Please Read Below if you are worried about whether  your booked limousine is legal!!!!

A limo is generally a luxury motorcar with an enclosed body and partition behind the driver -

usually a chauffeur. Stretch limousines offer affordable entertainment for hundreds of thousands of

people every year, seeking a touch of glamour to an important occasion, such as a wedding, a hen

night, or formal balls. Increasingly they are also being used by children for events such as birthday

parties and school proms.

There are currently around 10,000 stretch limousines operating in the country owned by between 4-

5,000 companies. The large majority of these are owner-drivers with only one vehicle each. There

are about 400 companies with a fleet of vehicles.

Growth in the industry is expediential. At the start of 2003 there were some 3,000 limousines, at the

start of 2004, some 5,000 and at the start of this year some 7,000. It is estimated that by the end of

this year there are likely to be about 11,000 with a 50% expansion rate per annum likely to continue

over the coming five years. Once a minor market for use by the rich and famous only, the industry is

now a major contributor to the leisure sector, worth around £200 million a year in turnover.

A recent tendency has seen the importation of large American limousines including the Jeep and

Humvee types which can have a capacity of up to 28 people.

The result has been that very many operators now carry more than the legal limit of 8 passengers.

At present limousines and chauffeur driven vehicles operate under a mixture of existing laws. Lack

of uniformity re: legislation & regulation throughout the UK

The current private hire licensing rules mainly emanate from the Local Government Miscellaneous

Provisions Act 1976. These rules are now 29 years old and have to be used in a way never intended

at the concept, and on a variety of vehicles that were virtually unheard of at that time.

The 1976 Act was designed to cover the area of private hire vehicles as the public knows and

envisages them. The government of the day decided that each Local Licensing Authority should be

given a relatively free hand in how they administered the rules and it allowed them to apply their own

thoughts on suitability of models of cars, age, colours and badging.

Limousines carrying up to eight passengers may be licensed under the PHV regime. but only about

half of the 404 local licensing authorities do. Currently, the rest will not licence limousines despite

being urged to do so as a means of regulating the local trade.

To carry more than eight passengers for hire, a vehicle has to have a PSV operator s licence and

the driver must have passed the test to acquire a PSV licence.

A series of regulations regulate the construction of public service vehicles (PSVs) under which

vehicles must have either:

A certificate of initial fitness

A certificate of conformity

A PSV with more than 8 passenger seats (excluding the driver) cannot legally be used for carrying

passengers on the highway until it has been issued with a Certificate of Initial Fitness (COIF). This

includes all buses, coaches and minibuses that carry passengers for hire and reward. The COIF is

issued by a Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) certifying officer when the vehicle meets

all the relevant PSV requirements.

This shows that they have been built to specified public service vehicle standards. There are two

sets of rules, one for minibuses with between 9-16 seats, and one for larger vehicles that have more

than 16 seats.

Vehicles must be maintained in a mechanically sound condition. They must be tested annually at a

VOSA testing station to make sure they still comply with the specified standards. There is a special

MOT test for PSVs.

The Public Service Vehicles Accessibility Regulations 2000 require PSVs with more than 22 seats to

comply with certain accessibility measures and must comply with strict Euro 3 emission standards

the more stringent Euro 4 by 2006.

Many limousine owners operate under a restricted PSV licence granted by the Traffic

Commissioners for vehicles carrying up to eight people. The vehicles have to be checked for safety

every ten weeks and maintain up to date service records. Limousine companies can only hold two

restricted PSV badges and for owners, this should be only a part time occupation.

Limousines holding a PSV licence are covered for hire under section 265 of the Transport Act

(2000) intended to prevent PSV vehicles competing with local private hire vehicles. However, to be

able to operate for hire the current minimum journey for a single limousine party is set at 15 miles

from the start to first stopping or dropping off point.

This rule often makes it impractical to operate a limousine properly, and often forces limousine

owners to make unnecessary detours, damaging industry profitability together with the environment.

More often the regulation is openly flouted as recognised by the Traffic Commissioners who do not

enforce it.

Under an exemption clause in the Local Government Miscellaneous Provisions Act 1976 vehicles

may operate for hire under a contract between the customer and the hirer. Many owners use this

facility where the local authority does not licence limousines as a means of staying within licensing

regulations. The contracts have never been tested in law despite having been challenged on a few

occasions.

Only five years ago, nearly all limousines abided by regulations. However, as the number of large

stretch style limousines has increased, so has the percentage of operators who are willing to flout

the law. It is now estimated that about 50% of the limousines currently in use operate illegally.

The current and common easily identified breaches of the law include: -

Under the Public Service Vehicles (Conditions of Fitness, Equipment, Use and Certification)

Regulations 1981, no vehicle is currently allowed to carry more than 8 passengers unless it has

either a certificate of conformity, or a Certificate of Initial Fitness. Local authority licensing only

applies to vehicles carrying up to eight people.

To contravene the PSV regulations is a schedule 3 offence and carries a fine of up to £3,000. More

seriously, it exposes the service user to financial as well as physical danger, as such vehicles are

uninsurable.

At present there is not a single American manufactured, stretched limousine over a capacity of eight

that complies with this rule, as they have not been issued with a COIF. As a result many of these

regularly carry more than eight people and it is not at all uncommon for them to carry 16 or more

people. Some have the capacity to carry up to 28 people.

Because the public are unaware of the 8 passenger rule, undue pressure is often placed on

limousine owners by customers who have a party of 9 or more and who want to keep it complete.

Law abiding operators have to explain the law and more often than not lose the custom to a

competitor who is happy to flout regulations. A number of unscrupulous operators will happily blind

the public to the law and not inform them of the regulation and the implications for insurance that this

also carries.

Some limousines and unusual vehicles may only be covered for wedding hire and are being used

outside the terms of insurance.

A number of the imported American stretched limousines are built to a high safety specification,

such as those built in conjunction with Ford s QVM (Quality Vehicle Manufacturer), and Cadillac s

CMC (Cadillac Master Coach) programmes.

However, there are other vehicles that are either not built to these standards, or were built before the

advent of the schemes. This does not automatically mean that they are poorly constructed; but these

vehicles are not checked on arrival in the country and go straight onto the roads. In theory, and

probably practice in some cases, they could be vehicles that have been welded together. Many of

them do not have seat belts for all the occupants either as many sit sideways.

In all cases, American stretched limousines are highly stressed because of their dramatically

increased weight when compared with traditional limousines. Particular care and regular

maintenance are needed to ensure safety standards are maintained in steering, brakes and the

suspension. The current yearly MOT test is not thorough enough.

Where local authorities do licence limousines, sometimes the stipulations they impose make it

difficult for them to operate as they should do and therefore do make it an attractive option and

encourage operators to operate without a licence. For. Example, local regulations may stipulate that

luxury or stretch limousines have to be covered in unsightly private hire badges, plates and door

stickers. Such material is not conducive to business. These are usually required to prevent PHV

cars plying for trade on the streets, something that limousines are unlikely to do.

The diversity in the regulations applied by councils produces a myriad of rules which limousine

owners have to comply with to obtain a PHV licence. Limousines will operate across local authority

boundaries and may not be required to have a plate in the authority where they are based but may

pick up passengers in another area where a licence is required.

If local authorities will not licence a limousine for any reason, there is no right of appeal

Imported, stretch limousines may be awarded PSV licences but in effect most will not comply with

the requirements for vehicle safety due to design features such as the lack of gangways, lack of fire

exits, not meeting minimum headroom and the range of electrical items and glass present in many

vehicles. Consequently VOSA refuses to grant them COIFs. This means that limousines carrying

more than eight people are not covered by any regulatory or licensing regime, and are in effect

operating outside the law.

Allied to the issues surrounding the capability and capacity of limousines is the blossoming business

of chauffeur driven vehicles of all types. These provide an altogether different sort of service to taxis

and private hires, ranging from stretch limousines, through exotic cars to corporate travel.

The suitability of an individual to drive a limousine in terms of training, experience and personal

record, is taken for granted by the customers. Unless they have been on a chauffeur s course or

acquired a recognised advanced driving qualification (such as through IAM or ROSPA) there is

nothing to attest to their abilities to drive a large vehicle, other than a regular driving licence

Chauffeurs who carry out all types of work from children's parties to hen nights, to aiding the elderly,

should be the subject of proper scrutiny. For the industry s sake it is necessary to reassure the

paying public that the vehicle they travel in is being driven by a decent member of society and

preferably one competent to drive an unusual type of vehicle.

The establishment of the NLA chauffeur register has not been assisted by the body governing

criminal records, which stated that it was not necessary for chauffeurs to undergo checks, unless it

was proven that they would be working with vulnerable groups.

As the chauffeur driven trade increases rapidly, it is now the time to address any workforce

problems, before they get out of hand and lead to a serious incident taking place due to a driver-led

accident or due to a vulnerable person being endangered.

Although regulations exist to prevent illegal operation of limousines, the fact that they are so

routinely flouted is because of lack of enforcement and mild penalties where offenders are caught.

With the lack of consistency in the application of PHV licensing by local authorities and PSVs

generally being enforced through VOSA it is not surprising that police officers are unsure of the rules

governing limousines and chauffer driven cars, leading them generally to shy away from confronting

and charging drivers operating illegally. This means that the majority of limousines operating outside

the regulations will never be stopped by the police.

The police need educating about current regulations and be urged to pro-actively enforce them as a

deterrent to those breaking the regulations and putting the public at risk.

The staff of the Vehicle Inspectorate, part of VOSA, are responsible for the enforcement of the PSV

licence. Unfortunately, VOSA staff generally only work Monday to Friday during the daytime, unless

there is a specific case warranting overtime. This means cover is fatally weakened when the majority

of limousines are in use, during evenings and weekends. As effective prosecutions can only be

brought when offences are identified with the vehicle in use, this means that there is very little

enforcement of the regulations. The presence of VOSA on weekends has been increased, but

additional funding is needed to provide effective cover and a disincentive to break the law.

The minority of local authorities that do licence limousines generally do not enforce them and they

should be more active in doing this.

The courts need to deal sternly with offenders. Only when magistrates treat the offences as serious

breaches, especially considering lives are at risk, and deal out serious punishments such as heavy

fines or disqualification, will companies reconsider their operation policy. At present, minimal fines

are handed down which do little to deter unscrupulous operators who will risk these in the interest of

making greater profits.

Identifying defective vehicles is best left to the Vehicle Inspectorate, as the majority of police officers

would not be expected to have the specialist knowledge needed to spot a dangerous limousine or

chauffer-driven car.

The Inspectorate needs to carry out more random checks on limousine fleets, with advice being

made available to the police and service-users on how to check a vehicle is roadworthy.

Although limousines will carry an insurance policy, in effect it is likely that insurers would argue

against paying out any claims where a vehicle was working without an appropriate licence and was

overloaded. This means that probably in about half the usage of stretch limousines passengers are

not covered and neither is the driver nor any third party involved. Given the government s recent

moves to crack down on uninsured drivers this is an area that urgently needs addressing.

The Government should intervene to forbid the granting of insurance policies for limousines carrying

more than 8 passengers without the requisite authorisation. This would be a simple and effective

way of dramatically cutting the number of unlicensed and overloaded limousines on the roads, as

operators would be concerned about the financial and criminal implications of any accident.

Where owners of exotic or luxury cars are operating them outside of their declared usage, such as

for wedding hire) they equally will be uninsured and a yearly check on the type and validity of

insurance on all vehicles carrying paying passengers must be introduced to negate this occurrence.

Otherwise, this issue will only come to light when there is a serious accident involving fatalities.

Not surprisingly, the public are completely ignorant of the rules. Individuals cannot make informed

decisions on limousine use unless they are well informed, and a media campaign needs to be

undertaken which facilitates customer being able to ask appropriate questions when booking a

limousine.

Given the significant growth in the industry, the time has come for new, specific legislation that

addresses the requirements and problems of today's diverse range and use of vehicles. Changes

and new regulations are needed now before the market becomes swamped with larger unregulated

limousines, and before legal operators either cease trading, or are forced by market pressures to

join the unauthorised ranks.

Whilst we accept that local authorities keep control of traditional taxi and Private Hire licensing,

there is a need for a new set of standard rules to apply across the country to ensure simplicity,

understanding and compliance.

To ensure there is no knee-jerk reaction, a working party needs to be established with

representatives from VOSA, the Police, the NLA and the Traffic Commissioners, to recommend new,

workable regulations in a considered manner and having gone out to consultation.

Reviews are already underway on private hire vehicles in both England and Scotland, so now is as

an appropriate time to strengthen chauffer trade rules.

The NLA is not seeking to change the Local Government Miscellaneous Provisions Act 1976 or to

alter the provisions for Weddings, Funerals or written contracts.

We are simply requesting the establishment of a new set of rules to accommodate the types of

vehicles and services provided.

Consideration needs to be given to the following businesses, and how a new set of rules could most

appropriately deal with them:

proms.

We would ask that consideration be given to the establishment of two new categories for the

American stretch limousines.

16 passengers, acknowledging that the vehicles will not conform with existing rules, but also

bringing them within the framework of the law.

We would also request a clear and simple form of national licensing for chauffeur driven executive

cars along the same lines. This is seen as being of paramount importance in view of the conflicting

requirements of local authorities, and the problems of cross border hires.

The NLA supports the need for all chauffeurs to be subject to CRB checks for the protection of the

passengers, and in particular the more vulnerable groups such as young children and