PSV and part time hackney driving

I have Mondays/Tues./Wednesdays free due to working shift thurs/fri/sat. I badly need to setup some form of work for this early part of the week and thats lead me to consider part-time hackneying.

Is anyone doing this on a part time basis? Is there much demand? I understand that I have to produce a tax clearance cert as part of the process of getting the psv license. Will this require me to start doing tax returns. I don't mind doing all of this if theres work at the end of it...so thats what i'm trying to guage.


Would be looking for work in a couple of small regional towns in East Mayo/North Galway/Roscommon area.

Im not sure about where you're looking for but generally the busy days are around the weekends in and around Dublin. Maybe you should ring a cab company near your own area and check. Ive been around the country in various towns/villages and you usually see local drivers with their own cards stuck up around shops take aways etc.

Just got the application form from the local garda station. Just a couple of queries that someone might be able to assist with...


- My local Garda Station is in Mayo but i'm thinking I would fare out better if I try to sort out work in Galway City. Can I assume that theres no problem in putting the application through locally?

- The application form asks that the applicant confirm the area they intend to work in. Is it straightforward to get this amended if I decide to work in another town/area??

- Need to send in a tax clearance cert with the application. Revenue are telling me that i have to register for income tax also. Is this really necessary (at this stage) until such time as I actually commence work (which may or may not happen)?

You must have a current tax clearance certificate as you need to submit this with your psv application to the garda station. Also if you were to use your own vehicle it has to be nct'd and deemed suitable for use as a public service vehicle and the nct will not do this unless you have all documentation including a current tax clearance certificate. You should apply for one anyway and you need to register for income tax as well.

You have to sit a test for the psv licence. Usually people apply for the licence in the area they live in but you can apply for one in another county - it just means that you will have to also sit another test for that county as you have to be reasonably familiar with the area you are going to operate in.

steph1 said:

You have to sit a test for the psv licence. Usually people apply for the licence in the area they live in but you can apply for one in another county - it just means that you will have to also sit another test for that county as you have to be reasonably familiar with the area you are going to operate in.

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Well, they told me to come back on Dec 1st. with the form/tax clearance cert./etc. Have been talking with a few people and I'm definitely going to start working in Galway initially - a few outfits there that work on a percentage basis and provide car, etc. - so I can try it and see if it works out.
As regards the test, is there any prep i should do for this??

I have a brother-in-law who also works shift work as a PAYE worker. On his time off he drives a mini bus for a local hackney firm. He has a driving licence to drive buses but he doesn't have a PSV licence. The hackney company says he doesn't need it - is that true? He drives on average 10 hours per week for this company.

baguio2007 said:

Well, they told me to come back on Dec 1st. with the form/tax clearance cert./etc. Have been talking with a few people and I'm definitely going to start working in Galway initially - a few outfits there that work on a percentage basis and provide car, etc. - so I can try it and see if it works out.
As regards the test, is there any prep i should do for this??

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I thought Dublin was the only area you needed to a test for?
Do you think it will be worth it, taking the tax out of it also?
Especially not working weekends.
I used to do part time in Maynooth, some days ended up working to pay the insurance.!

dobsdave said:

Do you think it will be worth it, taking the tax out of it also? Especially not working weekends.
I used to do part time in Maynooth, some days ended up working to pay the insurance.!

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Well, I need to do the sums on it there Dave - and perhaps you can help. My plan so far is to work in Galway, using my own car and working independently off the taxi ranks and contacts.
As regards whether the numbers stack up, I suppose insurance is the biggest deal.
What were you paying/what was the going rate?
Other costs seem to be taxi plate (€6300?) - thats a one off cost and I can sell the plate on if I like right?
How much is it to install meter - or is that included with the plate cost?
One thing I could do is work in co-operation with someone else - the other person covering the other 3/4 days but how should this be setup? Can this all be sorted with one insurance policy - and if so, would I be left between a rock and hard place if they have an accident ie. would i be able to get insurance again at all?
Is the motor tax on a 1800cc car same for taxi as it is for Joe Bloggs?

A lot of these questions are answered on www.taxi.ie.

Baguio - can you change your shifts to weekdays, and instead do the taxi work at the weekend? I know a few taxi drivers (Dublin area) and they make most money at the weekends. You may struggle to make much on Mon/Tue/Wed.
Bob

Is it hackney driving, or taxi driving you are looking into. As far as I know, as a hackey driver you must have a premises to work out of, while a taxi driver works from a specific taxi rank. From people I've spoken to, weekends are the main times for making money, but even at that, there is high insurance, car maintenence and the car must be tested every year, as well as competing for customers with other drivers like yourself.

Bob_tg said:

Baguio - can you change your shifts to weekdays, and instead do the taxi work at the weekend? I know a few taxi drivers (Dublin area) and they make most money at the weekends. You may struggle to make much on Mon/Tue/Wed.
Bob

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I'd prefer not to but changing shift isnt out of the question if the rewards are there. More practical would be sharing the drive with someone else - just need to find out how I can do this fairly and without running into insurance difficulties.

Is it hackney driving, or taxi driving you are looking into.

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Have decided taxi would suit be best at this point.

..while a taxi driver works from a specific taxi rank.

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Didn't know you could be tied down to working a specific rank...surely not?

There is high insurance, car maintenence and the car must be tested every year, as well as competing for customers with other drivers like yourself.

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Well, of all of that, the first one is the only one that really concerns me. I will ring AXA and Quinn tomorrow (don't think anyone else does taxi insurance).