Passenger and Driver Terms & Conditions

1. About SwiftLane and these terms

These Booking Terms & Conditions apply to booking requests and, where accepted, bookings made with SwiftLane Transport Ltd (“SwiftLane”, “we”, “us” or “our”) through swiftlane.co.uk, by telephone, email, an approved corporate account or another booking channel operated by us.

Where a booking is accepted, these terms form part of the contract between SwiftLane and the person making the booking. If a booking is made on behalf of another passenger, the Booker confirms that they are authorised to make the booking and will make the relevant booking information and these terms available to the Passenger.

If there is a conflict between these terms and a specific written term in a booking confirmation or a separately negotiated corporate or commissioned-service agreement, the specific written term will take priority to the extent of the conflict.

2. Definitions

“Booker” means the person or organisation making the booking. “Passenger” means any person who travels or is intended to travel under the booking. “Journey” means the passenger transport service described in the accepted booking. “Driver” means the appropriately licensed driver allocated to the Journey. “Vehicle” means the appropriately licensed vehicle allocated to the Journey. “Booking confirmation” means confirmation issued by SwiftLane that a booking has been accepted.

3. Licensing and London private hire bookings

SwiftLane Transport Ltd is applying for a London private hire operator licence. SwiftLane will only accept London private hire bookings once the required Transport for London (“TfL”) operator licence has been granted and while that licence remains in force.

Once licensed, all London private hire journeys accepted by SwiftLane will be pre-booked through SwiftLane as the licensed private hire operator and will be accepted, arranged and provided only within the authority of the operator licence and any applicable operating-centre conditions.

SwiftLane will maintain the licences, records, systems, procedures and operational controls required by applicable law and TfL for the services it provides.

4. SwiftLane contracts as principal

For every London private hire booking that SwiftLane lawfully accepts after the required operator licence has been granted, SwiftLane will contract directly with the Booker as principal both for accepting the booking and for providing the Journey. SwiftLane remains legally responsible for the transportation service required under that contract.

The Driver does not replace SwiftLane as the Passenger’s contracting transport provider merely because the Driver performs the Journey. Where a Driver collects a fare or other payment for an accepted SwiftLane booking, the Driver does so on behalf of SwiftLane unless the customer has been expressly told of a different lawful arrangement.

Only SwiftLane may cancel an accepted booking with the Booker. A Driver may decline an offered assignment before undertaking it, or may stop the physical carriage where an immediate safety or legal issue requires this, but that does not transfer SwiftLane’s contractual role to the Driver.

5. Booking requests and when a contract is formed

A quotation request, website submission, telephone enquiry, reservation request or automated fare calculation is not by itself an accepted booking.

A contract is formed only when SwiftLane expressly accepts the booking and issues a booking confirmation, or otherwise gives clear written acceptance. Until acceptance, we may request further information, provide a manual quotation, decline the request or advise that the requested service is unavailable.

An automated message stating that a request has been received is an acknowledgement only unless it expressly states that SwiftLane has accepted the booking.

6. Booking confirmation and driver/vehicle information

For an accepted private hire booking, SwiftLane will provide the Passenger with the booking and driver/vehicle information required by applicable TfL rules before the Journey begins.

The required information includes, as applicable, the Vehicle registration mark, the Driver’s first name, the Driver’s private hire driver licence number and, where the Passenger can receive it, a photograph of the Driver. SwiftLane will maintain the ability to provide booking confirmation by email, SMS/MMS and telephone in accordance with applicable TfL requirements.

Driver or Vehicle details may change for operational, safety, availability or licensing reasons. Where they change, updated details will be provided where required before pickup. Passengers should not enter a vehicle where the supplied details do not reasonably correspond with the dispatched Driver and Vehicle and should contact SwiftLane if concerned.

7. Information the Booker must provide

The Booker must provide complete and accurate information reasonably required to quote, plan, record and safely perform the Journey. This may include the Passenger’s name or identifying details, pickup point, main destination, date and time, passenger numbers, contact details, luggage, additional stops, flight or train information, accessibility requirements, mobility aids, child-related requirements and any other information that may materially affect the booking.

Where information is incomplete, inaccurate or changes materially, SwiftLane may amend the quotation, require a different Vehicle, re-plan the Journey, apply a reasonable and properly disclosed additional charge or decline to perform an arrangement that cannot be completed safely or lawfully.

8. Passenger numbers, luggage capacity and vehicle suitability

The Booker must not request or permit a Vehicle to carry more passengers, luggage or equipment than the Vehicle is licensed or safely designed to carry.

Vehicle descriptions and passenger or luggage capacities are guides. Actual capacity depends on the size and nature of luggage, mobility equipment, child restraints and other items. The Booker should disclose unusual or substantial requirements before the booking is accepted so that a suitable Vehicle can be arranged.

A Driver may refuse to carry passengers or items where doing so would be unsafe, unlawful, exceed the Vehicle’s licensed capacity or materially obstruct the Driver’s view or control of the Vehicle.

9. Quotations, estimates and fares

Before an accepted private hire Journey begins, SwiftLane will agree the fare or provide an accurate estimate of the fare, as required by applicable TfL rules, and will keep the required booking record.

Unless expressly described as a fixed fare, an amount shown before acceptance may be an estimate based on the information available at the time. Where a fixed fare is agreed, it applies to the Journey as booked, subject to any customer-requested change and any separately disclosed lawful charge.

Private hire fares are not set by TfL. Any revised fare or estimate following a material change to the booking will be communicated before the changed arrangement is carried out where reasonably practicable.

10. Payment and collection of fares

Payment must be made by the method and by the deadline stated in the booking confirmation, quotation or applicable account agreement. SwiftLane may require full or partial payment before dispatch where this is made clear before acceptance.

Payment may be collected by SwiftLane, by an authorised payment provider on SwiftLane’s behalf, or by the Driver on SwiftLane’s behalf. Payment to the Driver for an accepted SwiftLane Journey does not create a separate passenger transport contract between the Passenger and the Driver.

SwiftLane does not require customers to send complete payment-card details by ordinary email, SMS, WhatsApp message or free-text booking notes.

11. Additional charges and third-party costs

Depending on the booking, the quoted or final price may include or separately identify airport or station parking, tolls, congestion or road-user charges, tunnel charges, meet-and-greet charges, additional stops, waiting time, special vehicle requirements, agreed passenger-assistance arrangements or other services requested by the Booker.

We will not impose undisclosed mandatory charges merely because they appear in these terms. Where an additional charge is reasonably foreseeable at the time of booking, we will seek to make the charging basis clear before acceptance or in the booking confirmation.

Charges resulting from a customer-requested change after acceptance will be communicated when the change is requested or as soon as reasonably practicable.

12. Changes requested by the Booker

Any requested change is subject to availability and acceptance by SwiftLane. A change may affect the Vehicle, Driver, pickup time, route, duration or price.

A change is not agreed until SwiftLane confirms it. If a material change cannot reasonably be accommodated, the Booker may need to cancel the original booking under the applicable cancellation terms and submit a new booking request.

13. Cancellation by the Booker

The cancellation terms notified before acceptance in the booking confirmation, quotation, booking page or applicable account agreement will apply.

Any cancellation charge must be fair and proportionate to the losses and costs reasonably arising from the cancellation and will not be imposed merely as a penalty. Relevant factors may include the notice given, whether a Driver or Vehicle has already been committed or dispatched, non-refundable parking or other third-party costs, time reserved for the Journey and whether the work can reasonably be reallocated.

Where no specific cancellation schedule was supplied before acceptance, SwiftLane will not seek to recover more than a reasonable amount reflecting loss directly caused by the cancellation.

14. Statutory cooling-off rights

Passenger transport services are generally excluded from the statutory 14-day cooling-off right under Part 3 of the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013. This does not prevent the Booker from cancelling under SwiftLane’s contractual cancellation terms and does not remove any other statutory consumer right that applies.

15. Refunds

Where a refund is due, SwiftLane will return the appropriate amount using the original payment method where reasonably possible, unless another lawful method is agreed.

A properly payable cancellation charge, a completed part of a Journey, a non-refundable third-party cost or another lawful deduction may be taken into account before a refund is made.

Payment-provider processing times may be outside SwiftLane’s direct control, but SwiftLane will process an approved refund without unreasonable delay.

16. Cancellation or refusal by SwiftLane

SwiftLane may decline a booking request, or cancel an accepted booking, where performance would be unsafe or unlawful; required booking information is withheld; agreed payment requirements are not met; the Booker or Passenger acts fraudulently or creates a serious safety risk; no suitable lawfully licensed Driver or Vehicle is available; or an event outside our reasonable control prevents performance.

We will not exercise a cancellation or refusal right in a discriminatory manner or use it to avoid statutory duties owed to disabled passengers or assistance-dog users.

Where SwiftLane cancels an accepted consumer booking for reasons not caused by the Booker or Passenger and the service has not been provided, any amount paid for the unprovided service will be refunded, subject to any separate lawful arrangement with a business customer.

17. Waiting time for ordinary pickups

The Passenger should be ready at the agreed pickup point and time. Any included waiting allowance and any subsequent waiting rate will be stated in the booking confirmation, quotation or booking information applicable to the Journey.

Waiting time may become chargeable after the included allowance has expired. A Driver is not required to wait indefinitely. If the Passenger cannot be contacted or collected after a reasonable period, the booking may be treated as a no-show in accordance with these terms.

Where lateness is caused by SwiftLane or the Driver, the Passenger will not be charged waiting time for that delay.

18. Airport, seaport and station pickups

The Booker must provide accurate arrival information, including flight, train or sailing details where requested. The booking confirmation will state the agreed pickup arrangement, meeting point, included waiting allowance and any relevant parking or meet-and-greet basis.

Airport pickup timing may be arranged by reference to the scheduled or monitored arrival time together with an agreed allowance for disembarkation, baggage reclaim and border formalities. The specific arrangement confirmed for the booking takes priority.

Parking, terminal access and similar third-party charges may be added where they were disclosed as payable by the customer or arise because of a later customer-requested change.

19. Flight monitoring and delays

Where flight monitoring is included, SwiftLane will use the flight information supplied by the Booker and information reasonably available to us to plan the pickup. Monitoring does not guarantee that every operational change will be identified immediately.

The Booker should notify SwiftLane as soon as reasonably possible of a cancellation, diversion, rebooking, missed connection, significant schedule change or change of flight number.

If an arrival is substantially delayed, SwiftLane will take reasonable steps to accommodate the new time, but continued Driver or Vehicle availability cannot always be guaranteed. Any additional charge will be handled in accordance with the agreed booking terms and applicable consumer law.

20. No-shows

A no-show may arise where the Driver attends the agreed pickup point at the agreed time, observes the applicable waiting period, makes reasonable attempts to contact the Booker or Passenger using the details supplied and the Passenger cannot be located or does not travel.

For airport, station or seaport pickups, the agreed meeting point and any monitored arrival information will be taken into account before a booking is treated as a no-show.

A no-show charge will not exceed an amount that may lawfully and fairly be recovered having regard to work already performed, committed resources and losses reasonably incurred.

21. Journey times, routes and onward connections

Journey durations, arrival times and routes shown before travel are estimates unless expressly guaranteed in writing. Traffic, roadworks, weather, accidents, police activity, events, security restrictions, airport conditions and other matters may affect the Journey.

The Driver may select a reasonable route having regard to road conditions, safety, traffic information and legal restrictions. A Passenger-requested route may be followed where reasonable and lawful but may affect journey time or price where the agreed fare basis permits.

The Booker is responsible for allowing sufficient time for flights, trains, appointments and other onward connections. SwiftLane does not guarantee an onward connection unless such a guarantee is expressly agreed in writing.

22. Vehicle classes and substitutions

SwiftLane will use reasonable efforts to provide the Vehicle class booked. Vehicle make, model, colour and exact appearance are not guaranteed unless expressly agreed.

If the allocated Vehicle becomes unavailable, SwiftLane may substitute another lawfully licensed Vehicle of reasonably equivalent or greater practical capacity without an additional charge solely because of the substitution.

SwiftLane will not knowingly substitute a Vehicle that is unsuitable for a confirmed accessibility, wheelchair, mobility, child-safety or passenger-capacity requirement.

23. Luggage and personal items

The Booker must disclose unusual, excessive, fragile, high-value or oversized luggage before acceptance. SwiftLane may require a larger Vehicle or decline items that cannot lawfully or safely be carried.

Luggage must not obstruct the Driver’s controls, view or safe operation of the Vehicle. The Driver may reasonably determine where items are placed.

Passengers are responsible for checking that they have collected their belongings at the end of the Journey.

24. Children and young people

The Booker must tell SwiftLane when children will travel and provide ages or other information reasonably required for lawful and safe vehicle and restraint planning.

Unless SwiftLane expressly agrees to provide a particular child restraint, the Booker should not assume that a child seat will be supplied. Where the correct child restraint is not available, children will only be carried in accordance with the legal rules and exemptions applying to licensed taxis and private hire vehicles at the time of the Journey.

If SwiftLane expressly confirms that a specific child restraint will be provided, that restraint becomes a material booking requirement and we will not knowingly represent it as available if it cannot be supplied.

25. Unaccompanied children and safeguarding

SwiftLane is not obliged to accept bookings for unaccompanied children. Such a booking will only be accepted where SwiftLane has expressly agreed the arrangement and is satisfied that it can be performed lawfully and safely.

For an accepted unaccompanied-child Journey, SwiftLane may require the child’s details, authorised collection and handover contacts, the full name and relationship of the responsible adult receiving the child, safeguarding information and any commissioner-specific instructions.

Drivers and staff must follow applicable safeguarding procedures. Any safeguarding concern may be recorded and reported to the police, safeguarding authority or another appropriate body where required or permitted by law.

26. Seat belts and child restraints

Passengers must use seat belts and child restraints where required by the law in force at the time of the Journey. Drivers and Passengers must comply with all statutory requirements applying to children, seat belts and restraints in licensed private hire vehicles.

Unless SwiftLane expressly agrees to provide a particular child restraint, the Booker should not assume that one will be supplied. Where the law permits a child to travel in a licensed private hire vehicle without the normally required child restraint in specified circumstances, the Journey may only be carried out within the limits of that legal exemption.

The Booker remains responsible for giving accurate information about children travelling and for supplying any restraint that the Booker wishes to use unless SwiftLane has expressly confirmed that it will provide one. SwiftLane will not knowingly accept or carry out an arrangement that would require the Driver or Passenger to breach applicable seat-belt, child-restraint or passenger-capacity requirements.

27. Disabled passengers, accessibility and reasonable assistance

SwiftLane will not refuse or fail to accept a booking because a person is disabled, or in order to avoid legal accessibility duties, except where the law permits a refusal because it is reasonable in the circumstances, for example where no suitable vehicle is available for a requirement that the available vehicles cannot safely meet.

SwiftLane and its Drivers will comply with the Equality Act 2010 and any other accessibility duties applying at the time of the Journey, including duties relating to carriage, mobility assistance, mobility aids and prohibited additional charges.

Where a disabled Passenger needs assistance to identify or find a pre-booked Vehicle, the Booker should tell SwiftLane what assistance is required. SwiftLane will pass the requirement to the Driver and no additional charge will be made for assistance required by law.

SwiftLane may ask what assistance is required so that the Journey can be planned safely. We will not require a Passenger to disclose more medical or disability information than is reasonably necessary for the booking, safety or a lawful purpose.

28. Wheelchairs and mobility equipment

The Booker should describe wheelchair and mobility requirements accurately, including whether the Passenger needs to remain seated in a wheelchair during travel, the approximate size and type of equipment and any mobility assistance required.

Where statutory wheelchair-accessibility duties apply to the Vehicle or Driver, those duties will be observed in full, including any requirements concerning carriage, safety, reasonable comfort, mobility assistance, mobility aids and prohibited additional charges.

SwiftLane will not refuse a disabled Passenger merely because they use a wheelchair or mobility aid. Where a particular Journey genuinely requires a type of Vehicle that is not available, SwiftLane may decline the request only where doing so is lawful and reasonable in the circumstances.

Equipment may be refused only where it cannot be carried or secured safely or lawfully, or would exceed the Vehicle’s safe or licensed capacity. This does not permit discriminatory refusal of the Passenger.

29. Assistance dogs

SwiftLane will not refuse or fail to accept a booking because a disabled Passenger will be accompanied by an assistance dog and will not make or propose any additional fare, surcharge, booking fee or other charge merely because an assistance dog is travelling.

An assistance dog does not have to wear a jacket, harness label or other visible identification in order to be treated as an assistance dog. Where a Passenger states that they are disabled and are travelling with an assistance dog, the booking will be handled in accordance with the applicable Equality Act duties.

Assistance dogs must be permitted to remain with their user during the Journey. They should not be treated as ordinary pets.

Where the law recognises a valid Driver exemption from an assistance-dog duty, SwiftLane will manage the booking in accordance with the exemption and the operator duties that remain applicable. A Driver exemption will not be used by SwiftLane as a reason to impose an unlawful additional charge or to avoid an operator duty that continues to apply.

30. Other animals

Animals that are not assistance dogs may be carried only where agreed in advance, unless the law requires otherwise. The Booker must provide suitable restraint or containment where appropriate and ensure that the animal does not create an avoidable safety risk.

Any damage or exceptional cleaning charge relating to an ordinary pet must reflect actual or reasonably incurred loss and will not be an arbitrary penalty. No such charge will be imposed merely for the lawful carriage of an assistance dog.

31. School, SEND and assisted pupil transport

School, SEND, alternative-provision, looked-after-child and assisted pupil journeys are subject to service suitability, safeguarding and any commissioning requirements. A public website enquiry does not by itself create an accepted recurring transport arrangement.

Before a recurring or commissioned pupil service begins, SwiftLane may require written schedules, authorised contacts, collection and handover instructions, passenger profiles, risk information, mobility requirements, passenger-assistant arrangements and commissioner-specific instructions.

Drivers, passenger assistants and Vehicles will only be deployed to such work where the checks, licensing, safeguarding arrangements and competence required for the particular contract and applicable law have been satisfied.

Confidential information concerning a child or person at risk will be handled on a need-to-know basis and in accordance with applicable data-protection and safeguarding procedures.

32. Patient and non-clinical assisted transport

Unless a different service has been expressly authorised and agreed, SwiftLane’s patient and assisted transport is non-clinical passenger transport. It is not an emergency ambulance service.

SwiftLane does not undertake clinical monitoring, diagnosis, treatment, restraint, emergency response or medication administration as part of an ordinary private hire booking.

The Booker must disclose mobility and assistance needs accurately. Where a Passenger requires clinical supervision, specialist medical equipment, lifting beyond the agreed assistance scope or an emergency response, a more appropriate provider should be used.

In an emergency, the Passenger, Booker or carer should contact the emergency services rather than rely on SwiftLane as an emergency transport provider.

33. Passenger conduct and safety

Passengers must behave lawfully and must not threaten, abuse, harass, discriminate against, assault or deliberately endanger a Driver, another Passenger, a staff member or any other person.

A Driver may stop the physical carriage where the Passenger’s behaviour creates a genuine and immediate safety or legal risk. Where reasonably possible, the Passenger will be left at a safe location and SwiftLane will determine the contractual consequences of the interrupted booking.

Any charge following an interrupted Journey will be assessed fairly having regard to the service already provided and the reason the Journey ended.

34. Smoking, vaping, alcohol, drugs and prohibited items

Smoking is prohibited in private hire vehicles. SwiftLane also prohibits vaping or the use of e-cigarettes in Vehicles used for its Journeys.

Passengers must not possess or consume unlawful drugs in the Vehicle and must not carry unlawful weapons, hazardous materials or other items that cannot lawfully or safely be transported.

Alcohol may be refused where its carriage or consumption would create a safety, licensing, cleanliness or behavioural risk. Intoxication does not excuse unsafe, abusive or unlawful conduct.

35. Damage, soiling and exceptional cleaning

The Booker or Passenger may be required to pay the reasonable cost of repairing damage or carrying out exceptional cleaning where the damage or soiling was caused by that Passenger or by a person, ordinary pet or item for whom they are responsible.

Any charge will reflect reasonable loss actually caused, which may include specialist cleaning or reasonable loss of use while the Vehicle is unavailable. It will not be an arbitrary penalty. Normal wear and tear will not be charged.

36. Lost property

Lost property connected with a SwiftLane booking should be reported to SwiftLane as soon as possible. SwiftLane will maintain a procedure for dealing with lost property and will take reasonable steps to identify the relevant Journey, contact the Driver and, where practicable, return an item to its owner.

SwiftLane does not guarantee that an item will be found. Property may be stored, returned, handed to an appropriate authority or otherwise dealt with in accordance with applicable law and our lost-property procedure.

Reasonable delivery or courier costs may be payable where the customer asks for an item to be returned in a particular way.

37. Subcontracting and fulfilment by another licensed operator

Where permitted by law, SwiftLane may subcontract an accepted booking to another operator that is lawfully licensed and entitled to accept the subcontracted booking in the relevant jurisdiction.

Subcontracting does not end or transfer away SwiftLane’s contract with the Booker where SwiftLane initially accepted the booking as principal. SwiftLane will remain responsible to the extent required by the Private Hire Vehicles (London) Act 1998, the applicable regulations and the accepted booking contract.

SwiftLane will take reasonable steps to verify the licensing status of operators to whom it subcontracts work. Information necessary to perform the booking may be shared with the receiving operator in accordance with applicable data-protection requirements.

38. Drivers, vehicles, insurance and operational changes

SwiftLane will not knowingly allocate or dispatch a Driver or Vehicle that is not lawfully licensed or entitled to perform the relevant work. Vehicles used for private hire Journeys must have the insurance required for hire and reward use.

A specific Driver or Vehicle may be changed because of illness, licensing status, breakdown, traffic disruption, working-time considerations, safety or another operational reason. Where a material booking requirement cannot be met after a change, SwiftLane will contact the Booker where reasonably practicable to agree an alternative or cancellation.

39. Voice contact during operating hours and Journeys

When SwiftLane is operating as a licensed private hire operator, it will make a person available for Passengers to speak to in real time during its hours of business and at all times while an accepted Journey is being undertaken, in accordance with TfL’s Voice Contact Requirement.

Passengers may use SwiftLane’s published telephone number, 020 3742 4039, to discuss a booking, raise a concern or make a complaint. SwiftLane may also make this contact facility available to Drivers, parents, carers and other authorised persons where appropriate.

This obligation is operational as well as contractual. SwiftLane will not rely solely on email, automated chat or voicemail where the Voice Contact Requirement requires the Passenger to be able to speak to a person.

40. Telephone, messaging and electronic contact

By providing contact details for a booking, the Booker authorises SwiftLane to use those details for operational communications concerning the booking, including acknowledgement, confirmation, Driver and Vehicle information, pickup coordination, delay updates, payment administration, accessibility arrangements and service issues.

Operational communications are not the same as direct marketing. Marketing communications will be handled separately in accordance with applicable privacy and electronic-marketing rules.

The Booker is responsible for providing a contact method that can reasonably be used around the time of the Journey.

41. Complaints, serious incidents and service concerns

SwiftLane will establish and maintain a procedure for complaints arising from bookings it accepts. Complaints will be recorded, investigated and the outcome and any subsequent action will be documented in accordance with applicable TfL requirements.

Complaints should be made as soon as reasonably possible and should include, where available, the booking reference, Journey date, route and a clear description of the concern. Complaints may be sent to info@swiftlane.co.uk or made through our published Complaints Procedure.

Where a complaint or other information indicates alleged or suspected criminal conduct, SwiftLane will report the matter promptly to the police in accordance with TfL guidance, preserve relevant records and notify TfL where required. In an emergency or where there is an immediate danger to life, 999 will be called.

Nothing in SwiftLane’s internal complaints procedure prevents a customer from contacting TfL, Trading Standards, the police, a court or another competent authority where they are entitled to do so.

42. Privacy and personal information

SwiftLane processes personal information for booking, dispatch, safety, payment administration, customer service, accessibility arrangements, safeguarding, legal and regulatory compliance and related legitimate operational purposes as described in our Privacy Policy.

Additional or sensitive information may be required for school, SEND, safeguarding, mobility or assisted Journeys. Such information will be limited to what is reasonably necessary and handled with appropriate access controls.

Where a booking is lawfully subcontracted, relevant personal information may be shared with the receiving operator to the extent necessary to perform and administer the Journey.

43. Consumer rights and standard of service

Where the Booker is a consumer, nothing in these terms excludes or restricts a right that cannot lawfully be excluded or restricted.

SwiftLane will perform accepted services with reasonable care and skill as required by applicable consumer law.

If a term can reasonably be interpreted in more than one way, it is intended to operate only to the extent that it is lawful, fair and transparent. Nothing in these terms gives SwiftLane a right to impose an unfair penalty or avoid a statutory obligation.

44. Liability

Nothing in these terms excludes or limits liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or any other liability that cannot lawfully be excluded or limited.

Subject to applicable consumer rights, SwiftLane is responsible for loss that is a reasonably foreseeable result of its breach of contract or failure to exercise reasonable care and skill.

SwiftLane is not responsible for loss caused solely by materially inaccurate information supplied by the Booker, an unlawful act of a Passenger, or an event outside SwiftLane’s reasonable control, except to the extent that the law nevertheless places responsibility on SwiftLane.

SwiftLane does not exclude responsibility merely because a Driver, employee, agent or lawful subcontractor is used to perform part of a Journey where SwiftLane remains legally responsible for the transportation service.

45. Events outside reasonable control

SwiftLane will not be treated as having guaranteed performance where an extraordinary event outside its reasonable control prevents or materially disrupts a Journey. Examples may include severe weather, major road closures, serious accidents, civil emergencies, police restrictions, airport closures, widespread systems outages or similar events.

SwiftLane will take reasonable steps to reduce disruption and communicate material changes where practicable. This section does not remove any refund or other remedy to which the customer is entitled under applicable law where the service is not provided.

46. Corporate, account and commissioned bookings

Business accounts, schools, local authorities, healthcare organisations and other commissioning bodies may enter into separate written terms covering invoicing, service levels, safeguarding, reporting, data handling, authorised Bookers, cancellation, route mobilisation and other contract-specific requirements.

Where such an agreement applies, it supplements these terms and takes priority on matters it expressly governs. A person making a booking on an organisation’s account confirms that they are authorised to incur the relevant charge on behalf of that organisation.

47. Promotions, discounts and credits

A promotion, discount code, account credit or introductory offer may be subject to specific published conditions, validity dates, service restrictions and maximum values.

Unless otherwise stated, promotional benefits have no cash value, cannot be sold or transferred and may be withdrawn where obtained through abuse, error or fraud. No promotional condition will be used to remove a statutory consumer right.

48. Website information, fare technology and availability

SwiftLane aims to keep website information accurate and current, but temporary errors, technical outages or stale third-party information may occur. A website display, availability indicator or calculated fare is not an accepted booking unless and until SwiftLane accepts the booking in accordance with these terms.

Where a website fare calculation cannot be verified or the Journey requires manual review, SwiftLane may provide a manual quotation rather than rely on an unverified fare.

Links to third-party websites or services are provided for convenience and do not make SwiftLane responsible for the content or availability of those third parties.

49. Fraud, misuse and chargebacks

SwiftLane may take reasonable steps to verify the identity of a Booker, payment method, account authority or unusual booking where fraud or misuse is reasonably suspected.

Knowingly supplying false booking information, using a payment method without authority, abusing promotions or making a dishonest chargeback may result in cancellation, account suspension and recovery of sums lawfully due. This does not prevent a customer from making a genuine card dispute or exercising a statutory payment right.

50. Booking, dispatch, complaints, lost-property and regulatory records

SwiftLane will create, retain and make available the booking, Driver, Vehicle, staff, complaints, lost-property and other regulatory records required by applicable law and TfL licensing conditions.

SwiftLane will record all booking, dispatch, Driver, Vehicle, subcontracting and related information required by the law, TfL licensing conditions and regulatory guidance in force at the relevant time.

SwiftLane may provide records or information to TfL, the police, courts, regulators, insurers, safeguarding authorities or other bodies where required or permitted by law. Records will be retained for the periods required by law, licensing conditions, tax rules, insurance requirements, safeguarding obligations and legitimate dispute management.

51. Changes to these terms

SwiftLane may update these Terms where reasonably necessary to reflect changes in law, TfL licensing requirements, regulatory guidance, technology, services or business processes. References in these Terms to legal or regulatory duties are intended to include any amendment, replacement or successor requirement that applies to the relevant booking.

The terms applicable to an accepted booking will normally be those made available when that booking was accepted, together with any later change expressly agreed with the Booker. SwiftLane will not retrospectively impose a materially adverse term on an existing consumer booking merely by updating the website.

Where a change to SwiftLane’s operating model materially affects matters that must be notified to TfL, SwiftLane will make the required regulatory notification.

52. Severability, waiver and third-party rights

If any provision of these terms is found to be unlawful or unenforceable, the remaining provisions will continue to apply so far as legally possible.

If SwiftLane does not enforce a right immediately, that does not necessarily mean that the right has been waived.

Except where the law provides otherwise, a person who is not a party to the booking contract has no right under the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 to enforce these terms.

53. Governing law and courts

These terms and any non-contractual obligations arising from them are governed by the law of England and Wales.

If the Booker is a consumer, this provision does not remove any mandatory protection available under the law of the part of the United Kingdom in which the consumer is resident and does not prevent the consumer from bringing proceedings in a court where consumer law permits them to do so.

For business-to-business bookings, unless a separate written agreement states otherwise, the courts of England and Wales will have jurisdiction.

54. Contact details

SwiftLane Transport Ltd, trading publicly as SWIFTLANE. Registered in England and Wales. Company number 17425744.

Registered office: 8 Basement Horn Lane, London, England, W3 6QT.

Website: https://swiftlane.co.uk

Telephone: 020 3742 4039

Email: info@swiftlane.co.uk

Bookings: bookings@swiftlane.co.uk

D1. Scope and how these Driver Terms apply

These Driver Terms & Conditions govern the relationship between SwiftLane Transport Ltd (“SwiftLane”, “we”, “us” or “our”) and each Driver who is approved to receive SwiftLane work. They apply together with the Driver’s onboarding record, any written commercial schedule or commission arrangement, SwiftLane policies that are expressly incorporated into the engagement, and the requirements attached to the Driver’s and Vehicle’s licences.

These Driver Terms become binding when a Driver accepts them in writing or electronically as part of onboarding or another recorded acceptance process. Each SwiftLane job accepted by the Driver is performed subject to the version of these Driver Terms applicable to that engagement, together with any job-specific instructions lawfully issued for the booking.

D2. Intended commercial relationship and employment status

SwiftLane’s intended operating model is to engage appropriately licensed Drivers on a self-employed, independent-contractor basis unless a different written arrangement is expressly agreed. A Driver is responsible for operating their own driving business, maintaining the licences, insurance, equipment and tax arrangements required for that business, and deciding whether to make themselves available for offered work.

Nothing in these Driver Terms is intended to remove or restrict any statutory employment or worker rights that apply as a matter of law. Legal status depends on the true working relationship as well as the written terms, and these Driver Terms must be operated in practice consistently with the arrangement actually used.

D3. No guarantee of work, no obligation to accept and non-exclusivity

SwiftLane does not guarantee any minimum number or value of jobs. A Driver is not required to accept every job offered and may work for other lawful operators, platforms or customers, provided that doing so does not compromise safety, fatigue management, confidentiality, an accepted SwiftLane job or any licensing obligation.

Once a Driver accepts a specific SwiftLane job, the Driver must either perform it in accordance with these terms or notify Dispatch immediately if a genuine safety, licensing, illness, vehicle or other operational issue prevents performance.

D4. Driver identity, right to work and licensing

A Driver must provide accurate information and evidence reasonably required for onboarding and continuing eligibility. The Driver must hold and maintain all licences, permissions and legal entitlements required for the work undertaken.

• A current TfL private hire Driver licence where London PHV work is undertaken.
• A current DVLA driving entitlement appropriate to the Vehicle.
• Right-to-work evidence where required.
• Any DBS, safeguarding, training or contract-specific evidence reasonably required for the work being offered.

The Driver must promptly tell SwiftLane of any expiry, suspension, revocation, restriction, investigation or other material change that may affect lawful or safe performance of SwiftLane work.

D5. Vehicle, licensing, roadworthiness and hire-and-reward insurance

A Driver must not use a Vehicle for SwiftLane work unless the Vehicle is approved for that work and all required records are current. The Driver is responsible for ensuring that the Vehicle remains roadworthy, clean, safe and appropriately licensed and insured.

• Current TfL private hire vehicle licence where required.
• Valid hire-and-reward motor insurance covering the intended use.
• Current MOT and other legally required vehicle evidence.
• Correct registration, make, model, category and accessibility information supplied to SwiftLane.

A Driver must not switch to an unapproved Vehicle for an accepted job without Dispatch approval and the required checks being completed.

D6. Job offers, acceptance and assignment

SwiftLane receives and accepts passenger bookings as the operator. A job offered to a Driver is an operational assignment arising from an accepted or proposed SwiftLane booking; it is not a passenger booking made directly with the Driver.

The Driver may accept or reject an offered job before acceptance. If accepted, the Driver must review the collection point, destination, time, service type, passenger requirements and any lawful special instructions and must promptly raise any issue that could prevent safe or compliant performance.

D7. SwiftLane contracts with the passenger as principal

For London private hire bookings lawfully accepted by SwiftLane after the required operator licence has been granted, SwiftLane contracts with the Booker as principal for the Journey. The Driver performs the physical transportation on SwiftLane’s behalf and does not replace SwiftLane as the passenger’s contracting transport provider.

The Driver has no authority to transfer SwiftLane’s contractual responsibility to themselves, to another Driver or to another business, or to represent that the passenger’s SwiftLane booking is a separate private contract with the Driver.

D8. No street hails, touting or unauthorised direct bookings

SwiftLane will accept London private hire bookings only at an operating centre specified on its TfL operator licence. Drivers must not accept bookings directly, accept street hails, tout for passengers or accept bookings on SwiftLane’s behalf away from an authorised operating centre.

If a passenger asks a Driver to arrange a future SwiftLane journey, the Driver should direct the passenger to SwiftLane’s authorised booking channels so that the booking can be properly accepted and recorded by the operator.

D9. Driver substitution and use of another person

A Driver must not send an unapproved substitute to perform an accepted SwiftLane job. If the Driver cannot perform the job, Dispatch must be told immediately. SwiftLane may allocate the job to another Driver who is independently licensed, vetted, onboarded and recorded in the dispatch system.

This restriction exists because SwiftLane must control and record the Driver and Vehicle used for each booking and does not prevent a Driver from operating their own independent business outside accepted SwiftLane work.

D10. Journey performance, routes and safe driving

The Driver must drive lawfully, safely and professionally and must use reasonable judgement about the route, traffic, road closures, passenger requirements and current conditions. Navigation tools may assist the Driver but do not override road signs, traffic law, licensing conditions or the Driver’s safety judgement.

The Driver must not use a handheld mobile device unlawfully while driving. App or status updates should be made only when safe and lawful to do so.

D11. Fares, passenger charges and tips

The fare or accurate fare estimate for a SwiftLane booking is controlled by SwiftLane and recorded against the booking. A Driver must not demand or impose an additional passenger charge that has not been authorised and recorded by SwiftLane.

Where the passenger requests a material journey change, the Driver should contact Dispatch so that any revised fare or estimate can be agreed and recorded before the altered arrangement proceeds where reasonably practicable.

A genuinely voluntary tip given directly to a Driver is not an additional SwiftLane fare charge. Drivers must never pressure a passenger for a tip.

D12. Payment methods and handling passenger money

The booking record identifies the authorised payment method. Card and account payments are administered through SwiftLane’s approved payment arrangements. Where a booking is designated as cash, the Driver may collect the recorded fare from the passenger on SwiftLane’s behalf.

A Driver must not ask a passenger to pay by a different method merely for the Driver’s convenience and must not collect, copy or store payment-card details unless SwiftLane has expressly provided an approved lawful process for doing so.

D13. Driver earnings, commission and settlement

The commercial terms applicable to the Driver, including the commission model or agreed job rate, will be recorded or communicated by SwiftLane. SwiftLane’s operational records distinguish the gross job value, company commission, Driver earnings, cash amounts collected and account-job amounts due to the Driver.

For cash jobs, any company commission due may be recorded as an amount owed by the Driver and may be offset against account-job earnings or settled by another recorded method. For account or card jobs, Driver earnings are included in the Driver settlement process. SwiftLane will maintain statements or settlement records showing the relevant calculations.

No change to a commission or rate arrangement will be applied retrospectively to a completed job unless correcting an agreed error or as otherwise lawfully agreed.

D14. Driver costs, tax and National Insurance

Unless a separate written agreement says otherwise, a self-employed Driver is responsible for their own fuel, Vehicle finance or rental, maintenance, tyres, cleaning, licensing, hire-and-reward insurance, telephone/data costs, tax, National Insurance and other costs of operating their driving business.

The Driver is responsible for their own tax affairs where engaged on a self-employed basis. SwiftLane may make records or reports to HMRC or another authority where required by law.

D15. SwiftLane Driver application, login and account security

Driver access to the SwiftLane Driver application is personal to the approved Driver. Login details, passwords and session access must not be shared. The Driver must take reasonable steps to keep their device and account secure and must report suspected unauthorised access promptly.

SwiftLane may suspend application access where there is a security, licensing, safety or compliance concern.

D16. Genuine GPS and operational status

Where the Driver uses the SwiftLane Driver application for active work, the Driver must allow genuine device-location data needed for live dispatch and journey management. Simulated, falsified or deliberately manipulated GPS information must not be used.

Location information is used for legitimate operational and safety purposes. SwiftLane’s system is designed so that going off duty clears live GPS availability; the Driver must use duty and journey statuses accurately.

D17. Journey status updates and Dispatch communication

The Driver must use the operational statuses provided by SwiftLane accurately, including where applicable accepted/assigned, en route, arrived, passenger on board and completed. Material delays, inability to locate the passenger, breakdowns, safety concerns and other significant issues must be communicated to Dispatch promptly.

Drivers must not mark a Journey completed before the passenger transport has actually been completed.

D18. Passenger information, confidentiality and data protection

Passenger and Booker information supplied to the Driver may be used only for performing the relevant SwiftLane job, handling a legitimate safety or service issue, or meeting a legal requirement. The Driver must not copy, retain, disclose, sell or use passenger details for unrelated purposes.

Passenger contact information must not be used for unsolicited marketing, personal contact or an attempt to move future bookings away from SwiftLane. Any suspected data loss or unauthorised disclosure must be reported immediately.

D19. Equality, dignity and non-discrimination

Drivers must treat passengers fairly, professionally and with dignity. A Driver must comply with the Equality Act 2010 and all applicable licensing duties and must not discriminate unlawfully because of disability, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, age, gender reassignment, pregnancy or maternity, marriage or civil partnership, or another protected characteristic.

No unlawful additional charge may be made because a passenger is disabled or requires assistance that the law requires the Driver or operator to provide.

D20. Assistance dogs, wheelchairs and mobility assistance

Drivers must comply with all applicable duties concerning assistance dogs, wheelchair users, mobility aids and reasonable passenger assistance. A valid statutory Driver exemption will be respected where the law allows it, but a Driver must not claim an exemption that they do not hold.

Where a Journey requires a wheelchair-accessible Vehicle or particular mobility assistance, the Driver must follow the recorded booking requirements and must not undertake the Journey in an unsuitable Vehicle.

D21. School, SEND and safeguarding-sensitive work

A Driver allocated to school, SEND, child or vulnerable-passenger work must follow SwiftLane’s safeguarding requirements and any contract-specific instructions. Required handover arrangements, authorised adults, collection points and passenger-assistant arrangements must be followed exactly unless an immediate safety issue requires a different action.

A Driver must maintain appropriate professional boundaries and report any safeguarding concern, disclosure, unexplained handover problem or suspected abuse promptly through the required escalation route. Immediate danger must be reported to the emergency services.

D22. CareRide and non-clinical assisted transport

CareRide work is non-clinical assisted private hire transport. Unless separately authorised, trained and insured under another lawful service, a Driver must not represent that they provide ambulance services, clinical monitoring, medical treatment, restraint or another regulated clinical function.

The Driver may provide reasonable practical boarding, mobility and journey assistance within their competence, training, the Vehicle’s suitability and the recorded booking requirements.

D23. Fatigue, fitness to drive and other work

The Driver must present themselves fit to drive and must manage rest, breaks and work undertaken for SwiftLane and elsewhere so that fatigue does not make a Journey unsafe. A Driver who is tired, unwell, impaired by medication, alcohol, drugs or another condition affecting safe driving must not start or continue a Journey.

SwiftLane will not knowingly require a Driver to continue where fatigue or fitness creates a safety risk and may reallocate work or require the Driver to go off duty.

D24. Professional conduct, smoking, vaping and passenger safety

Drivers must behave professionally and must not threaten, harass, discriminate against or deliberately endanger a passenger or another person. Drivers must not smoke, vape or use an e-cigarette in any PHV at any time.

The Vehicle must not be used for unlawful activity while performing SwiftLane work. A Driver must not carry more passengers than the Vehicle can lawfully and safely accommodate.

D25. Incidents, collisions, police matters and regulatory changes

The Driver must report to SwiftLane promptly any collision, passenger injury, serious near miss, allegation of criminal conduct, police involvement, licence action, insurance issue or other event that may materially affect a SwiftLane Journey, the Driver’s suitability or the lawful use of the Vehicle.

This reporting obligation is additional to any separate duty the Driver has to notify TfL, the police, DVLA, an insurer or another authority within a required period.

D26. Complaints and cooperation with investigations

SwiftLane may investigate a complaint or concern by reviewing booking, dispatch, GPS, message, payment, Driver and Vehicle records and by asking the Driver for an account. The Driver must cooperate reasonably and must preserve relevant information.

SwiftLane will not assume fault merely because a complaint has been made. Where a concern is substantiated, proportionate action may include guidance, retraining, temporary suspension, removal from a particular type of work, termination of the engagement or regulatory referral where required.

D27. Lost property

Property found after a SwiftLane Journey must be reported promptly to Dispatch and kept reasonably secure until return or handover instructions are given. A Driver must not treat lost property as their own or use personal information found with an item for an unrelated purpose.

Any agreed return journey or delivery arrangement must be authorised and recorded where an additional charge is involved.

D28. Fines, penalties, damage and Driver responsibility

Unless SwiftLane has expressly agreed otherwise, the Driver is responsible for parking penalties, traffic offences, licence penalties and other charges arising from the Driver’s own driving, parking or unlawful conduct. A Driver remains responsible for loss caused by their own fraud, deliberate misconduct or negligence to the extent provided by law.

This clause does not make the Driver responsible for a passenger-contract obligation that legally remains SwiftLane’s responsibility as operator.

D29. Temporary suspension and compliance holds

SwiftLane may temporarily prevent a Driver or Vehicle from receiving new work where a required licence, insurance or document is missing or expired, or where there is a credible safety, safeguarding, fraud, data-security or regulatory concern that requires investigation.

A compliance hold is a protective operational measure and does not predetermine the final outcome of the matter.

D30. Ending the Driver relationship

Either party may end the ongoing commercial relationship subject to any notice expressly agreed in a separate written arrangement. SwiftLane may end or suspend the relationship immediately where continued allocation would be unlawful or where there is serious misconduct, fraud, violence, safeguarding risk, material dishonesty, deliberate misuse of passenger data, repeated serious safety breaches or loss of a licence or insurance required for the work.

Where a Driver is dismissed for unsatisfactory conduct connected with the driving of a private hire vehicle, SwiftLane will notify TfL within the required 14-day period using the applicable TfL reporting procedure.

Ending the ongoing relationship does not remove obligations concerning completed jobs, outstanding settlements, confidential information, records, complaints, lost property, tax or another matter that reasonably survives termination.

D31. Records, audit and regulatory disclosure

SwiftLane may retain Driver, Vehicle, booking, dispatch, payment, earnings, compliance, incident, complaint and related records for the periods required by law, TfL licensing conditions, insurance, tax, safeguarding and legitimate dispute management.

Relevant records may be provided to TfL, the police, courts, insurers, safeguarding authorities, HMRC or another competent body where required or permitted by law.

D32. Changes to Driver Terms

SwiftLane may update these Driver Terms where reasonably necessary because of a change in law, TfL licensing requirements, safety controls, technology, payment processes or the operating model. A material change affecting future Driver work will be communicated before it is applied to future accepted jobs.

SwiftLane will not use a website update to rewrite a completed job retrospectively, except to record a correction or change that was separately agreed or is required by law.

D33. Severability, waiver and entire commercial understanding

If a provision of these Driver Terms is unlawful or unenforceable, the remaining provisions will continue so far as legally possible. A failure to enforce a right immediately does not necessarily waive that right.

These Driver Terms, the Driver’s onboarding/commercial record and any separate written schedule expressly incorporated into the engagement form the written basis of the Driver arrangement, subject always to the true working relationship and mandatory law.

D34. Governing law and courts

These Driver Terms and any non-contractual obligations arising from them are governed by the law of England and Wales. Subject to any mandatory right to bring proceedings elsewhere, the courts of England and Wales will have jurisdiction.

D35. Driver contact and acceptance record

Driver queries about these terms should be directed to SwiftLane Transport Ltd at info@swiftlane.co.uk or 020 3742 4039.

SwiftLane will keep an appropriate record of the Driver’s acceptance of the applicable Driver Terms as part of onboarding or the continuing Driver relationship. Drivers should keep a copy of the version they accept.