Section 2: Payment for fares

Section 2: Payment for fares

This section explains the different methods of payment passengers can use, receipts and what to do if a passenger does not pay

According to the law, you do not have to accept cheques or foreign currency. However, it‘s good customer service to be as helpful as possible when accepting payment for fares because not everybody wants to pay by cash or card.

Although Scottish and Northern Irish bank notes are not legal tender in England, it is good business practice to accept them. You can exchange them at banks.

Deposit for waiting time

You may ask for a reasonable deposit for waiting, but you must take the deposit from the metered fare when the passenger pays. If you accept a deposit, you must not go away, or allow your taxi to be taken away without the passenger’s agreement, before the period covered by the deposit has ended.

Accepting card payments

You must accept credit card, debit card and contactless payments.

All licensed taxis must befit ted with a TfL-approved card payment device installed in the passenger compartment, which is able to produce a printed receipt on request by the passenger. You must always use this device to take the card payment. Handheld payment devices do not meet the licensing regulations and are regarded as unapproved payment devices.

As a minimum, you must accept VISA, MasterCard and American Express credit and debit card payments in your taxi.

You are not allowed to charge extra or a surcharge for payments by card. Remember, it is an offence to charge more than the metered fare.

Always check that the card payment device is fully working before starting work and ensure that your taxi has the TfL signs displayed in the correct position.

Accepting payment via online services

Payments through apps are permitted if a passenger has access to the app via their own phone or device. You must not enter card details into your own phone or device to process a payment.

Problems with card payments

You are not expected to leave your taxi if there is a problem when a passenger tries to pay by card, especially if you do not feel safe to do so. If a problem occurs, our advice is:

• Ask the passenger to try their payment card again
• If there is still a problem, ask the passenger whether they have another payment card or cash to pay for the fare
• If the passenger doesn’t have any cash or another card, offer to take them to the nearest cashpoint

If there is an issue with your TfL-approved card payment device and the company who provides the TfL-approved device offers an alternative payment method that is allowed, then this can be used to accept the payment.

If a passenger refuses to pay and you cannot reach an agreement with them, you should consider contacting the police.

If you experience any problems with your card payment device, you should contact the card payment device company as soon as possible in order to report the problem and solve the issue.

If you rent a taxi, you must immediately report the problem to the proprietor so that they can report this to the card payment device company and arrange for the device to be fixed or replaced, and to provide you with a replacement taxi, if necessary, while the device is being fixed.

When reporting a problem, the card payment device company should be asked to provide:

• Confirmation that you have reported the problem with the device
• Details of the appointment for the device to be fixed or replaced (where necessary and an appointment is required)

This information must then be shown to a TfL compliance officer (if you are stopped) before the card payment device is fixed or can be replaced.

If you experience any problems with your card payment device outside of office hours, you should follow the same steps as outlined above.

Network data outages

If there is a documented network-wide outage affecting many card payment devices, you should advise your passengers – before accepting a fare – that you cannot take a card payment, and explain why. Advise passengers that cash payments can be taken and offer to take them to a cashpoint. You must never use an alternative, unapproved card payment device in your taxi.

If the company who provides the TfL-approved device offers an alternative payment method that is allowed, this can be used to accept payment.

Receipts

You must provide a receipt if a passenger asks for one.

The receipt should always include the following information:

• Date of issue
• Time of issue
• Metered fare
• Metered extras
• Total fare

Always ensure that you have enough receipt pads with you in the taxi.

Don’t give passengers blank receipts to complete themselves!

Bilking

Bilking is when a passenger leaves the taxi without paying the fare.

If a passenger refuses to pay and you cannot come to an agreement, you should call the police.

If the passenger leaves without paying, think carefully before running after them. Your personal safety is more important than a lost fare.

Police advice is that you get as good a description of the person as possible, note the time and location of the incident, and report the matter to them immediately. Luckily, bilking is rare but unfortunately it must be considered a hazard of the job.

Some taxis have CCTV systems that can record pictures of bilkers which may be used when trying to catch them. The taxi trade magazines also often include descriptions of bilkers who have been particularly active.

Preventing passengers from leaving the taxi because of an unpaid fare, including locking the passenger in and driving to a police station, is considered wrong by the police and could get you into trouble.