3. Can I use my Limousine to carry fare-paying passengers?
Theoretically yes, but you will need some form of operator’s licence.
Virtually any motor vehicle used in Great Britain to carry passengers for hire / hire or reward on a commercial basis needs a licence of some kind. The type of licence required depends upon on the capacity of the vehicle and the type of operation undertaken.
Operating hire or reward services without the requisite operator’s licence is a criminal offence.
Hire or reward is any sort of payment which gives a person a right to be carried on a vehicle regardless of whether a profit is made or not. The payment may be made by the person himself, or on his behalf. It may be a direct payment (such as a fare, hire charge or other payment made directly in respect of the journey) or an indirect payment (such as a membership subscription to a club, payment for a bed in a hotel or payment for concert tickets).
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7. Are there any conditions placed on the operators of Small PSVs?
When granting an application for a Small PSV licence to the operator of a stretch limousine the Traffic Commissioner may attach a standard set of conditions to the licence. The conditions generally imposed for limousine operators are:
When using a stretch limousine under a PSV licence the vehicle will not carry more than 8 passengers.
Passengers must be carried at separate fares (see below).
If any journey is less than 15 miles measured in a straight line, then it must be registered as a local service with the Traffic Commissioner prior to its operation.
The registration numbers of all vehicles which are used under the PSV operator's licence are to be logged with the Traffic Commissioner within seven days of their acquisition. If a vehicle is no longer used under the PSV licence that fact must also be notified to the Traffic Commissioner within seven days of it cessation.
Before being used under a PSV licence stretch limousines must pass a Single Vehicle Approval test and hold a relevant annual test certificate.
8. What is a separate fare?
If a limousine is licensed as a small PSV, (carrying 8 or less passengers), separate fares must be charged. The term ‘separate fares’ is not defined in legislation. However, we believe it represents a charge made directly or indirectly to each passenger for carriage which is unaffected by the number of fare payers. This is the way fares are often structured, for example, on a local bus service. Subject to any concessions that the operator may give, each passenger pays the same fare for the same journey, regardless of how many other passengers on the bus wish to make that journey.
9. Must I always charge separate fares if I operate as a small PSV?
In most cases the answer is yes, otherwise you will be operating as a PHV and will need to be licensed accordingly.
There is one exception to the requirement for separate fares to be charged. ‘Big bus’ operators (ie those operating vehicles with 9 or more passenger seats) can run small PSVs for some private hire work, provided the operation of these vehicles represents a small part of their overall business. What constitutes ‘a small part’ is also not defined in legislation, and ultimately, final decisions on where the balance lies is a matter for the courts. The legislation confers the exemption on an operator whose use of small vehicles is only a small part of his business.
The relative size of the fleet of large and small buses is obviously very relevant and as a rule of thumb we believe that if less than 10% of the overall fleet licensed under a single PSV Operator’s Licence are small vehicles the exemption will apply (e.g. a fleet of, say, 20 buses with 9 or more passenger seats could run 2 additional vehicles - which could be stretched limousines that carry 8 or less passengers - for private hire work). But because the legislation refers to the size of the small and large bus business other factors (such as mileage run) should be taken into account. We would hope that in most cases it would be obvious what was and what was not, to coin a phrase, a ‘large bus business’.
You will need to make the Traffic Commissioner aware if you are a big bus operator wishing to run stretch limousines, so that the standard conditions attached to the PSV licence can be reconsidered.
10. Can I use the limousine to carry more than 8 passengers?
Only if you have a PSV operator licence that allows for that. In order to obtain such a licence you will need to prove that your vehicle complies with legally required safety standards. In order to prove this, your vehicle will need to have a Certificate of Initial Fitness (COIF) issued by VOSA.
However, most limousines imported from the USA cannot obtain such a certificate because they do not comply with GB construction and use regulations. In particular, the regulations require any passenger vehicle carrying more than eight people to have exits big enough to get passengers out quickly in the event of an emergency. Many limousines do not comply with this requirement. In addition, the regulations require European-approved lamps, mirrors, tyres, seat belts and glass, which are not present on American vehicles, and the regulations on turning circle are not met by most stretched American vehicles.
If your vehicle is able to comply with the safety standards, guidance on obtaining a PSV licence is available in the booklet PSV 437. The guidance provides details of the type of services that you may provide using such a licence but you will also need to consider the impact of the drivers' hours and driver licensing requirements for PSV vehicles. Guidance on drivers hours is available in the document PSV 375 (also available from VOSA) and driver licence information is available from DVLA (
www.dvla.gov.uk or tel: 0870 240 0009).
11. What type of service can I operate with a small PSV?
You can operate either a local service (standard or flexibly routed) or operate excursions and tours.
Note: you cannot do any work which needs a PHV licence without the required licence.
Also, there are restrictions on the carriage of alcohol on vehicles used to take passengers to certain sporting events.
Further information on the operation of PSV vehicles can be found in the guidance document PSV 437 and information on local services can be found in PSV353A (local service registrations) and PSV358A (flexible local bus service registrations) from either the Traffic Area Offices or via the VOSA website.
12. What is a local service?
It is a bus service using Public Service Vehicles (PSVs) to carry passengers at separate
fares over short distances. The route can be of any overall length, as long as throughout
its length passengers can get off within 24.15 kms (15 miles) (measured in a straight line) of the place where they were picked up. Local services must be registered with the Traffic Commissioner.
The legislation specifying what service particulars must be registered with the Traffic Commissioner for a local service imposes different requirements according to whether the service in question is a “standard service” (ie a conventional registered local service) or a “flexible service”. Further information on the description and operation of local services are contained in the guidance notes mentioned in the previous section.
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