Becoming a taxi driver?

S

Sophia2457

Registered User
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Hi

My husband is thinking of going into the taxi business in the New Year.

We know what he needs to do - psv licence etc but we have a few questions :

What year/type of car would be besteg - would an '03 saloon be best or should he go for wheelchair accessible (or maybe that's better for hackney work which isnt what he wants)

How many hours would he need to work a week approx to cover new car, insurance, running costs etc and make a few bob?

Has anyone bought a taxi from www.taxitaxi.ie and would this be a good idea?

He has 2 penalty points for speeding - will this discount him from becoming a taxi driver?

Thanks for your patience...it's a big decision and we'd appreciate your advice.
 
He should do up a business plan which should help answer some of the questions above and determine whether or not the venture is viable and on what basis (e.g. what sort of hours).
 
As well as the finance side of things, maybe he should also see if taxiing is his bag - He might hate it.

Is there anyway he could do hackneying for a couple of months first to try it out?
 
Go along to your local garda station and have a chat with them about the points. Apply anyways and see what happens. If they recommend him he will probably be ok. There is a great need for wheelchair accessible taxis.
 
Thanks, everyone for the suggestions.

Clubman, could you suggest a link to a template for a business plan he could use, you see neither of us come from a business background so we wouldn't know where to start.

As for trying out hackneying, a great idea, we'd have to invest in the car anyway before he could try it out, so at that stage we're pretty much committed.

Tinkerbell - when you say 'apply anyways' do you mean apply for a psv licence? Why should the gardai recommend him if he has points? Not being smart!!

I'd love to talk to someome who actually runs a taxi and how stressful it is - also do you just get car, plate, licence, sign etc and present yourself at the local rank and hope for the best? Is there ant advantage in getting a whellchair accessible vehicle and can a taxi work for a hackney firm as seems to happen in my locality?

Thanks again for your forebearance!
 
There are companies that rent out the cars with all the hardware, I am sure they also provide advice. I would say that might be a good option to consider as capital layout initially would be lower so you havent dug yourself in too deep, so if you end up hating the job you might just loose a deposit. Check out the back of the evening papers.
 
Thanks, Froggie

We've already looked into taxitaxi as I mentioned earlier - I think you need to spend about €350 - €400 basic rental per week with them before running costs,

Onviously they do this for a profit, so I wonder if we would be paying way over the odds, tho it does give you a chance to get the feel of it.

Any taxi drivers out there, or people who know of others who changed to this career?

Thanks
 
Sophia2457 said:
Clubman, could you suggest a link to a template for a business plan he could use, you see neither of us come from a business background so we wouldn't know where to start.
Click to expand...
I don't really have a "business background" either. I've always been an employee. Try your local enterprise development board for advice.
 
Froggie, you're very good to go to the trouble but I took one look at the contents page of the 19 page template and nearly fainted!!

Confidentiality Agreement ii

1) Executive Summary 1
2) Company Description 2
Promoters, shareholders and Board 2
Advisors 2
Products and services 2
Long Term Aim of Business 2
Objectives 2
S.W.O.T. Analysis 2

3) Market Analysis 3
Target market 3
Total market valuation 3
Targeted share 3
Market trends 3
Profile of competitors 3
Competitive advantage 4
Benefits to clients 4

4) Marketing/Sales Strategy 5
Income sources 5
Marketing strategy 5
Pricing 5
Advertising and Promotion 5
Sales Strategy 6
5) Research & Development 7
Patents, copyrights and brands 7
Product/Service Development 7
R&D 7
6) Staffing and Operations 8
Management Organisation Charts 8
Staffing 8
Training Plans 8
Operations 8
7) Financial Projections 9
Key Assumptions 10
Profit and Loss Accounts 11
Balance Sheets 12
Cashflow Projections 13
8) Sales Pipeline 14
9) Funding Requirements 15
10) Appendices 16

Is is really necessary to do all this? Surely we'd have to get an accountant/advisor to help? I'm more a 'back of an envelope' person myself.

But I will take the advice to look at the back of the Evening Herald.

Any more advice from anyone very welcome.
 
Not all of that outline business plan is relevant here. But you do need to crunch some numbers in order to identify the issues and under what circumstances the venture would be viable rather than just jumping into it. At the very least you need to estimate the costs of the business, the potential income/profit and how many hours might be necessary to make a profit of the required level and when this might happen (e.g. when initial startup costs are covered).
 
Thanks, Clubman

Any ideas on how we'd find out how many hours would bring in X amount of income?

Not knowing any drivers I have no idea how to get that info.

Cheers
 
First thing is to get the psv. There is a course which is run in Mount St every week, costs €250 I think, it will greatly increase his chances of passing the psv. He'll need to apply to do the test asap as there is a bit of a waiting list (2 months I think). Once he has his psv he can rent from City Cabs etc, they even offer one days rental so he'll have a better idea of a) whether or not he'll like it and b) the potential income.

Hope this helps.
 
Hi Cole

That course sounds useful - where in Mount Street is it run? It'd be money well spent, I think.

Still researching - it seems some taxis pay hackney firms to be on their radio system, but maybe you'd have to do all the graveyard shifts etc.

Not many cabbies on here, I guess???

Can you really choose your own hours if you own the car, plate etc and just cruise looking for fares?

Is it safer to be with a taxi firm?

Would you need an accountant to do your tax returns?

Sorry! I can't seem to stop asking questions!!!
 
Sophia, have you or your husband considered contacting the to see if they can offer any assistance?

On the issue of whether or not you need an accountant to do your tax returns, I would suggest that if you have to ask that question, then yes, you are almost certainly better off getting professional assistance.
 
Hi Sophia

I think this is the number for the taxi training 6611500 . There's also a website for discussion at www.taxi.ie, there are a lot of negative comments on this site so beware! Some taxi drivers just cruise without the radio although the ones I've spoken too see the radio as an added safety feature in case of trouble. Often the drivers will moan that only certain drivers get the "good jobs" as they're pally with the radio controller.

Hope this helps.
 
Check out the evening herald any day, you can get a complete taxi including plate for nearly same price of a plate on its own, I seen a complete taxi last week 7,500, so with the plate costing 6,300 it means you would be only paying 1k 200E for the taxi itself with the radio and meter, even if you only got 6 months from the car itsself you cant go wrong. Remember if you buy a plate do check with Dublin castle that it is a geniune plate, My neighbour does it and thurs,Friday, Saturday, he goes out at 8pm comes home at 3am he usually makes at least 900euro and up to 1200 on a good weekend , he also does mon-wed which he says pays for all the costs of running the business, hope this helps nothing ventured nothing gained
 
Its up to the local garda to either recommend or not recommend the driver applying for the psv. Depends on when he got the points, for what, etc. Any garda can give you a good idea of just how serious or not the offence was. It takes months for the application to be processed so very possibly by then not matter so much but do check what the gardai have to say. Also make sure your husband keeps up to date with Revenue. If his financial affairs are not in order, he can't get a licence. Courses - some think they help, some don't. To pass the test you need to know Dublin inside out, every street, every area, every place someone may want to visit. A course may help - a good map and guide may too - it depends on him.
 
tinkerbell said:
To pass the test you need to know Dublin inside out, every street, every area, every place someone may want to visit.
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The few times that I ordered or took a taxi recently I had to give the driver directions. If I was cynical I might assume that they were sussing me out to see if I knew the route myself. But I'm not so I just assume that they don't have the knowledge that you mention.
 
The course is worth doing, I think it costs €250 or thereabouts. I did it and passed the psv first time. The test is very detailed.
 
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