What is Taxi 'Waiting Time' fee?

la531983

RefluentBeans said:

tedted said:

what app is that then??

Literally any app that acts as a meter for taxis? Over 100 of them, and many of them integrated to drivers apps. 

You would think any decent app would add the moving and waiting bits up together though, and not just add the waiting bit on as a lump sum at the end.

Need more info from the OP here really. 

RefluentBeans

la531983 said:

RefluentBeans said:

tedted said:

what app is that then??

Literally any app that acts as a meter for taxis? Over 100 of them, and many of them integrated to drivers apps. 

You would think any decent app would add the moving and waiting bits up together though, and not just add the waiting bit on as a lump sum at the end.

Need more info from the OP here really. 

I would think most consumers would prefer a stratified breakdown of costs of £X for moving distance, and £Y for waiting time, rather than just a lump sum of £Z. 

Means you can challenge if the driver decided to be extra nice and let all the cars out from every junction going (unlikely - it’s a taxi driver we’re speaking about here 😉) to ramp up the cost. 

The waiting times are, inherently, less than what the driver would make and normally make up a small fraction. It’s also there to add on to people who call a taxi and then decide to add on time at the start of their journey to finish getting ready. It means that at least the drivers are getting some money for their time even if it’s less than they would get from a job. Most wait times are so minimal on the overall journey (looking at my receipts for the previous taxis I’ve used - less than 10% every time). 

born_again

Most local private hire vehicles round here just give a price for the trip no matter how long it takes.

la531983

RefluentBeans said:

la531983 said:

RefluentBeans said:

tedted said:

what app is that then??

Literally any app that acts as a meter for taxis? Over 100 of them, and many of them integrated to drivers apps. 

You would think any decent app would add the moving and waiting bits up together though, and not just add the waiting bit on as a lump sum at the end.

Need more info from the OP here really. 

I would think most consumers would prefer a stratified breakdown of costs of £X for moving distance, and £Y for waiting time, rather than just a lump sum of £Z. 

I don't disagree but I would rather see the meter go up in a linear fashion with nothing added at the end.
The split of the two elements can be saved for the invoice. 

This is why I use Uber, none of these shenanigans. 

RefluentBeans

la531983 said:

RefluentBeans said:

la531983 said:

RefluentBeans said:

tedted said:

what app is that then??

Literally any app that acts as a meter for taxis? Over 100 of them, and many of them integrated to drivers apps. 

You would think any decent app would add the moving and waiting bits up together though, and not just add the waiting bit on as a lump sum at the end.

Need more info from the OP here really. 

I would think most consumers would prefer a stratified breakdown of costs of £X for moving distance, and £Y for waiting time, rather than just a lump sum of £Z. 

I don't disagree but I would rather see the meter go up in a linear fashion with nothing added at the end.
The split of the two elements can be saved for the invoice. 

This is why I use Uber, none of these shenanigans. 

Ohhh sorry - misunderstood. Yes I agree. 

jon81uk

la531983 said:

RefluentBeans said:

la531983 said:

RefluentBeans said:

tedted said:

what app is that then??

Literally any app that acts as a meter for taxis? Over 100 of them, and many of them integrated to drivers apps. 

You would think any decent app would add the moving and waiting bits up together though, and not just add the waiting bit on as a lump sum at the end.

Need more info from the OP here really. 

I would think most consumers would prefer a stratified breakdown of costs of £X for moving distance, and £Y for waiting time, rather than just a lump sum of £Z. 

I don't disagree but I would rather see the meter go up in a linear fashion with nothing added at the end.
The split of the two elements can be saved for the invoice. 

This is why I use Uber, none of these shenanigans. 

I think in the OP it is just how the invoice from the app/system that the company uses shows the split. Its not so much added at the end, but just split out differently on the receipt.

If in a black cab taxi or hackney cab then the meter will go up at the rates determined and will switch between the time rate and the distance rate depending if the cab is moving. It won't be split out on the receipt as the meter just displays the total fare, that can only be done by those using app type systems. 
You can see the rates in London here and how it goes up by each number of metres or seconds Tariffs - Transport for London (tfl.gov.uk)

No-one actually knows how Uber calculate the fare, it is likely a mix of distance travelled and stationery time, but they don't show the split and its not live metered like a black cab either.

Roy1234

Just to add clarification having contacted the local authority's licencing department:

It is standard practice that most private hire vehicles and all hackney carriages licensed by this Local Authority will charge Waiting Time during any period a car becomes stationary during a journey.  I believe the same principle applies in other Local Authority areas too.  In reality, the increase to the fare tends to be relatively small in most cases.

Elsewhere he agrees that Waiting Time is also any amount charged because the customer keeps the Taxi waiting at the start of the trip.  Regarding the risk that the falsely early 'Your Taxi has arrived' calls signify a dishonest attempt to charge for non-existent waits by registering a premature arrival time for pickup, he agreed it was entirely possible but he thought very rare given the scarcity of such complaints, but that modern firms would have the data to investigate this if challenged.

He recommended being vigilant at the start of the journey, which I certainly will.