Prestige Chauffeurs is pleased to announce that following an application to Bury Council to be exempted from the display of existing plates and stickers, along with upcoming new livery requirements, the company has been granted its request.
For the past two and a half years, the company has operated within the rules, but the lack of any exemptions for executive chauffeur services made it very difficult to attract or retain clients. As a member of the National Private Hire Association, also located in Bury, its founder Brian Roland helped support Prestige Chauffeurs Limited application to be exempted from these “restricted” rules.
With no precedent for exemptions for executive hire, Bury Council requested the matter be put before the licensing committee . In a statement, the Hargreaves family said, “We would like to thank our clients who overwhelmingly supported our application, along with Brian and Donna from The National Private Hire Association who not only gave us expert legal advice, but supported our case in person, helping us provide a strong case”.
“To become the first company in Bury to be given these exemptions, helps open the way for other companies to offer the type of service we do. It has been a challenging few years trying to run a chauffeur company with “taxi plates” and stickers on our vehicles, but the new rules and regulations would have made it impossible to continue to provide a professional, uniformed chauffeur service.”
Bury Times Covers the story – A CHAUFFEUR company, which faced being driven off the road by council rules has won the right to drive in style.
Prestige Chauffeurs near Ramsbottom were warned by major local companies that they would go elsewhere if the firm was forced to have big legal signs plastered on its car doors.
But after appealing to the local authority, Prestige has been granted an exemption from the laws which apply to all of the hundreds of private hire cars in the borough.
Prestige Chauffeurs Ltd, based at Bolton Street, Ramsbottom, have been licensed with the council since December 1996 and operate three vehicles.
The firm mainly carries out contract work for firms within the Bury and Bolton area and have a liveried driver in the uniform of the company including chauffeur-style cap.
All private hire vehicles are required to display big signs on the car doors which include warnings that passengers are not covered by insurance unless the car is pre-booked.
The council brought these conditions in to persuade people not to get in a private hire vehicle unless they had phoned the booking office. Only taxis, or “black cabs”, can be flagged down in the street. Councillors at last Thursday’s (July 1) meeting of the licensing panel agreed to grant an exemption to Prestige, although an internal ID disc is to be agreed with the company.
The company was supported in its application by the National Private Hire Association which is based in Bury.
They said the big door logos required by the council would detract from the sort of executive service required by clients of the company.
Supporting letters were sent to the council from several local firms including Adams Manchester, part of confectionery division of Warner Lambert, and Fort James in Horwich. Greenmount company Greenwood and Coope Ltd also added their support.
Mr Christopher Hargreaves, managing director of Prestige, said he was pleased with the council’s decision.
Bury Times link: Carry on Driver
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