Secret Millionaire?Last night I sat and watched a Sky Plus recording of The Secret Millionaire. Although it has not changed my personal views about this ex minicab driver, I have to commend John Griffin on parting with a great deal of money in donations to worthy causes in the north of England.
The question has to be asked, did this come from his heart of was it just a PR exercise that is tax deductible.
In my opinion it really doesn't matter. Is it not better that the worthy causes received this cash, instead of this forlorn government, where it could be swallowed up, without a trace and probably paid out on some ones expenses who could well afford to do without it.
However the program threw up a few worrying questions that the trade needs to ask itself.
Apart from the fact Mr Griffin kept referring to himself as an extremely successful "Taxi" proprietor that ran a successful "Taxi" business (bet he just couldn't resist that), he also made a statement that should make every radio driver, in the Licensed Taxi Trade sit up and pay attention.
Apparently with 2500 vehicles, Addison Lee grossed 175 million pounds last year.
That's £70,000 per vehicle.
Addison lee are not in the habit of selling jobs to their competition and looking at the prices on their website, they achieved this by being 30% dearer than black cabs.
I think the questions that radio drivers need to ask their CEO's and BOM's is;
Why are they doing jobs for up to a third off the meter price?
Why are they selling roaders and airports to private hire for a few pence per job?
Why cant drivers get enough work to cover their subscription?
Did you manage to do £70,000 worth of radio work last year?
This trade has three major radio circuits that have similar fleets to Addison Lee. Did they come anywhere near grossing 175 million pounds last year?
Jim...Do you think its wise to dig out our radio circuits. Should we not be concentrating on pulling together like you said in your last article.
ReplyDeleteThere are many variables that divide the takings of a private hire vehicle and a taxicab.
I fell this could be discussed in great detail on this post.
Dave
Dave,
ReplyDeleteNo mate, I think its about time the drivers on these circuits woke up to the fact that their boards of management are selling them down the river.
Com Cab are only recruiting private hire drivers as they slowly switch over to becoming a scab outfit. DaC are selling jobs that should go to Taxis and have put terminals in customers offices so they can book scabs through their systems.
Radio Taxis were going to become a supplier of scabs at Heathrow. It was olny because of the threat of the drivers to all strip out that stopped them in their tracks.
The drivers of radio taxis have shown you the way. You have to make the break soon before its too late.
You will only have yourselves to blame this time, no one else can sort this out, only you the subscriber.
I think it explains why Radio Circuits want to get into bed with these companys,how much of the 70,000 went into the drivers pockets?
ReplyDeleteMark
Makes sense Thomas. But you know what cab drivers are like, all they care about is the next pound note
ReplyDeleteIt sounds good but Mr Griffin doesn't run a taxi company, the money he quotes inculdes payments to drivers, vat, tax, etc it is bullsine....
ReplyDeleteAddison Lee have bought the competition and continues to mug of london taxi-cab drivers who always react to his comments but fail to do the simplest of things and that is your job. Just take people where they wish to go in a clean taxi-cab and the likes of Addisson Lee will soon be pegged back.
Time to wake up if you hold a green or yellow badge and time to grow up too, for many of you are selfish and think only of yourselves and this attitude is doomed to fail us all.
Radio drivers well lets be honest you are just a bunch of mugs, who hand work to the competition and are too freightened to work the streets, but don't worry won't be long before you'll be sweeping the road if you carry on funding the competition. Maybe you can all work for Addisson Lee ?
TTT ,I enjoyed your post minicab millonaire.you state that griffins company grossed 175 millon with 2500 vehicles.But the tfl website states that addison lee has 1750 minicabs on there books. So thats even more money per car last year.
ReplyDeleteAnon,
ReplyDeleteare you suggesting that Mr Griffin was exagerating on this program?
I think they call it playing to the gallery.
Mind you he could have some of the newer vehicles doubled up with two drivers.
I know he regularly reads my posts, perhaps he may answer your question personally
Hi, sorry I don't want to leave my name for obvious reasons, but just wanted to point out that as a cab driver on circuit, and seeing the number of bid trips that take ages to get covered, the idea that drivers not having enough to cover their subscription is a bit stretched. When it gets busy I sometimes see up to 5 lines of trips (approx 20) that no one is bothering with. Then when I get a trip I regularly see the message 'account under threat'. Dispatch told me that this is because the job takes ages to get covered. This is the problem with 'Black Cab' circuits, we don't have to do any work, minicabs do. We can't have everything. Then about selling jobs to minicab firms, it's not that jobs are being sold, it's if we/they cannot cover work - I am constantly doing work on account from Lewis Day and other minicab circuits - if they can't cover it, and the other way around.
ReplyDeleteBy stating that he has 2500 "Taxis" as he did on the program and the fact that the TFL website shows only 1750, does this not prove once and for all that this man's words cannot be trusted.
ReplyDeleteHe is not an honourable person so much of what he says must be treated as exaggeration or just plain lies.
Lest us not forget that Addy lee also run a fleet of coaches....how long before he has his own airline? Life would be so much richer if he was a real taxi driver.
ReplyDeleteAnon talks about 5 lines of uncoverded jobs in the bid zone and accounts under threat of closure.
ReplyDeleteI can remember but four or five times in the run up to Christmas that it got that busy.
Most of the jobs were EC2 to Ec2, EC4 to WC2 ect.....ie very local.
I have never seen so much local work at Chrismas time, in two deacades of driving a taxi !
Makes you wonder where all of the high end jobs are going eh ?
I for one didn't get anything of value off the radio over the Christmas period, exept a never ending supply of 'T' attribute jobs going nowhere!
How many drivers have noticed how they get the obligatory dross ride at the far end of the city after rejecting a badly priced F.P job ?
It's always the drivers fault that accounts are put in danger....
Never bad management practices that cause animosity or dispatchers playing their nightly game of shaft the driver !
Never the call or center, who often fail to inform the client in an acceptable time that their cab has arrived and is waiting for them; costing how much in extra unessesary expence over the year ? and at the same time pissing the travelling client off no end !
Putting work and aiding mini-cab companies is of NO value to the licenced cab trade. There is NO valid argument for this activity !
Well guys, a wake up cxall 10 yeras too late!
ReplyDeleteIt all went 'Pete Tong' when RTG sold out, DaC tried to and the LTDA sold ComCab (well nearly all), It was time then for us to stand up and say no!
We are now struggling to get back street work from the touts and the radio work from the minicabs, Put that in TAXI!
Too may fingers in pies to make a fuss by those who should have.
Giving work to competitors is surely death.
LTDA Hang your heads in shame!
I guess the trade unity thing just got tossed out of the window, again !
ReplyDeleteTravis, you ain't fooling anyone with yer silly names ! But I like your'e taste in music.... Wilson Picket, Travis. Can't make out where the Wilf thing fits in though... maybe you can enlighten us John ?
You got the wrong man, Mr Anon.
ReplyDeleteAnyhow, what i am saying is that we all have sat on our big behinds and woke up very late to the menace. As long as it was busy no one had a care.
Well we do now!
All for unity but trade organisations must be fully democratic and respond to the members not the 'chosen few' .
I say to the LTDA: Concentrate on the external threats and not publish the 'tacho lies' etc. and you may get some respect back
You also have to remember Addison Lee runs over 2000 Courier vans and bikes, plus around 250 coaches, so his income is not restricted to just the Minicab operation.
ReplyDeleteIf each car was clawing in £70K per annum, I don't think I would see them parked up asleep, or touting at the bottom of Tottenham Court Road, they'd be creaming it in.
What all radio drivers should do is sign a petition stating the 'lines in the sand' and send it to their respective circuits.
ReplyDeleteRtG Drivers did make a noise about One car (G Kaley ex Chair LTDA's big idea) and Reisel backed off (for now)so there is hope.