Taxi Licensing

Wheelchair Accessible Vehicles

The current designated list of wheelchair accessible vehicles licensed by Pembrokeshire County Council is available below:

Designated List of Wheelchair Accessible Vehicles

Section 165 and Section 167 of the Equality Act 2010 (the Act) came into force on 6^th April 2017.

Section 167 of the Act provides the Licensing Authority with the power to maintain a list of wheelchair accessible taxis (hackney carriages) and private hire vehicles.

Any driver of a taxi (hackney carriage) or private hire vehicle which has been designated as being wheelchair accessible must comply with the requirements of Section 165 of the Equality Act 2010, unless they have been issued with an exemption certificate.

The duties under Section 165 are:

• 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 necessary to ensure that the passenger is carried in safety and reasonable comfort;
• To give the passenger such mobility assistance as is reasonably required.

Mobility assistance is defined as:

• Enabling the passenger to get into or out of the vehicle;
• If the passenger wishes to remain in the wheelchair, enabling the passenger to get into and out of the vehicle while in the wheelchair;
• Loading the passenger’s luggage into or out of the vehicle
• If the passenger does not wish to remain in the wheelchair, loading the wheelchair into or out of the vehicle.
• It is an offence for a driver of a wheelchair accessible vehicle on the designated list not to comply with the above duties. Any failure to comply with these duties will be treated seriously and may result in prosecution and/or referral to the Licensing Sub-Committee for consideration of their hackney carriage/ private hire driver’s licence. 

Section 166 allows the Licensing Authority to exempt drivers from the duties to assist passengers in wheelchairs if they are satisfied that it is appropriate to do so on medical grounds or because the driver's physical condition makes it impossible or unreasonably difficult for him or her to comply with the duties.

Any driver of a hackney carriage or private hire vehicle on the designated list may submit a request for an exemption from the Section 165 duties by completing the relevant application form. Medical evidence will be required in support of the application.