We have the

experience of:

legal knowledge and

practice,

managing local authority

licensing,

running successful

private hire operations.

To help you to

achieve success for

your business.

a2z licensing

Contents

Introducing our

consultants page 2

How we work for you

page 3

Choices in how you

instruct a2z page 3

How we improve your

business page 4

How we’ve changed

Private Hire page 4

Contact details page 4 David Wilson, Chris Woodrow and Giles Bridge the licensing team at a2z.

Introducing a2z licensing a2z licensing are consultants who provide specialist advice and advocacy

for the private hire and hackney carriage trade.

How we help you

We have 3 consultants who have an unrivalled breadth and depth of experience. Our role is to help you, in making your business a success.

Running a successful private hire business is hard work.

We know that from time to time you will need help and advice on the law. We also have an excellent understanding of how different licensing departments regulate the trade.

Our job is to help you retain your competitive edge in the market.

Making sure that your business works effectively whilst keeping to all legal and regulatory requirements. When you have a licensing issue, we will give you clear advice on how to deal with it effectively.

July 2016

INTRODUCING

David Wilson- Legal Guru David Wilson is the go to expert for taxi licensing law. David edits the taxi

law chapter of Paterson’s, the licensing law bible. David has 30 years of

experience of working in the legal environment, including time as the head

of a council licensing department.

Founder of a2z

David set up a2z in 2009. Since then he has built up a loyal client base,

who value his sensible and expert advice. David has been one of the

driving forces in the Private Hire Reform Campaign, which secured the

liberalisation of sub-contracting in 2015.

Giles Bridge - Skilled advocate

Giles Bridge was a barrister from 2001 to 2015. He regularly dealt with

taxi licensing cases on behalf of a2z. As a barrister he was instructed by

drivers, companies and also local authorities.

Giles is now working exclusively as a licensing consultant, using his skills

which he developed as a highly effective and approachable barrister. On

3 occasions Giles was recommended by Legal 500, the leading legal

consumer guide, for his advocacy skills.

Giles has been asked to review and redraft council licensing policies, so

he can give expert advice on how to respond effectively to local authority

consultations.

Private Hire expert - Chris Woodrow

Chris Woodrow has 25 years of

experience gained as a director

and driver within the private

hire trade in the north east.

Chris knows the business

inside out, he has specialist

knowledge and expertise in IT

systems. His advice is always

based on what works and how

the private hire trade actually

operates.

Chris will find out the issues for

your business and explain

them clearly to the local

authority.

Persuasive advocate

Chris is in the process of

training to be a barrister and

has successfully used his

excellent advocacy skills to

persuade local authority

licensing committees, such as

Wakefield, to amend policies at

the suggestion of the trade.

Chris Woodrow

Giles Bridge and David Wilson

The expert consultants of a2z licensing

How we work for you We pride ourselves on

being friendly and

approachable.

ACCESSIBLE

We encourage you to

contact us whenever you

feel you need to. That

way we can often avoid a

query or an issue

becoming a problem for

you and your business.

You will have 1

consultant who is your

main point of contact.

That consultant will carry

out work on your behalf.

They won’t be working

on their own.

WORKING WITH YOU

Our three expert

consultants regularly

meet to share ideas and

information. We are in

constant contact on a

daily basis.

A TOP TEAM

You can be assured that

you are not just

instructing 1 consultant.

COLLECTIVE WISDOM

You will be getting the

benefit of all of our

experience. Experience

of how the industry

actually works. Excellent

legal knowledge from the

expert on taxi law. The

skills of an

acknowledged and

persuasive advocate.

At the licensing committee— we will be there looking after your interests.

Flexible choices to instruct us We offer 3 methods of instruction.

1) BY THE HOUR FOR A PARTICULAR CASE

We can work at an agreed hourly rate to deal with a particular issue or

concern.

2) FIXED FEES FOR COST CERTAINTY

Often we are able to agree a fixed fee for a particular piece of work or to

attend at a council review hearing. The rate for a full day is £500 plus agreed

expenses. Our costs compare very favourably with those of other

professionals.

3) MONTHLY RETAINER– TAXI LICENCE PROTECT

Our experience is that once clients have instructed us, they find that our

services and expertise can be helpful to them all year round. We agree on

how much work is likely to be needed over the year: providing general advice,

attending trade meetings, representing drivers or operators at council review

hearings.

PEACE OF MIND

You then pay a monthly retainer, spreading the cost over the year. We give

you all the support, advice and representation that you require. It could be:

answering a question, dealing with a regulatory issue when it occurs or

advising and representing a driver who needs our help. Our service is tailored

to the needs of your business.

Changing

Private Hire

By using the services of

a2z you join a group of

successful and

progressive private hire

operators. Operators who

are helping to shape the

future of the trade.

SUCCESSFUL

Our clients are amongst

the most successful

operators in the country.

They are successful

because they recognise

that they need to change

and adapt to succeed.

We help our clients to

share best practice and

collaborate.

CHANGING PRIVATE

HIRE

What we’ve achieved -

a2z was at the heart of

the Private Hire Reform

Campaign, bringing

together a number of

clients and other

operators, which

persuaded government to

liberalise the law in

relation to sub-

contracting.

Improving your business Advising you

Our advice is tailored to the needs of your particular business. We take the time to get to know you and your business. We want to know what issues you have. We encourage clients to contact us whenever they have a question. Early advice will often prevent an issue form becoming a problem.

What we’ve achieved - We have advised a number of companies on their procedures and training. We have produced clear and concise procedure manuals for staff. Including a manual for ensuring that dispatch software is used properly to ensure that new and existing drivers will always be legal to drive. Representation

One of our key strengths is providing excellent representation of drivers and companies at licensing and regulatory committees. Representation is generally provided as part of our Taxi Licence Protect retainer package, which provides advice and also representation at committee. Through the package we also provide support in preparing appeals for court. Our consultants are all skilled advocates with experience at presenting cases to council committees.

What we’ve achieved - We regularly persuade licensing committees that there are good reasons to depart from their own policies. We have a detailed knowledge of each case and make the best use of our persuasive communication skills. Advocacy

We provide an ongoing service aimed at improving the success of your business by getting your licensing authority to amend and adapt policies to assist the trade. We can help you to turn trade meetings into constructive meetings. We aim to create meetings where councils listen and then respond to your concerns. At a2z we use our knowledge of different local authority licensing regimes to highlight how councils can adopt policies which actually help the trade.

What we’ve achieved - We have persuaded councils to amend draft policies on a number of occasions to the benefit of the trade, including avoiding the cost of changing vehicles unnecessarily early. We’ve also gained substantial rebates from councils, where licence fees have been set too high.

Contact Us

Giles Bridge

07866 520457

01200 859251

giles.bridge@a2zlicensing.co.uk

8 Salthill Road

Clitheroe

Lancashire

BB7 1NU

www.a2zlicensing.co.uk

a2z licensing helping your business to develop and grow.