Category: St Andrews Taxis Scotland

Starfish Taxis have a vehicle available for the right self employed driver to join the team in St Andrews.

Job description:
We are looking for a person who enjoys customer service and is relaxed about driving.

Local knowledge would be beneficial but can be acquired.
We expect you to work set hours and we have currently day time shifts 6 am to 4 pm  Monday, Tuesday, Friday, Saturday & Sunday available or evening shifts 4pm – 2am on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday.
You could work full or part-time and we may occasional ask if you can help with adhoc jobs. This happens during times of high demand but can also be because of customer planes or trains being delayed.
Once you are comfortable with your job we would like you to handle telephone inquiries and ask you to take bookings and do so in a timely manner.
You will be responsible to keep the vehicle clean inside and out and hand it over to the following driver in a ready-to-go state: Cleaned and filled up with fuel.
You will also be asked to report faults and problems of the vehicle based on your daily sheet.
You are required to record all fares of every day on your daily sheet in a readable fashion.
The fully licenced taxi (Mercedes Vito) will be provided, as will be full insurance, fuel and a mobile phone to be used when working.
Vehicle and phone will be shared with other drivers.
You will work on a percentage of your takings and you are responsible to report your own tax return.
We or our accountants can assist with this if required.
This job does provide a bit of freedom and exitement, can be challenging, especially if you work at night and encounter some drunk customers.
At the same time it is very rewarding as people of all backgrounds will enter your taxi.

Skills:
The ideal candidate should be well organsied, customer focussed, resistant to stress, friendly.
Local knowledge and good telephone manners are desired but can be learned.
Working on your own initiative is required but we will help you to find your way in St Andrews, at airports, golf courses and stations.
You will need to have a driving licence and a Hakney badge

Requirements:
The applicant is preferably over 30y and holds a full UK driving license.
A hackney license for Fife. (or willing to obtain one before you start the job)

What we offer:
We offer a flexible job for a flexible team member.

Interested?

Please contact Kirstin or Tim by email with an introduction of yourself :
Starfish@Taxistandrews.co.uk

Taxis get fined for collecting passengengers from Edinburgh airport drop off zone

One of our drivers had picked up from the drop off area at Edinburgh airport.
We fully accept that is illegal as signs show when you enter the ‘Drop off zone’.
Vehicle Control Services Limited (Creditor) issued the Charge Notice letter 3 months and 7 days after the airport transfer by normal post. We asked ourselves where to find all the terms and conditions of this scam?
Fine to be paid: £60 within 14 days or £100 within 14 to 28 days.

However as per quote of Adrian Witherow (EDI airport Chief Operating Officer) in Edinburgh Live : 

“The safety of staff and passengers is always our number one priority and practices like touting and tailgating must be addressed to ensure the drop-off zone is a safe environment for everyone. 
“It’s important that we provide a steady supply of taxis and private hire cars for passengers who land in Edinburgh but, unfortunately, a rise in these unsafe practices is impacting on our ability to do that. 
“Touting is also denying our licenced taxis business and we have a responsibility to protect the integrity of that service, especially when that agreement ensures a supply of cars available for our passengers and customers at all hours of the day. 

Our conclusion is that the airport boss wants to prevent “Touting” at Edinburgh airport “Drop off area”, however how can you distinguish from the footage if this was a “hire reward job” AND/ OR an advance booking?
NOT!

Challenge a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN)

Appeal against Edinburgh Drop Off parking charge

There is an independant appeal service is you find your pentalty charge was unlawfully presented (Please do not pay your penalty before appealing)
You may appeal on any ground which undermines the lawfulness of the charge or which otherwise affects the suggestion that you are liable for it.
Check out this webiste:
https://www.theias.org/home

OR:
The Parking on Private Land Appeals (POPLA) was introduced in 2012 to help customers deals with non-council related parking fines. POPLA governs appeals from people who have been given a fine for parking on private land. However, they will only take your case if your appeal has been rejected by the parking firm first. POPLA is an independent body; they are not affiliated with any operators. If you are successful in your appeal with them, your charges can be cancelled. However, if POPLA disagree, then you would have to pay the fine and if you refuse, the parking firm could take you to a claims court.

To challenge a PCN contact MPC who sent you the letter. You should do this within 28 days from the date it was issued.
“There is an online selection of reasons to base your contest of the charge on“
You can apeal to MYPARKINGCHARGE.co.uk and the website will redirect you to : https://excel.zatappeal.com.
You will need to present your Notice reference number and the registration on the vehicle.

MyParkingCharge and the Central Processing Office is a trading style of the Excel Parking Services Group .
Registered in England & Wales No. 02878122 .
Registered Address:
2 Europa Court,
Sheffield Business Park,
Sheffield S9 1XE
MEMBER OF IPC (international parking community)

Can a parking company get my car details from DVLA?

The law allows any person with ‘reasonable cause’ to do so to apply to the DVLA for the details of the registered keeper of a vehicle. Parking operators are able to apply for such details in order to recover unpaid parking charges.
The DVLA will only release this information to Parking Operators if they can demonstrate their case for needing it and if they are a member of an Accredited Trade Association.
If you would like to learn more about data release, please visit the DVLA web page by clicking Here.

If you feel your personal details have been optained and used inappropriately you may complain to the DVLA:
gov.uk/contact-the-dvla

Table of tariffs at Edinburgh airport drop off zone”:
Where is the drop-off zone?	Ground floor of the Multi-storey
0 – 5 mins	£2.00
5 – 10 mins	£4.00
10 min – 15 mins	£10.00
15 mins – 1 hour	£15.00
Thereafter	£15.00 per hour
Entry / Exit	Barrier controlled
Payment method	Cash, card, contactless and mobile payments.
Max stay?	2 hours. Cars can’t be left unattended
Blue badge holders	FREE for 1 hour
Vehicles allowed	Cars, motorbikes, minibus *
Height restrictions	Height 2.2m (7.2ft)
Other restrictions	– No taxi or private hire pick-ups.

Disclaimer:

The information contained in this website is for general information purposes only. The information is provided by Starfish Taxis and while we endeavour to keep the information up to date and correct, we make no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability or availability with respect to the website or the information, products, services, or related graphics contained on the website for any purpose. Any reliance you place on such information is therefore strictly at your own risk.

We get the question frequently on what the tipping and gratuity etiquette is in the U.K.
Tipping your driver is not expected in Britain the way it is in some other countries.
Workers don’t officially have to rely on their tips to live and all staff in the UK must be paid at least the National Minimum Wage. Although it’s not necessary to tip, it’s always greatly appreciated and will be greeted with that endearing British politeness. 

Gratuity

In Britain it is quite normal to tip taxi drivers and customary to round the total fare up to the nearest pound.
If your driver is extra helpful, offers to load and unload your luggage at the airport, makes friendly conversation, and generally, provides an overall pleasurable taxi ride, than it is advisable to reward them for their efforts.
Consider tipping a 10-15 per cent tip as a nice gesture and should suffice…

What is a good taxi service?

A good cab driver will be friendly and have a thorough knowledge of the area in which they work.
If you ask for advice on where to go in Scotland or St Andrews, the driver should be able to suggest a few popular attractions without much effort.
They should also be aware of alternate routes in case of a traffic jam or accident that obscures the road. A swift service should be always priority. Try to notice whether your driver went a roundabout way or was adapting the route based on rush hour traffic.
Help with luggage is minimum standard, unless the driver has a medical condition of course.

If you are planning a trip to Scotland and over to St. Andrews and on up to Inverness and want a comfortable experience .
Starfish Taxis are fully insured driver-guide with Mercedes limousine for your tailor-made guided tours. Half day, full day or extended tours. Collection from Edinburgh, Inverness possible. Services can include itinerary planning and reservations. Meet your clan chief, trace your roots, stay in a castle, tour the distilleries. We can also be booked if you are coming in by Cruise ship to Invergordon and want to play golf in St Andrews we can take you through to your next port.

Information for the Taxi drive:

St Andrews to Invergordon by taxi is approximately 3hours 45min
St Andrews to Inverness takes approximately 3hrs10min
From St Andrews to Royal Dornoch Golf course will take 4h30min including a 20min break.
Whereas Saint Andrews to Castle Stuart course is about 3h25min.
We can always drive via Fort William, Fort Augustus and Loch ness on route for sightseeing
To Nairn from St Andrews 3h35min

Gleneagles Cup

The prestigious 2019 Solheim Cup will take place 13th to 15th September at Gleneagles in Auchterarder Perthshire.
Like no other event in women’s golf this lasting legacy will be a family orientated showcase. The best women golfers from Europe and the USA will compete for the sport’s top team prize.
With the PING Junior Solheim Cup preceding 8th – 10th September at Gleneagles with the participants an important part of the main event and it will be a few busy weeks in and around Auchterader,

Accommodation

With over 100,000 spectators expected, accommodation will be scarce in the area. 
Major golfing events in Scotland have traditionally relied on local people letting out homes for a week to provide extra accommodation. Larger groups in particular might struggle to find suitable lodgings.

Transport from ST Andrews to Gleneagles Solheim cup 2019

Starfish-Taxis.com would be delighted to assist with your transportation needs during the Solheim cup. We are St Andrews based, the distance between St Andrews and Gleneagles is about 50miles and will take about 1hour.
If you are staying at St Andrews you would be able to combine a few rounds of golf yourself. We offer a swift Taxi service between Kingsbarns, Carnoustie and of course the St Andrews links.