

9

Blueline Taxis

Newcastle-upon-Tyne

680

10

Aqua Cars

Portsmouth

650

11

The Keen Group

London

626

12

Value Cabs

Belfast

600

13

A2B Radio Cars

Birmingham

550

=13

Mainline Sevens

Salford

550

15

Parker Car Service

London

529

16

Alpha Cars

Liverpool

500

=16

Arrow Cars

Leeds

500

=16

Central Taxis

Coventry

500

=16

Club Cars

Manchester

500

=16

Dragon Taxis

Cardiff

500

=16

Metro Cars of Bolton

Bolton

500

=16

Network Private Hire

Glasgow

500

=16

Skyline Taxis

Milton Keynes

500

24

DG Cars

Nottingham

450

=24

Street Cars

Manchester

450

=24

Swiss Group

London

450

=24

Britannia Taxis

Liverpool

450

28

City Cabs

Edinburgh

425

29

35 Taxis

Hull

400

=29

Abbey Car Hire

London

400

=29

Castle Cars

Birmingham

400

21

26/9/15 00:34:48

ProDriver100 involves local mergers or takeovers.

In the bottom 10, we find a mixture of suburban London operators, as well as regional taxi players. To get to number 80 in the table, you don’t need to be that much bigger—170 cars. You can see how crowded this area of the table is, and given the fluid sizes of many fleets, companies can easily rise up the table through organic growth or local takeovers. Again, we see a mix of London and regional players.

In the 70s we find companies approaching 200 cars—these are big players in reasonable-sized towns. For example, there are two similar-sized Bournemouth operators, giving an idea of local competition. Some well-known London operators are starting to appear in the chart at this level—GLH, for example.

A fleet of more than 200 cars gets an operator into the top 60. We see some big city players here, plus some top London operators such as Carey. Two companies—Bridgend Cars and Dragon Taxis of Newport, ranked equal 65, are both owned by a company called Veezu, which has indicated they will merge to form one bigger operator (see panel, page 25).

And we’ve seen a fair bit of merger activity of late. Apple Central Cars of Exeter is a recent aggregation of a number of local firms in the city. These companies have themselves been taken over by another business in a nearby town, and rebranded using the name of this other company, Apple Central Cars of Weston-super-Mare.

They plan is to create a network of operators down the “M5 corridor”. At the moment the two Apple Central Cars are separately managed. The two towns are a good way apart, and the companies even have different logos—but in time, this will become a bigger, unified regional player, and this business would jump up the ProDriver 100. The combined fleet of 420 cars would reach number 29.

At the half-way point, the fleet size has hit 300—these are serious players, in big cities. Big city operators are now the dominant component—London, Manchester and so on—as well as some long-established traditional taxi firms such as Brighton & Hove Radio Cars.

From here on, the table starts to stretch.

To make the top 30, you need 400 cars.

There are some very big taxi players in here—Streamline of Brighton, for example.

And around this area we find the very

22

21-ProDriver-Oct-2015.indd 22

RANK

COMPANY

CITY

FLEET SIZE

=29

LA Taxis

Newcastle-upon-Tyne

400

=29

Metro Taxis

Stockport

400

=29

Rainbow City

Aberdeen

400

34

Edinburgh City Private Hire

Edinburgh

380

35

Streamline

Brighton

370

36

Cabot Global

London

350

=36

Cresta Cars

Manchester

350

=36

Tristar Worldwide

London

350

40

Brighton and Hove Radio Cars Brighton

300

=40

City Cabs

Leeds

300

=40

Data Cars

London

300

=40

Go Luton

Luton

300

=40

Greentomato Cars

London

300

=40

Manchester Cars

Manchester

300

=40

Mantax

Manchester

300

=40

Tele Taxis

Dundee

300

=40

The A1 Group

Essex

300

=40

TOA Taxis

Birmingham

300

=40

Wirral Satellite Cars

Birkenhead

300

51

Brunel Total Ground Transportation London

270

52

Advance Cars

London

268

53

Edinburgh Airport Cars

Edinburgh

260

54

Ambassador Cars

Birmingham

250

=54

Dean Taxis

Newcastle-upon-Tyne

250

=54

Dover Heritage Taxis

Dover

250

=54

Fairway and Kenwood

London

250

=54

Radio Taxis

Southampton

250

=54

SRC Taxis

Liverpool

250

=54

Station Cars

Croydon

250

61

Apple Central Taxis

Weston Super mare

220

=61

Club Taxis

Leicester

220

63

Amber Car Services

London

209

64

Carey Group

London

208

65

Apple Central Taxis Exeter

Exeter

200

=65

Bridgend Radio Cars

Bridgend

200 OCTOBER 2015 | PROFESSIONAL DRIVER

26/9/15 00:56:29

ProDriver100 biggest executive chauffeur operators— Cabot and Tristar, each with 350 cars, with extensive airline contracts and events businesses.

You need more than 500 cars to make the top 20—and this seems to be another “size point” where there are a lot of operators.

Again, here we find big city-based players.

You can see how competitive the market is in places such as Manchester, Liverpool and Newcastle—each city has several major fleets all competing for local business.

Into the top 20 and we see just how mergers and acquisitions have shaped some of the biggest players. Both Keen Group and Parker Car Service—the London version— have grown to their current size with the assistance of takeovers.

THE BIG BOYS

Operators need at least 650 cars to get into the Top 10, but you can see at the very top of the table, the numbers are vast., and there are no prizes for guessing the number 1—London’s leading private hire operator, Addison Lee. But it’s surprising that there are no other London operators in the top 10.

Instead, major regional players fill most of the top spots. These regional players are very active—big local employers that are not afraid to court controversy in some cases—both Delta and Blueline have had big spats with licensing authorities over plans to trade across borders.

GoCarz, number 8 in the table, is interesting—a fast-rising operator that has developed as a result of mergers and takeovers in a number of towns in the midlands—Stafford, Telford, Wolverhampton and Shrewsbury. Only last year did the company rebrand its fleets under one name. This is a significant trend that we believe will continue.

Our number one, Addison Lee, has itself built a dominant position through a number of acquisitions, including Lewis Day, WestOne Cars, London Executive and Climatecars, though it does seem to be going down an affiliate route via its app in a bid to build a national presence rather than launching fleets in other cities.

We believe the M&A trend will continue, though, and the big will get bigger.

Meanwhile the entry point of the ProDriver 100 is also likely to grow as the 150-200 car fleets buy up smaller rivals, or local firms merge to fight off new rivals. prodrivermags.com | OCTOBER 2015

21-ProDriver-Oct-2015.indd 23

RANK

COMPANY

CITY

FLEET SIZE

=65

Chequers Cars

London

200

=65

Davy Liver

Liverpool

200

=65

Dragon Taxis

Newport

200

=65

Hawk Express Cabs

Ipswich

200

=65

Links Taxis

Grimsby

200

=65

Miller City Cars

Preston

200

=65

Royal Cars Oxford

Oxford

200

74

United Taxis

Bournemouth

192

75

C-Cabs

Blackpool

185

=75

GLH

London

185

77

Bluestar Taxis

Wigan

180

=77

City Cabs

Brighton

180

=77

Fox Transport

London

180

=77

PRC Streamline

Bournemouth

180

81

1AB Taxis

Darlington

170

=81

Blue Line Taxis

Barnsley

170

=81

Cannon Cars

Bromley

170

=81

Phoenix Taxis

Blyth

170

85

Media Cars

London

165

=85

Medway Private Hire

London

165

87

City Taxis

Sunderland

160

=87

Expressways

London

160

=87

Premier Cabs

Blackpool

160

=87

Sussex Cars

Eastbourne

160

91

Q Despatch

London

154

92

247 Cars

Uxbridge

153

93

1010 Taxis

Salford

150

=93

A2B Euro cars

Peterborough

150

=93

Albatross Cars

Derby

150

=93

Alphabet Cars

London

150

=93

Excel Executive

London

150

=93

Professional Chauffeur Services Runcorn

150

=93

Swift Car Services

London

150

=93

Swift Fox Cars

Leicester

150

=93

Yellow Cab

Bristol

150 23

26/9/15 00:35:04

ProDriver100

VEEZU THE REGIONAL GAME-CHANGER?

South Wales-based Veezu is an emerging new force in the private hire market, and could emerge as a genuine game-changer.

Veezu was established in late 2013 and is headquartered in Newport. It was founded by two entrepreneurs, Paul Ragan, founder of Welsh insurance broker Protectagroup, and Nathan Bowles, founder of Smart Solutions Recruitment, who say their plan is to lead consolidation in the UK Private Hire Sector.

The plan is to establish six regional hubs in the UK, and the company is already well on the way to achieving that goal, with a substantial operation already running via three acquistions in South Wales, as well as major fleet acquisitions in Birmingham and Leeds.

The Leeds deal is for one of the real big boys, Amber Cars, which ranks number 5 in the ProDriver 100. Clearly Veezu is cherry-picking acquisitions from the top end of the table. Other acquisitions include A2B Radio Cars of Birmingham (number 13) and Dragon Taxis of Cardiff (equal 16).

If you were to combine all the five Veezu acquisitions on this table, you’d have a fleet of 2,300 cars—number 2 on the list. For the moment, Veezu is running under traditional brand names, and it’ll be interesting to see if it does try and create a national brand, perhaps linking the companies through the iCabbi app, which it uses across its operations.

VEEZU’S UK BUSINESSES RANK COMPANY 5 13 =16 =65 =65

Amber Cars A2B Radio Cars Dragon Taxis Bridgend Radio Cars Dragon Taxis

CITY

FLEET SIZE

Leeds Birmingham Cardiff Bridgend Newport

850 550 500 200 200

VEEZU’S TOTAL FLEET

REGIONAL BREAKDOWN

BIG PLAYERS IN LONDON, BIGGER PLAYERS IN THE NORTH Of the 101 companies surveyed, 90 are English, seven are Scottish, three are based in Wales and one in Northern Ireland.

The greatest concentration is in London—specifically inside the M25, where 27 of the ProDriver 100 companies are headquartered.

These London giants operate a total of 11,242 cars—roughly 15% of the total number of private hire cars currently registered in London, believed to be around 65,000 at present. This proportion is in line with the national average.

The distribution within England is as follows: London . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 North-West . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 North-East . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 South-East . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Midlands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 South-West. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Scotland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Wales . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Northern Ireland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

DISCLAIMER

Professional Driver has endeavoured to ensure that the data in this survey is correct and accurate, and all steps have been taken to achieve this. However, it is possible that some fleet sizes may have changed, or some companies may have been omitted due to a lack of available information. If you believe your company should be included in the ProDriver 100, please contact us via our email address editor@prodirvermags.com

24

21-ProDriver-Oct-2015.indd 24

2300

NORTH WEST RANK FIRM 2 13 16 16 16

Delta Cars Mainline Sevens Club Cars Metro Cars Alpha Cars

CITY

FLEET

Liverpool Salford Manchester Bolton Liverpool

2000 550 500 500 500

MIDLANDS RANK FIRM 8 13 16 24 29

Go Carz A2B Radio Cars Central Taxis DG Cars Castle Cars

CITY

FLEET

Shrewsbury Birmingham Coventry Nottingham Birmingham

700 550 500 450 400

SOUTH WEST RANK FIRM 5 61 65 74 93

V-Cars Apple Central Apple Central United Taxis Yellow Cab

CITY

FLEET

Bristol Weston-s-Mare Exeter Bournemouth Bristol

850 220 200 192 150

OCTOBER 2015 | PROFESSIONAL DRIVER

26/9/15 00:35:17

ProDriver100 SCOTLAND RANK FIRM 4 16 28 29 35

Glasgow Taxis Network Private Hire City Cabs Rainbow City Edinburgh City PH

CITY

FLEET

Glasgow Glasgow Edinburgh Aberdeen Edinburgh

900 500 425 400 380

NORTH EAST RANK FIRM 3 5 7 9 16

City Taxis Amber Cars Boro Taxis Blueline Taxis Arrow Cars

CITY

FLEET

Sheffield 1400 Leeds 850 Middlesborough 800 Newcastle 680 Leeds 500

SOUTH EAST RANK FIRM 10 16 36 39 39 39

Aqua Cars Skyline Taxis Streamline Radio Cars Go Luton The A1 Group

CITY

FLEET

Portsmouth Milton Keynes Brighton Brighton Luton Essex

650 500 370 300 300 300

EXECUTIVE CHAUFFEURING LEADERS

The biggest companies with “pure” executive chauffeur fleets come in around half-way up the table, at around 350 cars. But there are other companies that operate mixed fleets notably Addison Lee, whose premium fleet alone rivals those that don’t operate a regular private hire service as well.

Addison Lee’s Mercedes-Benz E-class and S-class fleet is estimated at around 300 vehicles, ranking it close to Cabot Global and Tristar Worldwide, which each have 350 cars on strength.

Others including Brunel and Carey Worldwide also feature in the ProDriver 100, though both operators run economy fleets of Toyota Prius cars and other vehicles, including Ford Galaxys, which would not be considered “executive”. Brunel is believed to have around 180 executive cars, and Carey’s fleet, excluding its Embarque-brand Prius models, is around the same level.

Parker Car Service, the third largest London fleet at number 15 in the table, also has an executive fleet of around 150 vehicles.

Outside London, the largest all-executive fleet that just makes the table is the controversial north-west operator PCS, which runs an all-Mercedes fleet of 150 cars, largely on airport transfers for Emirates from regional airports.

LEADING EXECUTIVE CHAUFFEUR OPERATORS

LONDON RANK FIRM 1 12 15 24 29

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RANK CITY London London London London London

prodrivermags.com | OCTOBER 2015

21-ProDriver-Oct-2015.indd 25

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23/07/2015 16:09:52 25/9/15 22:49:13

event

ProDriverLive 2015

GOING LIVE! 

A MONDAY MORNING DOWNPOUR didn’t dampen the spirits as ProDriver Live, Professional Driver’s exciting new two-day conference, exhibition and drive event got underway at Kempton racecourse last month.

As the dark clouds rolled away and the sun peeked out from the clouds, visitors were able to get on the road in one of the cars available for road tests, visit a hall packed with key suppliers, or attend a lively and informative seminar programme. And you could get a look round the brand new BMW 7-series one day before its official reveal at the Frankfurt Show!

Show visitors included some of the largest chauffeur and private hire fleet operators in the UK, as well as smaller family businesses and even some overseas visitors.

Jon Dow, managing director of Kent-based C lub Class Chauffeurs, said he’d originally decided to pop into ProDriver Live for an hour-long visit and take in a seminar.

prodrivermags.com | OCTOBER 2015

27-ProDriver-Oct-2015.indd 27

“The hour flew past and turned into five hours,” he said. “Many of our suppliers and industry colleagues were all in one place at the same time; there was a fleet of prestige and industry marques to review and drive; and there were several key note speakers delivering advice and experience about the opportunities and obstacles our business is very likely to face in the future.”

Exhibitors were making the most of the opportunity too—Ethos Asset Finance’s Chris Brown was full of praise for the philosophy behind the show. “ProDriver Live is a great opportunity to see our London-based customers, but also a good meeting point to talk with other people from the industry,” he said.

Over the next 11 pages, you can get a taste of the atmosphere, and read about the advice and arguments from the seminars. As Jon Dow says: “The show reflected the image of our industry— organised, efficient, smart and above all professional.

In short it was a great experience and I am definitely looking forward to the next one.”

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26/9/15 00:35:50

event

ProDriverLive 2015

HOW TWITTER REACTED TO PRODRIVER LIVE STEVE HALL @SHLCH1 Back @GatwickAirportH after the last 2 days @ProDriverLive got some great contacts and calls to make next week when back off my jollies.

GLN TRANSFERS @glntransfers Useful contacts made today ProDriverLive @prodrivermag A good first show, bigger and better next year I expect. Well done ETHOS ASSET FINANCE @ethosasset There is still a great buzz going on ProDriverLive.

GARY FRASER @FraserChauffeur @MarkBursa @ProDriverLive great to go to pro driver live, had a look at New @Bmw 7 series WOW what an amazing car was totally blown away SPRINTERBUS.CO.UK @SprinterbusUK Beautiful sunny day @ProDriverLive with @prodrivermag @ethosasset #prodriverlive #sprinterbusuk KEVIN WILLIS @chirtongrange Good luck and hope the weather holds for a great day at #ProDriverLive @prodrivermag MarkBursa

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OCTOBER 2015 | PROFESSIONAL DRIVER

26/9/15 00:36:58

prodrivermags.com | OCTOBER 2015

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26/9/15 00:37:18

ProDriverLive 2015

seminars

Emissions impossible—

the London ULEZ proposals Richard Yarrow

M

ARK BURSA LAUNCHED THE SEMINAR BY EXPLAINING THE NEW

regulations—that from September 7, 2020, an Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) will operate 24/7 in the same area as the current London Congestion Charging zone.

All vehicles must meet exhaust emission standards, or pay an additional daily charge to travel within the zone. Under Transport for London’s proposals, taxi and private hire vehicles will need to meet extra-stringent ULEZ standards, but following consultation feedback, discussions with industry groups are ongoing about plans to change the licensing requirements for these vehicles.

Bursa said the fear was that operators would have to buy vehicles which are zero-emissions capable, which means they can cover 30 miles on battery power alone, but uncertainty over the exact nature of the regulations was causing problems. “This is causing problems for the big fleets. Addison Lee has suspended orders for new Galaxy, so Ford UK has halved its order from the factory. It might actually result in people losing their jobs because the diesel engines are made in Dagenham,” Bursa told the audience.

The issue for black cabs is complicated by the fact that suitable vehicles from Metrocab and LTI don’t yet exist.

Steve Garelick said the GMB had been ON THE PANEL asking Transport for London (TfL) for ■ Mark Bursa, editor, meetings on a regular basis, and that the Professional Driver situation was now “beyond crazy”. magazine Steve Wright welcomed the ambition to ■ Steve Wright, clean up London, but he stressed: “The private chairman, Licensed Private Hire Car hire industry has improved massively over Association (LPHCA) the years—unlike the black cabs—but these ■ Steve Garelick, changes aren’t the way it will be achieved. This secretary, GMB Union is going to make things worse. We’re calling our professional drivers’ response Emissions Impossible because that’s branch ■ Mike Galvin, director, exactly what it is.”

Addison Lee The issue of an EV charging infrastructure was brought up, as it’s believed 95% of drivers won’t have the ability to charge an EV at home. The panel agreed drivers wouldn’t want to stop during the day to recharge, and as there’s no policing of plug-in points there’s no guarantee they will be able to Wright argued: “Where is the space in London going to come from to put in charge points? It’s going to be virtually impossible to park them to charge.”

He said he believed a simple regulation which ensured all vehicles met Euro 6 emissions standards was the answer. By private hire drivers swapping their older cars for newer ones, that’s how the industry has lowered its emissions contribution.

“Our hope is we will get TfL to see sense. We have said this needs to be done in stages—as the vehicles and infrastructure become available—and if we don’t, I think the industry will challenge this in the courts. A gun to our heads so we all go electric is not the right answer.”

Wright also said it was important that used cars could still be licensed as not all operators could afford to buy new cars. And there would be a devastating effect on residual values. “The trade could be crippled,” he said.

“This has been very poorly thought through. These proposals are not fit for purpose.”

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BEING GOOD CITIZENS Mike Galvin said Addison Lee tried to be “good citizens” by renewing its vehicles every three years. “We do our very best to reduce the impact of our business on London.

We’re in favour of clean air in London, and we’ve tried to be positive with TfL. But there is no plug-in network, and there is an insignificant number of vehicles that are ZEVcompliant, and discounts are non-existent. So inevitably prices will go up.”

Galvin said there would only be three possible outcomes of the proposals: “Driver pay will reduce, company profits will go down and customer fares will go up, or a combination of the three.”

He concluded that TfL’s policy was “cart before the horse” and recommended a phased introduction: “TfL could damage a very successful industry in London that is very valuable to the people that use it.”

TAXI TROUBLES—

A CABBIE’S VIEW Mike Tinnion is a Greenwich cabbie, driving a rented 56-plate TX2. He says he’s earning the same money as he was 13 years ago, but it’s now taking longer to bring in and with greater outgoings. He admits he’s looking for a way out of the industry.

“The ULEZ proposals are not viable economically. They’re expecting people to jump through hoops on a whim. London is crawling these days. I’ve not been down Upper and Lower Thames Street for two months because you can’t get down it. What’s the answer?

“There are emissions and people are dying, but we’re the ones sitting in them all day. How many drivers have died? They don’t have those figures. They’re not interested in the driver, it’s public health. That’s fine—I’ve got a two-year old myself—but there’s no Metrocab you can actually buy yet and there’s no manufacturer on board to build it. LTI say they have a car in the pipeline, but no one has seen it. There’s been no thought to any of this.”

SEPTEMBER 2015 | PROFESSIONAL DRIVER

26/9/15 00:37:39

ProDriverLive 2015

seminars

Technology for private hire—

Uber and beyond Richard Yarrow

A

SHOW OF HANDS STARTED

this seminar, in response to a question about how many people had actually used Uber.

Around half had and most confirmed they liked it.

Jeremy Butler said it was everyone’s job to respond ON THE PANEL ■ Matt Borland, to Uber. “Our industry has Magenta Technology stagnated for years and isn’t ■ Jeremy Butler, immune to change. The problem Karhoo is everyone sits back and cries ■ Alistair Laycock, most of all Uber foul. Uber is doing things very Sherlock was convenient, well because the one thing it has ■ Safa Alkatab, Autocab Systems but that other had that’s significant is money.

■ Graeme Whiting, people could be as We should be applauding them, Catalina Software well by playing to not be frightened of them. They their strengths. have given us the chance to Graeme Whiting said the problem of capitalise on what they have done. As bringing companies together to work the incumbents, we need to embrace it was the egos involved. and unite as an industry.”

Safa Alkatab made a comparison Alistair Laycock said the one gamewith the travel industry. “Only 15 per changer Uber had provided was surgecent of hotel bookings come directly, the pricing. Matthew Borland added that

rest come through aggregators. There’s an important role for aggregators to play in our industry because it can get business that local companies can’t on their own.”

Seminar chairman Mark Bursa, editor of Professional Driver, asked whether Uber should be included by an aggregator. Butler said not initially, because the goodwill built up would be instantly destroyed. “Five years down the line, who knows. People need

to embrace aggregators—they’re a customer acquisition and retention tool,” he argued.

Alkatab said he believed ultimately Uber’s funding would run out and it “will have to try to offer a taxi service”. He added: “Delivering a good taxi service isn’t that hard. If you can do that, you’re as good as anybody. Research shows the Uber model breaks down outside of major cities so we shouldn’t be going home depressed.”

Laycock said Uber had sold itself to the drivers as an empowering tool. “It’s taught us we need to give the drivers better tools to do their job,” he told the audience.

Turning the subject of apps, he said that many operators create an app, launch it, then expect work to come flooding in. “Some customers have 20-25% bookings on app, but they make sure the user experience is good. Key to that is marketing, such as getting drivers to say, “Have you downloaded the app?” to every customer and promoting the benefits of it.”

TIME TO GO ELECTRIC? Alex Hurst revealed EVs have been a key part of the growth of his business. He currently has 29 Nissan Leafs and one Tesla Model S, and said all are popular with his drivers.

“A big benefit is the cost-saving, but that’s not been the primary reason for having them. The cars are comfortable and the ‘green’ factor is massive ■ Alex Hurst, with business clients,” he told the audience.

Phoenix Taxis, Blyth, Hamish Phillips explained that Tesla’s A growing number of taxis in the Northumberland mission was to accelerate the world’s transition ■ Hamish Phillips, UK are Teslas, and the company is Tesla Cars to sustainable transport. The Model S is developing technology which will ■ Stewart Whyte, the firm’s premium saloon, with a 250-mile allow a dispatcher to see not only Fleet Audits real-world range and free long-distance travel where the car is, but also what the for life thanks to its expanding network of available range is. “It cuts out the superchargers. A new car, for now known as Model 3, will need to have a conversation with the driver about whether come in 2017. he can do a job or not,” said Phillips.

He used Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport as a case Stewart Whyte said the issue for professional drivers study, saying that three years ago its bosses announced was that EVs remain expensive to buy, but it was inevitable they wanted all local taxis to be EVs. “There are 189 Teslas that they get cheaper. The other issue is residual value, running every day at the airport, covering 186,000 miles which is unknown because not enough have come to a week. Airports around the world are pushing for this, to the used market. “Figures for the ones which have come cut air pollution, because of the success of Schiphol,” he back have been encouraging, but it’s driven by demand,” explained. he said.

ON THE PANEL

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30-ProDriver-Oct-2015.indd 31

Whyte added that the upside was maintenance costs, which are low because tyres and brakes last longer, there are no oil changes and there’s less to go wrong because they are fewer moving parts.

“If you compare Tesla with a Mercedes E-Class, the costs can be comparable, but it depends on the operating cycle. If you run an EV for a long time, the more it becomes relatively cheaper against a conventional car.”

Hurst confirmed nothing had gone wrong with any of his EVs, and the first ones on his fleet have done more than 100,000 miles.

The issue of the public charging network was discussed, with Whyte describing it as a disgrace. Hurst added: “If you want to operate EVs, you need to factor in providing your own charging network. Public charge points aren’t policed, so if someone leaves a car there all weekend, they can and there’s nothing you can do about it.”

Phillips revealed that the Energy Saving Trust in Scotland had recently launched a loan scheme— borrowing up to £50,000 interest free, repayable over six years—that would allow someone such as a private chauffeur to buy an EV.

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26/9/15 00:37:48

ProDriverLive 2015

seminars

Maximising social media for the private hire industry

PRESENTER

■

Alex Hurst, Phoenix Taxis, Blyth, Northumberland

Richard Yarrow

A

lex Hurst, the managing director of award-winning taxi firm Phoenix Taxis, based in the north-east of England said part of the secret of his success had been strong use of social media.

The firm launched a Facebook page in 2010, far earlier than many in the industry. “We use it as a way of directly addressing our customer base. We have 140 business clients and all have a Facebook page. It’s a great way to connect with them. We got two new clients last week and both said they found us on Facebook,” said Hurst.

“Getting a ‘Like’ from someone means they’re inviting you into their life, so it’s a massive deal and a massive advantage over competitors. We have daily access to 10,000 people.”

He said he’d found social media was an excellent tool for problem-solving, but only if you do it right. “If you block or ignore a complaint it can go viral, which is not what you want. It’s better to say yes, we dropped the ball, and sort it out in a way which allows you to publicly prove you’re good at dealing with complaints.”

Some larger operators use PR firms to look after their social media strategy, but Hurst said there was no need. “You know what’s good about your business, so get someone from within the firm to do it. There’s free training available for them as well.”

He said his policy was simple—every time you do anything, it should go through social media. “In the past, if you bought a new car or took on new staff member, that wasn’t newsworthy. But it’s great on social media and shows you’re a successful firm.” He added that voucher codes—such as a 10% discount on a fare—were great for social media users to share.

So if those are the dos, what are the don’ts? Hurst said never delete user posts unless they’re extreme or abusive, never delete a user, and never take too long to answer because Facebook tracks how long it takes and rates you on it.

“Don’t be a promotional horn, telling people how great you are. Talk about the varied things in your world. Facebook gives added value if you engage with other local business.”

He also warned against using stock photos, saying it’s better to be authentic and take your own images. And if possible, make sure something was uploaded to the page every day. “One of the biggest mistakes is setting up a Facebook or Twitter account and then not updating it regularly, because it looks like you’ve closed down.”

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HOW TWITTER REACTED TO PRODRIVER LIVE PLAN INSURANCE @PlanInsurance Hi @AlexHMhurst it was great to hear at @prodriverlive how your @NissanEV_UK fleet works for @PhoenixTaxis #EV #Green PAUL MICHAEL ELLIOTT @pelliott86 @ProDriverLive listing to a great debate over technology and uber BEN GRIFFITHS @B_Griff_Mon Had a great day @ProDriverLive today and awesome to catch up with the guys from @JaguarUK PHOENIX TAXIS @PhoenixTaxis @autocabgpc @ProDriverLive @Cabfind @PlanInsurance @ethosasset @prodrivermag @SHLCH1 @SprinterbusUK thanks to all at Pro Driver. Great event ELISE KRUCLER @EliseKrucler Some good points from the Technology Seminar @ProDriverLive #SherlockTaxi AUTOCAB @autocabgpc @pelliott86 Great to hear it. We’re loving the whole event. Thank you, @ProDriverLive!

CABFIND.COM @Cabfind @Cabfind are having a great time @ProDriverLive

OCTOBER 2015 | PROFESSIONAL DRIVER

26/9/15 00:38:02

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25/9/15 22:48:59

ProDriverLive 2015

cars

BMW REVEALS 7-series at ProDriver Live

ahead of official Frankfurt LAUNCH Richard Yarrow

H

idden away in an enclosed presentation unit outside the main Pro Driver Live exhibition, and 24 hours ahead of its global public debut at the Frankfurt Motor Show, was one of the stars of Pro Driver Live—the all-new BMW 7-Series.

Accompanying the car, a 730d xDrive in white, and providing guided tours to show visitors was Andy Furse, product manager for technology at BMW. “The feel and quality inside the car has improved dramatically, he explained. “For example, there are no black plastic buttons, it’s all aluminium or ceramic. Heated seats front and rear are standard, massage front seats are standard, and you can add a heated arm rest and vented rear seats as an option.”

One of the most obvious upgrades is to the leather interior. Gone is BMW’s long-serving Dakota leather, replaced by a quilted nappa that’s much closer to what you’d expect from Bentley or Rolls-Royce.

New to the car is the optional rear Touch Command system, which features a Samsung 7in tablet housed in the top of the central arm rest.

It allows the user to control features such as ambient lighting and the window blinds from the screen, rather than using cabin buttons.

“The key thing is the amount of equipment that’s now standard. It means the driver has to pay for fewer options, and also means it’s a more

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LCH PLANS TO ADD 7-SERIES TO RENTAL FLEET Interest in the 7-Series didn’t just come from the show visitors—other exhibitors were also keen to take a look.

Licensed Carriage Hire specialises in supplying prestige cars for short-to-medium term hire and breakdown, and Shaun Ravin, business development manager, commented: “There’s going to be a huge amount of interest in the new 7-Series, and we will expand our fleet to match the demands of our clients.”

He added: “It looks like a very interesting product and I think the market will be very keen to find out more. We like to keep our vehicles under two years old, so when turnaround time comes we will adjust our fleet to reflect our customers’ needs.”

JLR FOCUS ON XF AND RANGE ROVER STRETCH Also outside the Kempton Park site was Jaguar Land Rover, with the new XF and long-wheelbase Range Rover taking pride of place on the stand, alongside the familiar XJ. “I have been really pleased with the quality of people coming on the stand, and we will be getting back to many of them with quotes after the event,” said Daljit Jagait, chauffeur programme manager.

He said there was something about Jaguar and Range Rover cars which appeals to the chauffeur market. “It’s the prestige and history. The cars are beautiful, and also there’s something about coming to the UK from overseas and being driven in something which is quintessentially British.”

high quality place for them to spend time.”

All 7-Series buyers benefit from a free 24-hour concierge service which they can phone from the car. It gives access to info such as flight times and restaurant details, while information such as addresses and phone numbers can be sent direct to the car.

A unique feature is a new service called Online Entertainment. Powered by Napster and costing

£160 for a 12-month subscription, it provides access to 35 million songs. It relies on a 4G data signal, but cleverly pre-buffers content and stores it on the car’s hard drive to avoid drop-out.

“We’ve had lots of people see the car over the course of the show, and they’ve been blown away by the touch and feel of the back seat experience,” said Furse. The car is priced from £64,500 for SWB and £68,400 for LWB. OCTOBER 2015 | PROFESSIONAL DRIVER

26/9/15 00:38:15

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25/9/15 22:48:37

ProDriverLive 2015

cars

Maserati “will get business” for Quattroporte from ProDriver Live Richard Yarrow

M

aserati attended Pro Driver Live because it was an important opportunity to engage with a new audience. “We’re working to get Quattroporte positioned as a chauffeur vehicle now that it has a diesel engine. We’re raising awareness and once we do that the car pretty much sells itself,” explained Graeme Jenkins, Maserati UK managing director.

He said feedback had been excellent from people who had driven the car. “There’s surprise because they all drive S-Classes and 7-Series and weren’t aware of the Quattroporte, but they’ve been very impressed by the amount of room in the back of the car and also the boot. We have provided our dealer network with some hot leads and we will get some business from this event.”

Seven-up for allelectric Nissan people-mover Generating most interest on the Nissan stand was the recently launched sevenseater version of the e-NV200 MPV. Using the same powertrain as the Nissan Leaf, it has an official range of 106 miles. In Evalia spec, it’s an ideal private hire vehicle because the two rearmost seats fold against the side walls when not needed, creating good luggage space.

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“The feedback has been positive, with people surprised at how easy to drive it is,” said Clare Collings, Nissan’s fleet EV manager. The e-NV200 is on sale now priced £26,276 after the Government’s plug-in car grant. First customer cars are due later in the autumn.

No bus licence required for EVM 8-seater Sprinter

Mercedes-backed minibus converter EVM used ProDriver Live to shine the spotlight on its latest new Mercedes-Benz Sprinter conversion.

And sales manager Peter Flynn believes the short-wheelbase X-Clusive model seen here will

have particular appeal to chauffeur companies looking for a larger vehicle.

“It only has eight seats, so you can drive it on a regular private hire licence,” he said. “There’s no need for a PSV licence and you don’t need a bus operator’s licence to run the vehicle.”

The display vehicle was well equipped, with facing individual leather seats with tables, mood lighting, panoramic roof and built-in infotainment system. It’s priced from around £80,000. “That’s about what you might pay for a well-equipped S-Class,” said Flynn. “But this can take eight passengers and is ideal for corporate events work.”

Audi shifts spotlight to new Q7 The A8 has always been popular with chauffeurs, but Audi was using Pro Driver Live to turn the spotlight on its latest vehicle—the all-new Q7.

“It’s a new product that we’ve not promoted to this sector in the past, but now it’s got features which we think will appeal—such as electric reclining rear seats—and we feel there might be a market for it,” said Steve Griffiths, Audi’s chauffeur programme manager.

He said show visitors had all been driving the A8 or Q7 and had all been serious customers. “We have done quotes and I hope we are going to get some business from this,” he added.

OCTOBER 2015 | PROFESSIONAL DRIVER

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25/9/15 22:48:14

ProDriverLive 2015

exhibition

Echo provides a timely solution for Q Despatch Launching now is a two-day Level 2 programme that’s just the fundamentals, and work in progress for 2016 is a 10-day course that’s Level 3 but will include a RoSPA driving qualification.

Recording the journey inside and out

Richard Yarrow

E

cho, the real-time scheduling and dispatch platform developed by Magenta Technology, has been chosen

by London private hire operator Q Despatch, ranked 91 in the ProDriver 100.

Based in Hampstead, Q Despatch provides services to the public and private sector, including critical care patient transport for the NHS. Director Nick Pavlou said Echo was what he needed to be on time and reliable. “I’ve been looking for an intelligent automated dispatch programme for a while,” he said.

Matt Borland (pictured), Magenta’s sales director, added: “We’re delighted Q Despatch quickly saw the benefits of Echo’s robust, reliable and flexible technology.”

Magenta also used Pro Driver Live to showcase two new apps, both for the iPhone.

The first is an on-demand programme for end users and is part of the Echo suite. It can be branded for the individual operators. The second is for drivers, which had previously only been available for Android devices.

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Raising the standard with Chauffeuring NVQs Why offer one NVQ accredited course when it you can offer three? Chauffeur Training Academy revealed it has just launched a second learning to programme to complement its existing one, and that a third is in the pipeline for next year.

“Standards of chauffeuring are something that we are very passionate about, but our industry is very fragmented and there is no standardisation like there is in France or the US,” said director Steve Sommerfeld.

“We want people to know when they make a booking someone with a clean car and clean suit will turn up.”

The firm’s original course is a five-day Level 3 NVQ in chauffeuring, with modules on protocol and etiquette. That could include topics as diverse as the correct way to open a car door for the customer, what’s acceptable conversation in the car, interpersonal skills, airside work and first aid.

Road Angel was using Pro Driver Live to promote Halo, its first dual-lens camera.

Launched earlier this year, it’s a first for the company which is best known for its speed camera alert system. Halo can film the road ahead, but also into the back seat of the vehicle.

It is completely configurable, and has the option to record sound in addition to video.

Carys Kerr [below], marketing manager, said it appealed to the taxi market and was flying off the shelves. “We’ve sold thousands of units, and we’ve had a good few leads from the people we’ve talked to at the show,” she said.

Guidance over driver employment status The employment status of professional drivers remains a thorny issue, and accountancy firm Drivertax has launched a new service to help clarify the issue.

Called Driver Protect and created in partnership with Accountax Consulting, an expert will come into a business to perform an employment status audit. That will include an inspection of the company’s documents to see what it’s doing right and wrong.

“We’ve done it for a few companies and it’s proved beneficial for them,” said Darren Warmington, business development at Accountax. “Status is a risky situation and when the watchful eye of HMRC rests on a business, it can struggle. By using this service, a company is more likely to be engaging with self-employed people on a legitimate basis.”

OCTOBER 2015 | PROFESSIONAL DRIVER

26/9/15 00:38:38

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25/9/15 22:47:53

ProDriverLive 2015

exhibition

Sherlock looking for homes for its new dispatch system said Julie McColgan, lead tutor in the Logistics department. “It’s about brand awareness, both with show visitors and with other exhibitors.”

Available courses include NVQs in Road Passenger Vehicle Driving, Minibus Safety Training, PCV, and Safe Access for Every-one. McColgan was keen to stress it’s not just about people travelling to Manchester to learn, saying that if a company has enough candidates, tutors will go to them.

Richard Yarrow

S

herlock Taxi Solutions is the new brand of Haulmont Technologies, known as the creator of Addison Lee’s software.

It used ProDriver Live to launch its new end-to-end dispatch system, which includes allocation of jobs, invoicing and driver payment.

Company managing director Paul Lacey said: “It’s a very exciting time for us. We already had 15 customers just from people finding us. There are big opportunities out there because of the Uber effect.”

He believes Sherlock is the world’s most advanced auto-allocator, with 98% automated fleet control. “It has enabled large fleets to grow by 80% and start-ups to grow from 30 to 800 vehicles in just three years,” he said.

You rang, m’lady?

As of May this year, when Taxi Butler was integrated with the main UK professional driver software solutions, the uplift in performance has been impressive.

“We have got 1,000 devices out in the four months since,” said Steven Blom [pictured, top], cofounder of the company. “We have high expectations for next year, and are hoping to at least double or treble that number.”

The yellow Taxi Butler device is little larger than a cigarette packet and sits behind the reception counter in a hotel or restaurant. A staff member simply pushes the button to order a vehicle for immediate pick-up.

Taxi firms rent each device from the company for £10 per month and place it with a client.

The system is appreciated by hotels because it avoids the need for staff to be hanging on the phone, while it helps customer retention and brand loyalty for the taxi firm.

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Catalina offers remote control for partnership bookings Freedom Global is the new software solution from Catalina Software, and ProDriver Live was its public debut.

It controls jobs given to remote agents or partner firms as though they were being done by an operator’s own staff. It sends jobs details to the partner, who accepts it via an app.

“It’s something that the majority of customers do already, but by email or phone. That takes up time,

whereas Freedom Global brings everything together,” said Graeme Whiting, managing director of Catalina.

Manchester College courses are a qualified success Manchester College [pictured, below] provides NVQ-standard driving qualifications for around 700 students a year, and staff members were using the show to raise its profile. “Being here is about making contacts and finding out what people want,”

Cracking down on EV cable theft

It’s not hard to work out what EV Connectors sells, but MD Alan Cook said he’d recently found a niche within the business—personalised charging cables.

“People are less likely to steal a cable if it can be easily identified later, and we’re finding it’s the sort of thing that’s worth mentioning to people,” he explained.

He said the wide variety of cable colours, rather than the traditional black or blue, was appealing to customers. Personalised cable bags are also available through the company’s website.

OCTOBER 2015 | PROFESSIONAL DRIVER

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25/9/15 22:47:45

ProDriverLive 2015

exhibition

Autocab’s Ghost Cloud spreads across the globe Richard Yarrow

A

utocab confirmed that during Pro Driver Live it had signed its 38,000th private hire vehicle to Ghost Cloud, its taxi dispatch system.

The company launched the system internationally in 2013, and also has 28,000 taxis using it outside the UK. Safa Alkateb, Autocab managing director, said: “With 38,000 taxis, Ghost Cloud is easily the world’s largest.

Autocab serves more than 26 countries across five continents, but this UK milestone is of particular pride because Autocab began and is headquartered in the UK.” Ghost Cloud features software for bookings, dispatch and accounts, plus driver and customer apps. The company says taxi firms have been signing up at an unprecedented rate over the last months. Its pay-as-you-go pricing structure costs just £2 per car per week.

Exciting times as White 7 lines up franchisees White 7 UK is a new franchised chauffeur business for postcoded areas across the country.

As the name suggests, it’s based around the BMW 7-Series and all cars have to be finished in white with a cream interior. “As with all franchising, it’s getting the first five or six going to build momentum. It’s exciting

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times but we have a lot of work to do,” said director Alan Bowyer, pictured left with White 7 co-founder Anthony Randall.

The company started life in Shropshire, where it ran a chauffeur business for three years. That has now been sold as one of the first franchises, while Guildford has also been taken. Six more in different parts of the UK are in advanced negotiations.

“We can have up to 123 franchises across the UK and hope to have 15 in place by the end of next year,” said Bowyer.

SEIB celebrates RSA switch SEIB Insurance Brokers used ProDriver Live to promote the recent move of their motor business to the multinational insurer RSA, including cover for executive hire.

SEIB stand staff were on hand to reassure existing customers that there would not be any extra paperwork, and SEIB promises seamless processing of all renewals.

Essex-based SEIB has been offering private hire and chauffeur insurance for 40 years, and the switch to RSA gives greater financial security.

RSA, founded more than 300 years ago, is one of the leading multinational quoted insurance groups in the world and is A-rated by Standard & Poor’s.

High five for Kindertons’ Taxi Assist service

Happy Birthday to Kindertons Accident Management! Laura Ellison, claims manager [pictured, below], led the fun on the stand as the company celebrated five years of its Taxi Assist product, which provides replacement licensed vehicles. Sales manager Richard Goodwin said: “We’ve helped thousands of drivers in that time, with around 200-250 vehicles a month going out.”

News In Brief When a Plan comes together… n Formerly operating under the brand names Taxi Plan and Chauffeur Plan, following a rebranding process the company is now just Plan Insurance Brokers.

“It seems to be working for us, as we’ve had a 40% increase in website traffic since July,” said Daniel Severin, sales manager. “Sales are also up slightly, but we are as much about quality as quantity, and are quite picky about who we will insure. Our lead-to-quote ratio is around 30%.”

Get the knowledge with MKUK n MKUK is the new name for Mobile Knowledge UK, a provider of end-to-end dispatch solutions. It offers customers an all-in-one cloud-based fleet management, booking and dispatch system. Its TaxiHail passenger booking app for iOS and Android can be branded with a company’s logo and colours, allowing them to book a vehicle in just three clicks.

“We’ve tripled our staff and sales aspirations in the last year and the rebranding is working for us 100 per cent,” said Ashley Cowie, sales and marketing manager.

Smart thinking on handsets n Taxi Logistics used its stand to showcase its range of Kazam smartphones. The handset is popular because of its dual sim cards, meaning if the user loses one network he can often pick up another.

Owner Mark Pollak said the company was the UK’s largest distributor of Kazam smartphones, with more than 10,000 sold in the last year. “Drivers also love it because it has a strong GPS signal and there are no repair costs—if it gets broken we send you another.”

OCTOBER 2015 | PROFESSIONAL DRIVER

26/9/15 00:38:59

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25/9/15 22:47:36

ProDriverLive 2015

exhibition

Dever reaches out to a global audience Richard Yarrow

D

ever Software is going global, thanks to interest in its Dispatch booking system from as far afield as Europe, the Middle East and Australia. Its client base has now reaches 50 operators.

“At the moment we’re canvassing opinion to see what people want us to have in the system, and we’re taking those comments on board,” said director Alan Hayter [pictured, right].

The company has developed a Windows front end with a featurerich graphical user interface, but with a cloud database behind.

It’s also created a new web portal that users can access via mobile, because that’s what customers said they wanted. “Many are owner-operators, so it means they can have their office out on the road with them, and can email confirmations.”

Dever was also giving a world debut to its new corporate video, an animation explaining how the booking software works.

Veho’s Genie lets driver jobs out of the bottle Veho, a company which supplies professional drivers to customers who already have cars, is launching its in-house software solution to the wider market.

Called Veho Genie, it allows drivers to apply for jobs posted on the system, but also covers everything from dispatch to invoicing.

“Lots of companies are looking to use something like this, and there are many with dispatch software but without the focus on the contract management

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side of things,” said Tom Bowen, UK sales manager.

He said it would allow companies to move away from Excel spreadsheets, and focus on growing their business rather than running it.

Transdev deal brings £3 million investment in Cabfind Family business Cabfind was sold to Transdev in February this

year, and the move has given the management team the confidence to invest for the future.

“It’s given us support and back-up to take things to the next level with strength and depth,” said Debbie Thompson, Cabfind’s commercial director.

“For example, we’re currently spending £3 million to improve the efficiency of the booking process, with a view to launching it in Q1 next year.”

Started in 2008, the company works with train companies to move their crews between

stations, depots and site access points during engineering works.

Its nationwide network of 1,400 suppliers and 120,000 vehicles can also be called in to assist with passengers’ onward travel in the event of train service disruption. The business is now expanding into other sectors, too.

Transcend launches infra-red dual-lens dashcam The DrivePro 520 dual-lens camera is the latest product from in-car video recording company Transcend, and it was launched at ProDriver Live, pictured left. The device has a forward-facing lens, plus another—which includes infra-red for night-time use—to capture the car’s back seat. Fitted with a 32GB hard drive as standard, the DrivePro 520 costs £159.99.

OCTOBER 2015 | PROFESSIONAL DRIVER

26/9/15 00:39:10

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25/9/15 22:47:30

product tests

Inverters

SOMETIMES IT HAS TO BE THE MAINS



MODERN LIFE IS DOMINATED BY electronic gadgets, and nowhere is that more true than in today’s business world. The computer, phone and tablet have become essential tools in the vast majority of commercial activity.

Technological advances have also meant these tools can be used on the move, and for many users this is as vital to their work as the computer itself.

While the portable gadgetry has become smaller and faster, it still relies on a battery, which needs to be recharged. There are many USB adaptors available which will turn your cigar lighter socket in to a charging socket, and many cars already have these as part of the sound and navigation system.

To revive a laptop, though, you need mains power, which is where inverters come in.

These can work off the cigar lighter or a direct connection to the battery, and convert the car’s 12v DC power in to the 230V AC required for a laptop charger. For the customer on the move this can be a service that sets you and your company apart from competitors—and it won’t break the bank.

Many inverters also feature USB chargers so clients can charge two devices at a time, and with a block mains adapter more than that is possible.

You can pay from under £20 to at least 10 times that—so how do you pick the inverters for your fleet? For the prestige car used in the industry you don’t want a device that looks like it’s more at home in a server room, so looks are important. It also needs to be stored in the car as you don’t want to have to stop to fetch the inverter from the boot when needed. Your choice also needs to work off the cigar lighter socket.

Direct connections can provide more power but loose wires will do nothing for the visual appeal of the cabin and clearing it away for the next customer may be time-consuming. More power is not always best as cigar lighter sockets are generally limited to around 150 Watts— enough for a laptop but not the power hungry tools and lights higher capacity inverters can cope with.

So which is the one that will put you one step ahead of the competition? We plugged in 10 to find out.

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|>| THE TEST...



POWER IS KEY HERE SO WE CHECKED THE VOLTAGE UNDER LOAD PLUS ENSURED EACH could charge a MacBook Pro. We then looked for USB sockets and checked they could cope with charging an iPad and iPhone. A Canon camera battery charger was also part of our test devices and finally we saw how many devices could be powered at the same time to assess the overall capacity. Marks were also given for ease of storage, power switches and lights plus lead length. Finally we factored in cost from online sources.

Ring MP: 120 Compact Inverter Price: Contact: Rating:

£24.99 www.ringautomotive.co.uk ★★★★★ best buy

T

here are more powerful units around but this easy to store device from Ring is probably all the power you need for the vast majority of clients. Its 120W inverter gave a steady voltage output that had no trouble with our Apple laptop plus charged all four of our test devices at the same time. Its USB socket coped with our Apple kit, plus it comes with a tidy coiled 60cm or so lead. Keen price makes it a winner.

Bestek MR13013BU Price: CONTACT: Rating:

£24.99 www.amazon.co.uk ★★★★ RECOMMENDED

■ With a 300 Watt output, this has more power than you’ll ever need in car but crucially it is tightly packaged in a 120mm long casing. It makes the most of that extra grunt by being the only unit in this test to boast two USB outlets. Both were Apple friendly charging our iPhone and iPad although some mains plugs may foul one of the USB sockets. It was no surprise the Bestek coped with all four of our devices.

Ring Powersource Inverters RINVU150 Price: £22 Contact: www.ringautomotive.co.uk Rating: ★★★★ ■ If your cigar lighter socket is some way from your passengers, then this Ring may be the solution with its 90cm long power lead which should be enough to put the mains socket in the rear seat from the dash cigar lighter. Despite only having a 150 Watt output it delivered one of the higher voltage outputs and it was steady too. It could power all our test gear at the same time although its cooling fan was a touch noisy at full load.

OCTOBER 2015 | PROFESSIONAL DRIVER

26/9/15 00:39:32

—Kim Adams RAC 150 Watt Inverter Price: Contact: Rating:

£29.99 www.saxon-shop.com ★★★★

■ Designed to slip into a cupholder, this RAC-branded inverter has storage licked when working but a slot may be harder to find when not in use. But it looks neat and boasts an Apple-friendly USB port plus a tidy coiled lead that can easily make 75cm.

It charged all our Apple kit at the same time but the additional camera charger was marginal. Voltage was relatively high but could be more stable.

Draper 28814 Price: Contact: Rating:

£37.40 www.drapertools.com ★★★

product tests

Sealey PS1300 Price: £80.60 Contact: www.sealey.co.uk Rating: ★★★ ■ Pure sine wave inverters like this one from Sealey are designed to replicate more accurately the kind of mains power you get in the home or office. This gives better performance when using TVs and the like but probably beyond the everyday in-car use. But there’s a premium feel to this unit, which coped with our performance tests plus it was quiet. It comes with battery leads to allow full 300 Watt capacity to be used, but no USB.

■ With a 200 Watt continuous output and 400 Watt maximum this was the powerhouse of this test and sailed through our charging tests. We also liked the cooling fan, which only came on when the unit was under load. It also has a useful 90cm power lead. Less good is the USB socket that didn’t want to know about our Apple kit and the requirement for the unit to be earthed to the car.

Rockland 75W Inverter Price: Contact: Rating:

£15.59 www.tetrosyl.com ★★★

■ All-in-one design that plugs directly into the lighter socket makes storage easy, but can cause problems if the socket is on the dash or blocked by a cover or gear lever. Handily the mains outlet can cope with European plugs as well as UK. It’s certainly easy on the pocket but output is limited although should be enough for more requirements. It coped with our laptop and the iPad in the USB socket although it struggled with the camera battery charger.

Sealey P1300 Price: Contact: Rating:

£42.95 www.sealy.co.uk ★★★

■ Like several other more powerful units price counts against this Sealey in this company. You get a choice of cigar lighter or crocodile clip leads for direct connection to the battery should you want to make full use of its capacity. It breezed through our charging tests and there was no requirement for an earth. Less good though was a USB socket that was not Apple-friendly.

Clarke C1400B Price: Contact: Rating:

£29.99 www.machinemart.co.uk ★★★

■ This Clarke gets off to a bad start thanks to a requirement for an earth.

Its problems are compounded by a non-Apple compatible USB socket.

More positively it has a switch and power light plus a steady, close to mains voltage output. It could power all our Apple kit at the same time via the mains socket but the camera charger was a step too far for this 200 Watt device.

prodrivermags.com | OCTOBER 2015

46-ProDriver-Oct-2015.indd 47

Ring E:Can+ Price: Contact: Rating:

£29.99 www. ringautomotive.co.uk ★★

■ This inverter from Ring has a lot going for it. It’s designed to slip into a cupholder, it has an Apple-compatible USB suitable for a power hungry iPad plus a neat coiled lead with a useful dock in the casing for the cigar lighter plug. But its fluctuating power output barely topped 200 volts and it fell at the first hurdle by failing to consistently charge our MacBook.

It managed the rest but laptop revival is a key requirement.

| >| THE VERDICT...



RING’S NEAT COMPACT INVERTER ticks just about all the boxes, coping easily with most demands, and it’s dead easy to store. For more capacity the 300W Bestek was barely challenged by our test kit, and it was one of the smallest of the conventional box inverters.

Completing the podium was the Ring 150W Powersource Inverter with its keen price and usefully long lead.

47

26/9/15 00:39:43

long term

Audi Q7 3.0 TDI quattro S-line 272PS Tiptronic

Sports versatility vehicle

PRICE £63,025 ENGINE 3.0-litre V6 turbodiesel TRANSMISSION 8-speed Tiptronic auto, 4WD POWER 272PS at 3,250-4,250rpm TORQUE 600Nm at 1,500-3,000rpm MAX SPEED 145mph 0-62MPH 6.5sec CO2 EMISSIONS 163g/km COMBINED FUEL ECONOMY 47.9mpg (combined) LUGGAGE VOLUME 770 litres (3rd row folded) OVERALL LENGTH 5,052mm OVERALL HEIGHT 1,741mm OVERALL WIDTH 1,968mm WHEELBASE 2,994mm TURNING CIRCLE 12.4m FUEL TANK CAPACITY 75 litres

long-term test Audi Q7 3.0 TDI quattro S-line 272PS Tiptronic 48

48-ProDriver-Oct-2015.indd 48

Paul Webb



AS YOU MIGHT HAVE gathered from this issue, last month we held our inaugural ProDriver Live conference and exhibition.

And what you need when organising a big event such as ProDriver Live is reliable and flexible transport.

I’ve travelled the length and breadth of the country in support of the event over the past few weeks for a myriad of reasons, and quite often with a full car people or various goods.

Thank goodness I had the Q7—eagle-eyed among you might have noticed I’ve got a different one this month, in a more sober colour scheme inside and out, though with the same powertrain and S-Line spec.

Regardless of the colour, the Q7 has proved to be one of the most versatile cars I have driven, and ideal for the variety of jobs I’ve had to do. It has not only provided me with the comfort levels of a high-spec chauffeur car, but the utility benefits of a small van.

On at least three occasions I had to utilise the seven-seat option, which is a real joy to use. You just press a button in the load area

side wall and the extra rear seats just pop out of the floor. And they’re proper seats for adults too!

All of my passengers, even those in row three, commented on the feeling of space and the quality of the seats and finish within the car. The off-road option didn’t have to be used but the comfort mode setting really makes a difference on long motorway hauls.

When I had to load up with a few thousand magazines and show guides along with posters and stand banners, the car swallowed the lot with ease, and the extra weight made no difference to the ride on any road surface.

I have really enjoyed my two months in the new Q7, and can honestly say this is a car that any of your customers would be happy to pay top dollar to ride in. It offers the operator the flexibility of a proper 7-seater option or in five-seat mode, the ability to swallow as much luggage as your customers could throw at you.

Oh, and throughout the month I achieved a very impressive 42.3mpg, which really does make the Q7 viable in the chauffeuring sector.

So before you buy a saloon that might limit the work you can accept, take a Q7 out for a test drive and see if, like me, you become an instant fan.

OCTOBER 2015 | PROFESSIONAL DRIVER

26/9/15 00:30:06

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25/9/15 22:47:09

the advisor

–by Gary Jacobs

Know your rights on the HMRC charter

W

GARY JACOBS RUNS DRIVERTAX, AN ACCOUNTANCY FIRM SPECIALISING IN THE TAXI AND PRIVATE HIRE BUSINESS GARY@DRIVERTAX.CO.UK

inter is just around the corner, and it brings with it yet again more changes to the penalty scheme, which has already come as a terrible shock for many sole traders who were expecting a sharp rap on the knuckles for being late and got a swift and painful kick in the ribs instead.

On a positive note, did you know that HM Revenue and Customs is subject to a charter, which does give it obligations, and gives you rights. Here it is…

HMRC What you can expect from us: 1 — Respect you 2 — Help and support you to get things right

3 — Treat you as honest 4 — Treat you even-handedly 5 — Be professional and act with integrity 6 — Tackle people who deliberately break the rules and challenge those who bend the rules 7 — Protect your information and respect your privacy 8 — Accept that someone else can represent you 9 — Do all we can to keep the cost of dealing with us as low as possible.

It’s worth checking out the full document on www. gov.uk/government/publications/your-charter and reminding your friendly local inspector of your rights next time you see him.

Child Benefit changes must be reported

H

HMRC TASK FORCE IN ULSTER CAB CRACKDOWN An HMRC task force has raided eight taxi company business premises across Northern Ireland as part of an investigation into suspected tax evasion.

HMRC officers visited the premises in Antrim, Down and Fermanagh, and removed business records for examination. Michael Connolly, HMRC’s Taskforce Coordinator in Northern Ireland, said: “Tax evasion is a crime that costs society dearly. While over 90% of people play by the rules and pay their dues, our taskforces target areas where we see a risk that people won’t pay what they owe.” Enquiries are on-going. Those caught out could face a penalty or even a criminal prosecution.

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MRC has tweeted a reminder to anyone that receives child benefit that changes to family life such as a change in the child’s or family’s circumstances must be reported. This is to ensure that the correct amount of money is paid in respect of each child.

The weekly rates of child benefit for the only or eldest child in a family is currently £20.70 and the weekly rate for all other children is £13.70. Taxpayers entitled to the child benefit should be aware that HMRC usually stops paying child benefit on the August 31 following a child’s 16th birthday.

Under qualifying circumstances, the child benefit payment can continue until a child reaches his or her 20th birthday.

The High Income Child Benefit charge applies to higher rate taxpayers whose income exceeds £50,000 in a tax year and who are in receipt of child benefit. The charge either reduces or removes the financial benefit of receiving child benefit. Where both partners have an income that exceeds £50,000, the charge will apply only to the partner with the highest income.

For taxpayers with income above £60,000, the amount of the charge will equal the amount of child benefit received.

Taxpayers have the choice of whether to keep receiving child benefit and pay the tax charge through Self Assessment, or can elect to stop receiving child benefit and not pay the new charge.

New penalty scheme?

Earlier this year, HMRC published a consultation that examined various options for strengthening the effectiveness of its penalties regime. The consultation looked at introducing a wider use of technology to deal with both compliant taxpayers and those who try to “bend or break the rules”.

In the consultation document, HMRC appeared to suggest that a one size fits all penalty may not always be the best option. For example, the consultation mentioned the case of the VAT default surcharge and the fact that the current system does not differentiate between payments that are a day or two late against payments that are many months late.

The consultation has now closed and a summary of the responses received has been published. There was general agreement that the focus on persistent non-compliers, rather than those who might make the occasional error, was the correct focus.

The respondents also broadly agreed with the following five principles outlined in the discussion document: 1 The penalty regime should be designed from the taxpayer perspective, primarily to encourage compliance and prevent noncompliance. Penalties are not to be applied with the objective of raising revenues.

2 Penalties should be proportionate to the offence and may take into account past behaviour.

3 Penalties must be applied fairly, ensuring that compliant taxpayers are (and are seen to be) in a better position than the non-compliant.

4 Penalties must provide a credible threat. If there is a penalty, we must have the operational capability and capacity to raise it accurately, and if we raise it, we must be able to collect it in a cost-efficient manner.

5 Taxpayers should see a consistent and standardised approach. Variations will be those necessary to take into account customer behaviours and particular taxes HMRC will continue to work on proposals for a new penalty scheme for late filing and late payment and then on inaccuracy penalties. If the Government ultimately decides to make legislative changes the earliest possible date for legislation would be in Finance Bill 2017.

OCTOBER 2015 | PROFESSIONAL DRIVER

26/9/15 00:30:38

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OCTOBER 2015 | PROFESSIONAL DRIVER

25/9/15 22:52:44

the negotiator

–By Steve Garelick

INTERESTING TIMES

The threat of automated cars and problems at the airports

W

STEVE GARELICK IS BRANCH SECRETARY OF THE PROFESSIONAL DRIVERS BRANCH OF THE GMB TRADE UNION

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ITH THE ULTRA LOW EMISSIONS ZONE PROPOSALS, THE RISE OF UBER AND ongoing taxi and private hire consultations, there hasn’t been a more chaotic or evolutionary time in the history of professional driving since the dawn of the minicabs in the early 1960s.

And that change is going to continue—we can be sure that as car design and technology evolves, in time vehicles will become more autonomous.

In the GMB’s response to Transport for London’s private hire consultation, we included the following statement: “Most importantly we request that the following regulation with this or similar phraseology is included in any changes: Any automated conveyance used for hire and reward or shared journeys is attended physically by a Licensed driver/operator at all times rather than virtually from a remote location, be the remote location within the United Kingdom or overseas. No control scheduling or otherwise should enable the conveyance to be driven at any time without an attendant.”

“Self-Propelling or Automated Vehicles should only be licensed if the individual or company offering the service can prove that they meet this criteria and the vehicle will not be used when unattended for paying customers or those offered unpaid journeys by way of obfuscation of the regulations.”

This is not protectionism but a clear understanding of the need for individuals to have control in driving situations.

As manufacturers pour more in to autonomous vehicles the rate of advances mean that the next-generation Mercedes-Benz E-Class will have “self-driving” features few could have imagined just a few years ago.

The profession must act to protect itself from companies that might use this technology to hasten our demise.

Recently I was at a meeting with Heathrow Airport, which was attended by local residents, councils, councillors, trade representatives and Heathrow’s team.

One of the greatest areas for concern is drivers parking in residential streets close to the airport, and their failure to follow airport by-laws. During the meeting I agreed to draft a drivers’ and owners’ code of conduct for Heathrow and the surrounding neighbourhoods.

I can tell you that residents are putting up with multiple issues from running engines and blocking driveways to using the area as a public toilet and showing abusive behaviour to residents.

Heathrow is now seeking a place for drivers to park prior to pick-ups, which will have toilets and food facilities on site. Heathrow’s main gripe is continued parking on the drop-off areas as this inhibits others from dropping passengers.

Speaking with experience of this, I can tell you it is really annoying when you need to drop a client and the zone is full of drivers who are too cheap to pay for parking, waiting for their passengers. These are the type of operators who like to claim they offer the cheapest service in town—as if this were something to be proud of.

Not only does this probably mean the drivers are earning less per mile than others but it gives the public the green light to under-pay for professional services.

Operators often forget that without happy drivers with good income they will lose them. Unless operators increase their rates and either include parking or waiting charges, issues such as exist at Heathrow will proliferate.

Talking of airports—why on earth is Luton airport so lousy to collect passengers from? Not only does the car park resemble a derelict site with pot holes, but when it’s raining, the walk means passengers end up soaked before they reach the car.

Luton claims to be a London airport but is quite some way away. If it is a London airport why does it charge London PHV drivers to drop passengers?

It’s bad enough that drivers are charged to drop off for no benefit whatsoever, but in my view the passengers have already paid to travel from the airport, so why should they or the driver have to pay for the privilege to visit?

Stansted airport is just as bad—it now charges drivers twice if they prepay and don’t leave within 10 minutes. Surely, if you pay for parking you should receive the full duration, and not be charged extra for trying to save time when departing.

■ The next GMB professional drivers branch meeting is at GMB Euston on November 3, 2015 at 7.00 pm OCTOBER 2015 | PROFESSIONAL DRIVER

26/9/15 00:30:54

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The largest Jaguar Chauffeur specialist in the UK. Call or email Matthew Howard for individual quotation & advice: [T] 01923 992 682 [M] 07909 992 682 Matthew.howard@spireautomotive.com www.watfordjaguar.co.uk/ chauffeur-programme

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PCO Car Hire: Licensed Carriage Hire Are the Preeminent Suppliers of High Specification, Luxury PCO Licensed Vehicles to the Chauffeur Industry.

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Catalina Software Ltd Catalina Software has been delivering flexible and feature-rich logistic solutions to chauffeur, executive car, courier and specialist logistics businesses since 1997.

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YOU’RE LOOKING AT THE SAME SECTION AS THE READERS List your company here, prices start from £450+VAT for 12 issues— Call 01959 547000 and ask for James Derbyshire, who will make sure you’re listed in the next issue

SoftSol Ltd Established since 1995, SoftSol Limited is a UK company providing back office management software solutions to operators in the chauffeur/limo/airport transfer and private hire industry.

Tel: 0845 074 0545 www.softsol.ltd.uk

KEY TRACKING

Key Tracker Established in 1996 and based in the West Midlands, Keytracker provide cost effective mechanical and electronic key control systems, ensuring improved key security and asset management.

Whether you have keys for vehicles and machinery that need enhanced security, or equipment and tools that need to be monitored effectively, Keytracker can provide you with a secure, organised approach to key and asset management. www.keytracker.co.uk www.ilockerz.com Info@keytracker.co.uk or Sales@ keytracker.co.uk Tel.: 0121 559 9000 Station Road, Rowley-Regis, West Midlands, B65 0JY

TOYOTA DEALERS

Currie Motors Twickenham Nice people to do business with Toyota Fleet Business Centre ■ 40 years In London ■ Business To Business/Fleet Sales ■ Specialists In PCO ■ Finance/Leasing ■ 4 Toyota London Centres ■ We will respond to a request for quotation within 24 hours ■ Delivery to your business with first PCO test completed Contact Neil Glasson on 020 8607 8567 or 0777 151 7609 E: neil.glasson@curriemotors.co.uk W: www.curriemotors.toyota.co.uk/ business-fleet-car-leasing

OCTOBER 2015 | PROFESSIONAL DRIVER

25/9/15 22:52:53

the insider

–By John Coombes

GROWING PAINS The path to expansion is exciting, but daunting

T EVERYDAY PROBLEMS FROM THE OPERATOR’S POINT OF VIEW...

HERE ARE MANY THINGS TO KEEP THE OWNER OF THE PROFESSIONAL CHAUFFEUR

company occupied during the everyday operation of the fleet.

Customer enquiries, keeping the drivers informed, managing the staff and fleet while keeping a watchful eye on the competition! All this takes time and can eventually mean that the hands-on owner can end up suddenly confined to office duties to try and keep on top of the running of the business.

As a medium sized chauffeur fleet I have found that taking steps to increase your business both in terms of size of fleet and profitability is one that needs to be clearly thought through. As soon as the number of employees on your books reaches more than five, then your duties as an employer become significant! Health and Safety, Duty of Care, work-based pensions, minimum wage and now living wage to list just a few. The impact on the already tight bottom line can be significant.

It is with this in mind that understanding your business and the changing legislation you are required to comply with may force you to consider very carefully how and whether to continue in the future. We have seen many chauffeur fleet mergers, the rise of the London operators looking outside the capital to increase their footprint northwards and the ever-present threat of taxi operators claiming to offer executive services nipping at our heels.

The trick is to decide to stay true to your core business or to fight fire with fire and to diversify to meet the changing face of our industry.

2015 has been an exciting, yet daunting year for FEC. We decided that being forced by legislation to “stay small” was not an option! Embracing new technology has always been a core principle of FEC with development of our own bespoke customer booking tool proving to be popular with our clients and also attracting quality affiliate operators to work with us across the UK. It has been developed with FEC and its way of doing things in mind and therefore works well.

That said, my decision to move to a new cloud-based taxi despatch system for our new private hire taxi fleet has been fraught with challenges and delays and has proved a costly learning curve for all our staff and drivers and surprisingly the staff at our technology provider. In our bid to grasp new technology, and in no doubt the supplier’s push to release its new system, it became apparent very quickly that there were problems.

The system was not ready, and indeed could not deal with a more complex taxi/chauffeur operation, requiring wider geographical coverage or credit card payments. So take care when deciding what technology to adopt and be thorough in listing what your business requires before committing, as it may not actually “do what it says on the tin”!

The support and back-up you receive from any software house will be critical to your expansion plans so be sure to do your homework and not take the salesman’s word as gospel.

This year saw FEC move its business operations to Blackpool Airport, another big step for a medium sized operation, but one which was vital in our decision to increase our executive car business and also launch a standard car taxi operation. By widening our client base I hope to attract the required growth needed to meet the costs of those external legislative pressures building on all employers.

We all know that our fellow operators on the Continent will not be bogged down with such matters as H&S and work-based pensions, and we all know of UK-based companies that on the outside appear to be successful but underneath are “chancing their arm” to make ends meet in these competitive times.

But I believe those who operate properly will still be here in years to come.

Finding your market is difficult. Making the transition from small to bigger business needs serious consideration and is challenging but rewarding if you build strong foundations. But always remember— owning any business in the UK will never be easy!

■ John Coombes is managing director of Fylde Executive Cars, Lancashire’s biggest chauffeur firm

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OCTOBER 2015 | PROFESSIONAL DRIVER

26/9/15 00:32:02

chauffeur driven

chauffeur driven

TO PLACE YOUR FREE ADVERTISEMENT CONTACT PAUL OR IAN ON 01959 547000 NOW ASTON MARTIN RAPIDE V12 AUTO 6.0 ■ 2010, Saloon, 31,220 miles,

Automatic, 5.9L, Petrol 1000W B&O BeoSound Audio System, Bluetooth Phone Connection, Heated and Ventilated Seats, 20 Inch Double Spoke Alloy Wheels, Integrated Apple i-Pod Connector, Matching Wood Door Inserts, Piano Black Facia Trim, 6 CD Autochanger, Front and Rear Parking Sensors, Adaptive Damping System (ADS), 12 Month Aston Martin Approved Warranty, Alarm and Immobiliser, Auto Dimming Interior Rear View Mirror, Cruise Control, Clear Rear Lamps, Climate Control, Full Grained leather Interior, £62,990

TEL.: (01932) 964794 BMW 5 SERIES GRAN TURISMO 2.0TD 520D ■ 2015, Hatchback, 707 miles,

Automatic, 2.0L, Diesel 20 inch Double-spoke style 303 M alloy wheels, Alarm system (Thatcham 1), Ambient lighting, Auto dimming and folding exterior mirrors, Automatic air conditioning, BMW Apps interface, BMW Online services, BMW Professional navigation system, DAB digital radio, Dakota Leather interior, Electric front seats with driver memory, Enhanced Bluetooth telephone with USB and voice control, Fineline Anthracite wood interior trim, Front and rear park distance control (PDC), Heated front seats, M Sport Package, Panoramic glass sunroof, Real time traffic information, £30,850

TEL.: (01484) 973951

BENTLEY FLYING SPUR SALOON W12

BMW 7 SERIES 730D M SPORT

■ 2013, Saloon, 36,879 miles,

■ 2014, Saloon, 29,083 miles,

Automatic, 6.0L, Petrol Service History, Mulliner driving specification, 21” 5 spoke two piece alloy wheels - Painted, Rear view camera, Massage and ventilation function to front and rear seats, Electric glass tilt and slide sunroof, Power boot opening and closing, SIM card slot, Deep pile Wilton overmats, Embroidered Bentley emblem in headrest, Dark stained burr walnut veneer, Cordless privacy handset for telephone, Navtrak ADR. 5 seats, Dark Sapphire, £96,850

TEL.: (01565) 220305

FORD GALAXY 2.0 TDCI TITANIUM X

■ 2012, Saloon, 31,000 miles,

■ 2013, MPV, 41,000 miles,

Automatic, 1.6L, Diesel WILL BE SERVICED AT THE POINT OF SALE AND MOT TESTED UNTIL THE END OF SEPTEMBER 2016 WITH NO ADVISORY NOTICES. JUST £30 A YEAR TO TAX, Next MOT due 29/09/2016, Last serviced at 22,798 miles, Full dealership history, Black Cloth interior, Colour Satellite Navigation, European Mapping, Automatic Air Conditioning with Soft Diffusion System, Bluetooth System, Cruise Control with Speed Limiter, Rear parking sensors, Multifunction steering wheel with Paddleshift, RDS Stereo Radio/MP3 Compatible CD Player, £9,495

TEL.: (07970) 756436 INFINITI Q70 2.2D SPORT TECH

■ 2015, Estate, 14,870 miles,

■ 2015, Saloon, 2,500 miles,

TEL.: (01789) 298975 LAND ROVER RANGE ROVER 3.0 TD V6 5 seats Metallic Santorini 2015 model year 1 Owner Ivory Leather Upholstery Sliding Panoramic Sunroof Privacy Glass Heated Steering Wheel TV

TEL.: (01603) 397013

TEL.: (01483) 422011 JAGUAR XJ 5.0 V8 SUPERCHARGED SUPERSPORT ■ 2012, Saloon, 11,856 miles,

Automatic, 5.0L, Petrol THIS CAR COMES WITH 2 YEARS JAGUAR WARRANTY, Upgrades - Blind Spot Monitor, Privacy Glass, Front Digital/Analogue Television Tuner, Digital Audio Broadcasting Radio Reciever, Full dealership history, Black Full leather interior, Standard Features - Leather, Jet, Blind-spot monitoring, 6-speed automatic transmission, DAB digital radio, 20’’ Mataiva alloy wheels, 8 inch DualView touch-screen display, Adaptive Dynamics, Adaptive xenon headlamps, Automatic climate control, Bi-xenon headlights, £41,000

TEL.: (0113) 3996297 MAZDA6 D SE-L NAV 2.2

■ 2015, Saloon, 8,000 miles,

■ 2015, Estate, 2,000 miles,

TEL.: (07810) 540861

TEL.: (01332) 425392

■ Ebony Headlining ■ Private Sale

Automatic, 2.0L, Diesel Air Conditioning - CFC-Free with Dual-Zone Electronic Automatic Temperature Control (DEATC) and Rear Compartment Heater, Cruise Control Includes Adjustable Speed Limiting Device (ASLD), Front and Rear Parking Distance Sensors, Sony DAB Radio, Voice Control System, 17in 5x2 - Spoke Alloys Wheels (225/50 Tyres) with Locking Wheel Nuts, Automatic Wipers with Rain Sensor, Bluetooth Hands Free Phone, Electrically - Operated Front and Rear Windows, with One - Touch Lowering/Closing, Anti-Trap Feature and Global Opening/Closing, £18,000

LEXUS GS 300H 2.5

Please call for further details, FINANCE CAN BE ARRANGED SUBJECT TO STATUS, £65,000

Automatic, 3.0L, Diesel

■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■

Automatic, 2.2L, Diesel Black Full leather interior, Electric Glass Sunroof, Dual Zone Adaptive Climate Control with Auto Recirculation, Heated Driver and Front Passenger Seats, Intelligent Cruise Control (ICC) with Low Speed Following (LSF), Rear View Camera with Front and Rear Parking Sensors with Display, 1 CD Reader with MP3, WMA Compatibility and 2GB Infiniti Music Box, USB/iPod Connectivity and AUX - in RCA, 10 - Way Power Drivers and Front Passenger Seats with Memory Function, All - Doors Power Windows with Auto - Closure Linked to I - Key, £27,990

Automatic, 2.5L, Hybrid 18In Alloy Wheels, Alarm, Anti-Lock Brakes, Automatic Dimming Rear View Mirrors Internal, Bluetooth Interface Telephone Equipment, Body Coloured Bumpers, Centre Console, Centre Rear Seat Belt, Climate Control, Cruise Control, Driver Passenger Front Side And Front Side Air Bags, Driver/Passenger Air Bag Knee, Driver/Passenger Electric Seat Lumbar Support, Electric Front/Driver Memory Seat Height Adjustment, Electric Rake/Reach Adjustable Steering Column/Wheel, Electric/ Heated/Folding/Auto Dimming Door Mirrors, Electronic Stability Programme, Front Armrest, Front Fog Lights, Front/Rear Electric Windows, £31,950

■ 2014, SUV, 11,000 miles,

TEL.: (0843) 7705265

CITROEN C5 1.6 E-HDI AIRDREAM 16V VTR

HYUNDAI I40 TOURER 1.7 CRDI Manual, 1.7L, Diesel HPI CLEAR, DELIVERY TO WHOLE OF UK, MOT + SERVICE COMPLETED IF DUE, FULL VALET, A1 CONDITION , FSH, BEST P/X PRICES PAID, BALANCE OF MANUFACTURER’S WARRANTY, 16In Alloy Wheels, Alarm, Anti-Lock Brakes, Audio/Telephone Steering Wheel Mounted Controls, Automatic Dimming Rear View Mirrors Internal, Bluetooth Interface Telephone Equipment, Body Coloured Bumpers, Centre Console, Centre Rear Seat Belt, Climate Control, Cruise Control, Cup Holder, Driver Air Bag Knee, Driver Passenger And Front Side Air Bags, Driver/Passenger, £17,000

Automatic, 3.0L, Diesel 2 owners, BMW ConnectedDrive Assist, BMW emergency call, BMW information plus, BMW online + Apps interface, BMW remote services, BMW teleservices, Colour information display, Enhanced bluetooth telephone functionality with telematics, USB audio interface + voice control, Front/ rear Parking distance control, IDrive controller on centre console, On board computer including check control info bar, Professional multimedia navigation system, Real time traffic information, Run flat indicator (RFI) - tyre puncture warning system, Service interval indicator, Servotronic PAS, £32,390

Manual, 2.2L, Diesel 12v Socket, Cruise Control, Cupholders, Front & Rear Electric Windows, Front Armrest, Fuel Computer, Leather Steering Wheel, Lumbar Support, Pollen Filter, Power Assisted Steering (PAS), Privacy Glass, Rear View Auto Dimming Mirror, Split Rear Seats, Steering Column - Adjustable, Bluetooth Preparation (Phone), Roof Rails, CD Radio, DAB Radio, Satellite Navigation, USB and AUX, Cloth Upholstery, Solid Paint, Anti Lock Brakes, Auto On Headlights, Curtain Airbags, Driver Airbag, Electronic Stability Programme (ESP), Front Fog Lights, Front Parking Sensor, ISOFIX, Passenger Airbag, £20,995

TEL.: (01205) 310044

MASERATI QUATTROPORTE 3.0

PORSCHE CAYENNE D V8 S TIPTRONIC

MERCEDES-BENZ S CLASS 3.5 S400L

■ 2015, Saloon, Automatic,

■ 2013, SUV, 22,127 miles,

■ 2013, Saloon, 22,716 miles,

3.0L, Diesel

■ 5 seats ■ Metallic Nero Ribelle ■ Located in the heart of the Ribble Valley, Lancashire

■ £74,600

TEL.: (01254) 953996

Automatic, 4.2L, Diesel 2 owners, 21-inch 911 Turbo II wheel with Wheel Arch Extension, 8-speed Tiptronic S inclusive Auto Start Stop function, Automatically dimming exterior and interior mirrors, Comfort-memory package (14 ways), Light comfort package icw comfort memory package or driver memory package, Digital radio (DAB DAB+ DMB), Universal audio interface, Online Services, 100 litres fuel tank, Floor mats, Air suspension with self-levelling and height adjustment incl. Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM), 18-inch collapsible spare wheel, Wheel hub cover with full-colour Porsche Crest, £55,995

TEL.: (01932) 964789

Automatic, 3.5L, Hybrid Quick Sale, If you have figure in mind (close to the asking price) then please free to make an offer. Price is inclusive of VAT. Purchased direct form Mercedes Benz, now selling due to very little use. Absolute superb condition.

All usual Luxury Mercedes Refinements with the following added extras:, AMG Line, Obsidian Metalic Black paintwork, Crystal Grey/Seashell Grey Nappa Leather, Executive Rear Package, Keyless Go Package, Driving Assistance Package, Driver and front Passenger Memory Package, Double Cup Holder Front, Telephone Pre Wiring, Electric Panoramic Glass Sunroof, £55,000

TEL.: (020) 81285879

MERCEDES-BENZ S CLASS S350D AMG

MERCEDES-BENZ V CLASS 2.1CDI V250

SKODA SUPERB ESTATE 5-DR 2.0 TDI

■ 2015, Saloon, 1,501 miles,

■ 2015, MPV, 6,700 miles,

■ 2014, Estate, 12,689 miles,

Automatic, 3.0L, Diesel Call 0141 331 4663, Saving of over £9000 from New, £750 Deposit Contribution, Ambient Lighting, Bluetooth Connectivity, Cruise Control, Climate Control, Central Door Locking, ECO Stop / Start Function, Electric Windows, iPod/MP3 Connectivity, Keyless Go, MP3 compatible, Electrically Operated and Heated Exterior Mirrors, DAB Digital Radio, Metallic Paint, AMG Floor Mats, Automatic Climate Control, COMAND On-Line System, Cup Holder, AMG Sports Steering Wheel, Full Leather, 7 Speed Automatic Gearbox, AMG Body Kit, £59,870

TEL.: (0141) 3314663 prodrivermags.com | OCTOBER 2015

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Automatic, 2.1L, Diesel Brought new from Mercedes-Benz , used as a family car for the summer, very low millage.Extra Long Model, 8 seats.Automatic Side Door(both).Agility Control Suspension,multifunction Steering Wheel with Trip Computer.Hill-Start Assis.AMG Battery,COMAND Online.Packing Package with Camera.Active Parking Assist.Agility Select Switch.Reversing camera.7G-Tronic Plus.Hot-air duct to passenger.Air Con. Traffic Sign Assist.Rain Sensor,Ambient Lighting.

LED Intellingent Light System. and more .....V CLASS SPORT., First service is not due, Electric windows, Air conditioning, Satellite navigation, £45,499

TEL.: (0115) 7741138

Automatic, 2.0L, Diesel Four wheel-drive, 18In Alloy Wheels, Air Conditioning, Alarm, Anti-Lock Brakes, Automatic Dimming Rear View Mirrors Internal, Bi-Xenon Headlights Exterior Lighting, Body Coloured Bumpers, Centre Console, Centre Rear Seat Belt, Cruise Control, Cup Holder, Driver Air Bag Knee, Driver Passenger And Front Side Air Bags, Driver/Passenger Electric Seat Lumbar Support, Driver/Passenger Heated Seats, Eight Speakers, Electric Front/ Driver Memory Seat Height Adjustment, Electronic Stability Programme, Front Fog Lights, Front/Rear Armrest, Front/Rear Electric Windows, £20,590

TEL.: (0114) 2701111

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