South Gloucestershire Council

In line with the Equality Act 2010, section 165, if you hire a designated hackney carriage or designated private hire vehicle as a wheelchair user, you can expect the driver:

• to carry the passenger while in the wheelchair
• not to make any additional charge for doing so
• if the passenger chooses to sit in a passenger seat to carry the wheelchair
• to take such steps as are necessary to ensure that the passenger is carried in safety and reasonable comfort and
• to give the passenger such mobility assistance as is reasonably required

The Act goes on to define mobility assistance as assistance:

• to enable the passenger to get into or out of the vehicle
• if the passenger wishes to remain in the wheelchair, to enable the passenger to get into and out of the vehicle while in the wheelchair
• to load the passenger’s luggage into or out of the vehicle and
• if the passenger does not wish to remain in the wheelchair, to load the wheelchair into or out of the vehicle

It is also worth noting that a driver of a designated hackney carriage or designated private hire vehicle commits an offence by failing to comply with a duty imposed on the driver by this section.

List of designated vehicles