Taxi-ing my mates into town? Legal?

Cathalog

I've just passed my test, and I decided to calculate the total cost of my license with lessons etc. 800 quid!!

So I came up with this idea that I could possibly act as a taxi only for my friends, when they're goin out on the town for the night in order to earn some money. But then I realised that this idea could be very illegal. You might need a taxi license to do such a thing.

Keeping in mind that this is just an idea - and that i'd be just telling my friends that I'd offer them lifts if they paid say a tenner each. I wouldn't be telling the world or anything :P

But if this is illegal, it's a definite no no for me..any ideas?

Anan1

It will void your insurance.

kildare.17hmr

Id always throw a few quid for fuel if someone gave me a lift, my mates would do the same

L1011

You're only allowed take a "modest" contribution for fuel/costs, there isn't a specific legal definition but if you were doing it frequently it would definitely be over the line between taking a few quid and running an unlicenced taxi.

Jake Rugby Walrus666

It will all work out fine so long as you stay lucky.

If someone drives into you and one of your "friends" makes a fifty grand personal injury claim off you, which you insurance refuses to cover, then you're in trouble.

Where To

Good luck with getting a tenner a skull from them :pac:

I'm a liscensed taxi and I'd be more than happy with a fiver.

Totally illegal btw.

onemorechance

You cannot demand payment from your friends but they can leave a tenner in the car should they choose.

Caseywhale

MYOB wrote: »

You're only allowed take a "modest" contribution for fuel/costs, there isn't a specific legal definition but if you were doing it frequently it would definitely be over the line between taking a few quid and running an unlicenced taxi.

But they'll never take him alive if he is breaking the law.

Cathalog

Cheers guys. As I expected. I'll think of another business idea :P
Anyone think that 800 euro to learn to drive is a bit on the high side?

onemorechance

Cathalog wrote: »

Cheers guys. As I expected. I'll think of another business idea :P
Anyone think that 800 euro to learn to drive is a bit on the high side?

Not if you have been taught well!

MugMugs

Cathalog wrote: »

Cheers guys. As I expected. I'll think of another business idea :P
Anyone think that 800 euro to learn to drive is a bit on the high side?

800 = licence, lessons and etc.... Can you define etc please?

Gary ITR

MugMugs wrote: »

Cathalog wrote: »

Cheers guys. As I expected. I'll think of another business idea :P
Anyone think that 800 euro to learn to drive is a bit on the high side?

800 = licence, lessons and etc.... Can you define etc please?

Eye test, pics and test fee i assume

frozenfrozen

It's ridiculous that insurance is 1400 quid on a little car after you've been forced to do 12 lessons. Now each driver is forced to be completely competent behind the wheel, at a guaranteed minimum skill level which is deemed safe to operate a car, so why should they be charged more than people with 1-2 years experience?!

MugMugs

Gary ITR wrote: »

MugMugs wrote: »

Cathalog wrote: »

Cheers guys. As I expected. I'll think of another business idea :P
Anyone think that 800 euro to learn to drive is a bit on the high side?

800 = licence, lessons and etc.... Can you define etc please?

Eye test, pics and test fee i assume

Lessons have gone over a tenner a go so....

monkeypants

Gary ITR wrote: »

Eye test, pics and test fee i assume

That's 19 lessons or thereabouts. The question is; are you satisfied with what you received in exchange for your money?

Anan1

frozenfrozen wrote: »

It's ridiculous that insurance is 1400 quid on a little car after you've been forced to do 12 lessons. Now each driver is forced to be completely competent behind the wheel, at a guaranteed minimum skill level which is deemed safe to operate a car, so why should they be charged more than people with 1-2 years experience?!

Presumably they're a statistically higher risk?

MugMugs

Anan1 wrote: »

frozenfrozen wrote: »

It's ridiculous that insurance is 1400 quid on a little car after you've been forced to do 12 lessons. Now each driver is forced to be completely competent behind the wheel, at a guaranteed minimum skill level which is deemed safe to operate a car, so why should they be charged more than people with 1-2 years experience?!

Presumably they're a statistically higher risk?

Basically that.

Guaranteed the OP bounces his car off something in the next 12 months. Be it a wall, person, car or tree and minor or major, that car will hit something. Especially so with youth.

dar83

€800 is small change compared to what you'll pay in tax, petrol, insurance, servicing, loan repayments/finance, consumables etc... from here on in, so I wouldn't be looking at it as expensive.

Just think of the amount of money you'll spend from here on in! :pac:

veetwin

frozenfrozen wrote: »

It's ridiculous that insurance is 1400 quid on a little car after you've been forced to do 12 lessons. Now each driver is forced to be completely competent behind the wheel, at a guaranteed minimum skill level which is deemed safe to operate a car, so why should they be charged more than people with 1-2 years experience?!

Your post troubles me on many levels..

.Firstly if you are getting insurance in your own name having just passed your test for €1400 then it is the bargain of the century. I paid over £1600 for my first insurance back when £1600 was a fairly substantial sum 20 years ago. Plenty more around here will have paid multiples of €1400.

Secondly you are not "forced" to be competent. It should really be an aspiration

.Thirdly drivers in their first year of motoring are statistically more likely to have a claim than drivers that have been claim free for one or two years. Therefore the first timers pay more.

Fourthly if you think every driver that has passed their test is "completely competent" then you are completely deluded.

frozenfrozen

You have to take 12 formal lessons now, surely that's going to make people be more competent at controlling a car. Your 1600 pounds didn't come after you paid the 500ish now for lessons and license. 20 years ago you didn't have to pay todays fuel prices, or vat. Starting off as a new driver these days is a lot harder.

Losing battle so I'm going to leave here. you win, i'm completely deluded.

Cathalog

What i mean is, my journey from the day I planned to start to drive to actually getting my full license was 800 euro. I forgot to add my eyetest to that, so make it 815.

Theory test book - 18 euro
Theory test - 42 euro
Passport photos (5 in total) - 5 euro
Lessons was around 500 euro. (lost my calculation sheet)
Two driving tests - 170 euro
Prov. license - 15
Full license - 25
Eye test - 15

An btw, 1100 euro is expensive for insurance if your quoting for insurance as a named driver. I can get insured for under 1000 now as a named driver on a 1.4 Golf. (with the two other drivers having no penalty points and 5 years no-claims)
I think it'd be around 5 grand otherwise.

Personally, I'm delighted that I can now drive, and I see 800 euro as a great investment to keep my safe on the road. But I was looking to compare this figure with some of yours. I keep hearing of people passing with around 6 lessons, and I got over 12!

Alanstrainor

frozenfrozen wrote: »

You have to take 12 formal lessons now, surely that's going to make people be more competent at controlling a car. Your 1600 pounds didn't come after you paid the 500ish now for lessons and license. 20 years ago you didn't have to pay todays fuel prices, or vat. Starting off as a new driver these days is a lot harder.

Losing battle so I'm going to leave here. you win, i'm completely deluded.

I don't see a battle, merely a discussion, no need to take anything personally.

Driving has never been cheap starting out. 12 hours driving is all you need to go and pass a test. That is absolutely nothing, but even still insurance these days is the cheapest it's ever been as far as I can tell, so perhaps learners are seeing the benefit of those lessons after all, well at least the financial benefit.

MugMugs

frozenfrozen wrote: »

You have to take 12 formal lessons now, surely that's going to make people be more competent at controlling a car. Your 1600 pounds didn't come after you paid the 500ish now for lessons and license. 20 years ago you didn't have to pay todays fuel prices, or vat. Starting off as a new driver these days is a lot harder.

Losing battle so I'm going to leave here. you win, i'm completely deluded.

What's that got to do with Insurance? Are you saying the level of DRIVING competence is higher in todays test? The theory and knowledge of the vehicle is but the actual driving competence?

questionmark?

OP I've gone and collected people after a night out when I wasn't and they have thrown me a few bob for both the petrol and effort and I've thrown others a few bob for collecting me. Once its not offering a "taxi" service to friends friends who have got hold of your number then not much wrong with it. Personally I like to give the driver a a bit of grub as well.

Alanstrainor

Cathalog wrote: »

What i mean is, my journey from the day I planned to start to drive to actually getting my full license was 800 euro. I forgot to add my eyetest to that, so make it 815.

Theory test book - 18 euro
Theory test - 42 euro
Passport photos (5 in total) - 5 euro
Lessons was around 500 euro. (lost my calculation sheet)
Two driving tests - 170 euro
Prov. license - 15
Full license - 25
Eye test - 15

An btw, 1100 euro is expensive for insurance if your quoting for insurance as a named driver. I can get insured for under 1000 now as a named driver on a 1.3 Golf. (with the two other drivers having no penalty points and 5 years no-claims)
I think it'd be around 5 grand otherwise.

Personally, I'm delighted that I can now drive, and I see 800 euro as a great investment to keep my safe on the road. But I was looking to compare this figure with some of yours. I keep hearing of people passing with around 6 lessons, and I got over 12!

You're right 1100 is very expensive for named driver experience. But you're at the mercy of your parents/owner's insurance company. The only way you'll better that is getting whoever has the policy to shop around come renewal time. You will do better. You'd get your own policy for that much, on a 1.4 Golf(there is no 1.3).

Cathalog

Isn't insurance cheaper for males and more expensive for females now due to issues of discrimination?

Aviva are offering free insurance for those who take 12 lessons with their instructors - so clearly we are receiving benefits.

However, it takes a lot more than 12 hours driving to pass a driving test!

Cathalog

Alanstrainor wrote: »

Cathalog wrote: »

What i mean is, my journey from the day I planned to start to drive to actually getting my full license was 800 euro. I forgot to add my eyetest to that, so make it 815.

Theory test book - 18 euro
Theory test - 42 euro
Passport photos (5 in total) - 5 euro
Lessons was around 500 euro. (lost my calculation sheet)
Two driving tests - 170 euro
Prov. license - 15
Full license - 25
Eye test - 15

An btw, 1100 euro is expensive for insurance if your quoting for insurance as a named driver. I can get insured for under 1000 now as a named driver on a 1.3 Golf. (with the two other drivers having no penalty points and 5 years no-claims)
I think it'd be around 5 grand otherwise.

Personally, I'm delighted that I can now drive, and I see 800 euro as a great investment to keep my safe on the road. But I was looking to compare this figure with some of yours. I keep hearing of people passing with around 6 lessons, and I got over 12!

You're right 1100 is very expensive for named driver experience. But you're at the mercy of your parents/owner's insurance company. The only way you'll better that is getting whoever has the policy to shop around come renewal time. You will do better. You'd get your own policy for that much, on a 1.4 Golf(there is no 1.3).

Yeah - that's the plan! What rate do you reckon I could get? (I'm talking ballpark figure, cause I know you hate when people asked that).
Oops, typo - I'm on my phone

L1011

Cathalog wrote: »

Isn't insurance cheaper for males and more expensive for females now due to issues of discrimination?

No, and when the anti-discrimination rules come shortly in it'll be equal (when all other factors are equal). The ruling didn't say they could reverse the discrimination.

veetwin

frozenfrozen wrote: »

You have to take 12 formal lessons now, surely that's going to make people be more competent at controlling a car. Your 1600 pounds didn't come after you paid the 500ish now for lessons and license. 20 years ago you didn't have to pay todays fuel prices, or vat. Starting off as a new driver these days is a lot harder.

Losing battle so I'm going to leave here. you win, i'm completely deluded.

Nothing personal mate. All I'm saying is that compulsory lessons though expensive is probably not a bad idea. Also even back then most people will have taken at least a few pre test lessons. (I grew up on a farm so was driving cars, trucks and tractors from the age of 12) Would love to know how £1600 is in todays money. Fuel costs are discretionary to a certain extent. ie don't make unnecessary journeys. Decent cars are cheaper now than they ever were. And yes vat existed 20 years ago! My point is it is not harder these days and if your urban based, public transport is also much better.

frozenfrozen

MugMugs wrote: »

What's that got to do with Insurance? Are you saying the level of DRIVING competence is higher in todays test? The theory and knowledge of the vehicle is but the actual driving competence?

I see bad drivers all the time from all different age groups, and the test hasn't gotten any harder in recent years so really nothing has changed once you're on the road. My gripe was that even though the new compulsory paid lessons have come, the price in insurance hasn't come down at all. I know the lessons are to make sure people are ready when they actually do their test, and to not waste time effectively doing all their driving practise in tests, but someone wanting to learn to drive a car at 17 is an extortionate amount of money. If there's a family car already taxed, to get started you still need to pay the breakdown that the OP has shown, the 500 euro for the lessons hasn't been taken off from anywhere else so the once free lessons from your relative which would get you ready for the test just won't cut it anymore.

It's probably a good thing that it's too expensive for me. I'd have to spend every cent I have keeping the car up.

MugMugs

frozenfrozen wrote: »

I see bad drivers all the time from all different age groups, and the test hasn't gotten any harder in recent years so really nothing has changed once you're on the road. My gripe was that even though the new compulsory paid lessons have come, the price in insurance hasn't come down at all. I know the lessons are to make sure people are ready when they actually do their test, and to not waste time effectively doing all their driving practise in tests, but someone wanting to learn to drive a car at 17 is an extortionate amount of money. If there's a family car already taxed, to get started you still need to pay the breakdown that the OP has shown, the 500 euro for the lessons hasn't been taken off from anywhere else so the once free lessons from your relative which would get you ready for the test just won't cut it anymore.

It's probably a good thing that it's too expensive for me. I'd have to spend every cent I have keeping the car up.

Fair enough but these compulsory lessons are also a major safety thing. RSA bull so to speak.

It'll be a few years before the statistics prove that younger drivers are good drivers and premiums are reduced but to be honest, I still personally stand over the point that one hour in a car on your own for the first time is worth 100 lessons.

Scare yourself once, you won't be doing it quickly a second time.

Lando Griffin

One of the worst things about driving your buddies around is at the end of the night is that a few more who live in the same area will try to bum a lift too. The amount of times in my youth that i have seen some poor young fella loading 7 or 8 drunken fools into his car was scandless. I used to drive my mates out every few weekends and if I and a someone else picked up a few dolly birds it usually meant having to make two runs before Id be able to drop the hand and by then she would be sobering up and getting slobbery with make up beginning to drip and wanting to go home. Then there is always the problem of when you have a car and there a crowds of drunk people jumping on your bonnet and throwing snak boxes at it.My advice is to leave the car ar home and go out and enjoy yourself.