If you’re thinking about driving a taxi as a career, there’s two different Taxis that you should know about; private hire and hackney. Black Cabs (hackney)are typically hailed from the street whereas private hire (also known as minicabs) are actually pre-booked by a customer and are not permitted by law to pick up folks at random. In both of these situations the driver is normally self-employed and either owns the vehicle or they lease it from the operating firm,

A genuine taxi company will operate on a 24 hour basis and most drivers will typically work in shifts. The evening of both Friday and Saturday are the busiest and best time to earn money.

The salary for taxi drivers can range from £12k to £30k per annum. In order to earn the big money, you will need to put in the hours. The more fares that you are able to pick up, the more you will be able to earn.

While there aren’t any minimum qualifications to become a taxi driver you will need to be at least twenty one years of age so you can successfully obtain a license. You will also need to pass a medical test. Things like serious heart problems and poor eyesight can result in having your application refused.

You are going to need to apply for your taxi drivers license through your local council or from the Transport for London. (TfL) If you decide to be a private hire taxi driver in London, you will need to take out hire and reward insurance through a qualified UK taxi insurance broker. In any situation, you must be able to work legally in the UK.

To be a successful taxi driver, you must be a careful and conscientious. So if you like to speed or you have an issue with road rage, it’s time for you to calm down a bit, and break those bad habits. A few other skills that will help in your new profession.

• Good standard of spoken English
• Real good memory
• Great customer skills
• The ability to keep you composure when dealing with unruly passengers.

Your new job is going to involve the following:

• Picking up and delivering customers
• Taking the fastest and smartest route
• Helping to load and unload the vehicle
• Calculating the correct fare and returning the correct change
• Keeping your taxi clean and in good working order

Pretty much all jobs have pros and cons and being a taxi driver is no exception . Here is the one that cannot be ignored.

Being your own boss

Fact is that the lure of not having a boss breathing down you neck all day and being in control of your own destiny has caused many to leave their 9 to 5 in order to become self-employed. Many times at the expense of a salary cut.

Just about all taxi drivers are self-employed, and typically work the hours they wish. Inevitably, this will rule out the usual 9-5 as the evenings and late night ‘pub’ times are typically the most financially rewarding.