It has been a couple of months since the last blog but I hope to get back into the rhythm of things again in the run-up to Christmas.
Each month I try to write a blog article. So allow me to introduce myself. I am Tristan Priddis, owner of a Hoddesdon pre-booked car and taxi company called ACRE Cars. The range of topics for my blog, and making them relevant is challenging, however, I keep one thing in mind and that is to be useful to the local people of Hertfordshire and to be of interest to a wider audience.
Earlier in the year, I put together a blog article entitled “Staying safe when using taxis and minicabs” which you should always bear in mind when booking any pre-booked car, minicab or taxi. The majority of minicab, taxi and pre-booked car drivers are reputable and decent people and all of ACRE Cars Taxi’s drivers are too. Uber drivers, due to their sheer volume and the controversial business model of Uber, have been highlighted as including some more undesirable drivers with stories of unroadworthy vehicles, abuse, not knowing routes and even assaults. You only have to google Uber driver arrested to get further insight. However, these are global news stories albeit the UK has had its fair share of horror stories when it comes to taxi drivers and companies and not just Uber drivers.
So why is your local taxi company as good as Uber in fact probably better?
Well, firstly in areas such as Hoddesdon, Broxbourne, Hertford, Ware and Stanstead Abbotts, the professional taxi and minicab drivers all work regular or full-time hours or shifts which means their livelihood and their families livelihoods depend on repeat bookings. You only get repeat bookings if you deliver a good service. Being local drivers and driving regularly plus also having to sit a version of the knowledge to become licensed means drivers are nearly always immediately available, timely and know the areas and routes such as to and from airports extremely well.
There are probably fewer Uber drivers in these areas as they need to be registered and licenced by the local authorities such as The Borough of Broxbourne which among a number of requirements require drivers to have passed the written Borough of Broxbourne knowledge assessment. More can be read in my article “Working as a Private Hire driver for ACRE Cars Taxis”
More and more established prebooked car service companies such ACRE Cars are providing smartphone booking apps for customers. More information on ACRE Cars taxi booking app can be found here – “Hoddesdon and Broxbourne Based Taxi Company Promotes Its Smartphone Booking App”.
This method of booking a car in advance to pick you up, when and where you want is proving increasingly popular with user rates of the ACRE Cars booking app increasing each week. No doubt spurred on by Uber’s business model based on a smartphone app but many different users are learning to trust and prefer using these convenience and personal online cab hailing tools.
It is worth noting that the Acre Cars App is going through an overhaul and will soon be released with new payment features in addition to account and cash bookings. Follow us on Facebook to find out more.
Another reason why your local pre-booked car service is better than Uber is that fortunately, they are not in the news week after week for something you would not really want to be associated with. Just recently stories when checking Google and a few well known national tabloids and broadsheets include:
- Uber to take appeal over ruling on drivers’ status to UK supreme court
- Uber hacking: customers not at risk of financial crime, says minister
- Uber faces slew of investigations in wake of ‘outrageous’ data hack cover-up
- Uber launches appeal against loss of London licence
- Uber’s ‘disruption’ is far from benign – but it’s not too big to ban
- Police slam Uber over sex attack drivers
- Uber stalls on pledge to cut drivers’ long hours
- Russian criminals suspected of hacking Uber users’ accounts
However, some more interesting articles which highlight the truly disruptive force of Uber include:
- Uber wants to cure travel sickness with light, air blasts and moving seats
- Uber plans to buy 24,000 autonomous Volvo SUVs in race for driverless future
So when you need to be picked up in London, an airport transfer or even local taxi rides, try your local taxi company first. They are better and you won’t be disappointed!
Until next time,
Tristan
Owner ACRE Cars
Interested in becoming a hackney carriage or private hire driver? You may wish to read this article; Working as a Private Hire driver for ACRE Cars Taxi’s.
ACRE Cars is looking to recruit new drivers, If you have any questions or want to discuss the possibilities please contact me.
You can follow ACRE Cars on Twitter and Facebook.
ACRE Cars is a competitive car service. Our rates to airports and collection from airports and other transport hubs are extremely competitive to any other taxi or minicab company running similar services and ACRE also includes free of charge hire of a child safety seat, for long journeys, for each child passenger under four years and under the height of 135 cm.
We pick up customers locally from Hoddesdon, Broxbourne, Wormley, Cheshunt and London as well as Nazeing, Stanstead Abbotts, Ware, Hertford, Hertford Heath, Hailey and Harlow and all other neighbouring towns and villages. Popular airport taxi transfers include Stansted Airport, Heathrow Airport, Gatwick Airport, Southend Airport, Luton Airport and London City Airport. Sea Port transfers and major train stations including Victoria, Kings Cross St Pancras, Stratford Ebbsfleet and Ashford.
The views in this blog article are my own and based on my own research using the internet and not that of ACRE Cars or ACRE group.