The Government has opened a consultation on employment status that could affect private hire drivers and the operators and platforms they work with. TaxiPoint has highlighted the potential consequences for the industry.
These are proposals, not changes already in force. The consultation opened on 14 October and covers England, Scotland and Wales.
What could change?
Ministers want to give greater weight to a business’s control over someone’s work, reducing the importance of whether the individual must perform it personally. That could affect how contractual rights to send a substitute are assessed.
A proposed presumption of worker status would shift the burden of proof to businesses in relevant tribunal disputes. It would concern entitlement to worker rights, rather than automatically establish employee status or prove that payments were incorrect.
Enforcement and self-employment
The consultation also explores stronger enforcement and additional protections for genuinely self-employed people, including written terms, protection against blacklisting and health and safety measures.
It does not propose changes to the separate tax-status framework. The outcome for any driver would depend on the final reforms and their working arrangements.
How drivers can respond
Drivers, operators and other interested parties can submit views through the official consultation page. The deadline is 11.55pm on 8 January 2027.
Sources: GOV.UK consultation and supporting document; TaxiPoint’s report by Perry Richardson.
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