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Taxis and private hire

Electric vehicles as taxis and private hire vehicles

There are a lot of electric vehicles (EVs) that you can use as a taxi or for private hire work.

EVs are clean, efficient, cheap to run and ideal to use in cities and towns, which is where most taxis and private hire vehicles (PHV) work. So, it’s no surprise that taxi and private hire drivers are turning to EVs.

Benefits

Here are some of the benefits of using an EV as a taxi or a PHV:

Even with today’s higher electricity prices, EVs can be much cheaper to fuel than their petrol and diesel equivalents, especially if you have off-street parking and can charge your EV at home.

Based on the average UK domestic electricity price of 34p per kWh (December 2022), the average size EV costs about 10p per mile in fuel for urban driving (as opposed to motorway driving, which may drain your battery faster). This is around half the cost of petrol or diesel. If you can charge your EV overnight using an off-peak tariff, you can save even more.

You can also expect much lower servicing and maintenance costs driving an EV, and you won’t have to pay any road tax until 2025.
There’s a lot of variation in sizes of EV and their range.

An average size EV has an urban driving range of around 200 miles or more. They can also be fully charged at home overnight with a domestic EV charge point or charged very quickly with rapid charging. Larger EVs often have bigger batteries and a much longer range.

For urban driving, an average size EV will give you approximately 3.5 miles per kWh of battery capacity in the winter and over 4kWh during the rest of the year. Large EVs will generally give you a bit less than 3.5 miles per kWh.

This is why the size of the battery is one of the most important things you need to think about when you’re looking to buy an EV to use as a taxi or PHV.
EVs produce much less CO₂ than diesel or petrol vehicles, even when you consider the battery’s production and the electricity used to charge the EV.

They don’t have exhausts to emit the particulate matter and NOx that blight many of our towns and cities. When you choose and EV, you’ll be doing your bit for the environment and also have full, free access to the increasing number of Clean Air Zones in the UK.

Buying an EV

EVs are more expensive to buy upfront than petrol or diesel vehicles. Remember, your local authority sets taxi and private hire vehicle requirements (eg wheelchair accessible vehicles (WAVS) and whether taxis have to be purpose-built), so check with them before you buy any new vehicle, even EVs.

You might want to think about buying a used EV instead to bring down the initial cost, especially as EVs tend to be reliable and low maintenance vehicles.

Grants and other help to go electric

There’s a £7,500 grant available nationally for purpose-built taxis that can drive at least 70 miles in zero emission mode. The LEVC TX is currently the only vehicle eligible for this grant (information correct as of February 2023).

Several local authorities have also had schemes to promote electric taxis and private hire vehicles. Check with your local council or taxi and PHV licencing authority to see if there’s any extra help you can get.

Uber drivers in London may also be eligible for financial help under the company’s Clean Air Plan. This aims to help all Uber drivers in London switch to EVs by 2025.

Through the Local Government Support Programme in England, we can offer help for local authorities looking to reduce emissions from their local taxi and private hire vehicle fleet and transition to electric vehicles.

We can help local authorities to impartially review draft licencing policies, host a driver survey, and deliver workshops for officers and councillors on electric vehicles and charging infrastructure options.
In Scotland, Energy Saving Trust offers free and impartial advice to help taxi and private hire operators choose the best low carbon vehicle options for their business.

We also provide advice and support to taxi and private hire operators, including ultra low emission vehicle adoption advice from our sustainable transport coordinators, the Switched on Taxis interest-free loan, the Low Emission Zone Retrofit Fund, as well as grants for charging infrastructure.

For more information, please view our infographic on funding available for taxis and private hire vehicles in Scotland.

Electric vehicle: minicab driver

Watch an interview with Vincent Cunningham, a minicab driver who has been driving an electric vehicle (EV) for four years.

Switched on taxis loan

The switched on taxis loan is available in Scotland and can help you purchase a new or used electric taxi or private…

Low emission zone support fund for households

The fund can help households within a 20km radius of the planned low emission zones in Scotland.

Low emission zone retrofit fund

Find out more about the Low Emission Zone Retrofit Fund aimed at supporting eligible micro businesses in Scotland.

Last updated: 10 April 2024