Charges
When making a booking with Brunel you agree that the following extra charges may be incurred on top of the original fare.
Waiting time and grace period charges
For our Account Customers, we offer a 10-minute grace waiting time period for non airport pick ups, after which the full waiting period is chargeable. For airport pick ups we offer a free period of 20 minutes, with the 21st minute being the first chargeable minute . We recommend you use ‘Hold-off Time’ linked to your flight details to reduce the cost of unnecessary waiting time at airports.
Vehicles for “ASAP” or “Now” bookings may arrive earlier than the estimated time of arrival shown. Any waiting charges for these bookings will apply from the actual time of arrival.
For our Private (Retail) Customers:
– standard pickups (non-airport), we offer a 10-minute grace waiting period. This means that if you get into the car within 10 minutes of the booked time, then there is no waiting time charge. However, if you get into the car after (eg) 12 minutes, then the full (eg) 12 minutes are chargeable;
– airport pickups, we offer a 20-minute grace waiting period. This means that if you get into the car within 20 minutes of the booked time, then there is no waiting charge. However, if you get into the car after (eg) 22 minutes, then the full (eg) 22 minutes are chargeable.
Like most car services, we charge if you keep the car waiting over a certain period of time. This recompenses both the driver and us for the delay.
To avoid/minimise the above charges, we offer a ‘hold off option’ on our airport bookings. Please see our airport pickups section for more information.
For Private (Retail) Customers, waiting time when chargeable is at 50p/minute for Standard Cars, 75p/minute for MPVs and Executive Cars. Account charges are as agreed on application.
Vehicles for “ASAP” or “Now” bookings may arrive earlier than the estimated time of arrival shown. Any waiting charges for these bookings will apply from the actual time of arrival.
For auxiliary service waiting time and charges, please see the relevant sections below.
Airport Pick-ups
Flight tracking
For all airport pick-ups, we strongly recommend providing the flight number. This allows us to track your flight and amend the pickup time according to the actual flight landing time so that the driver is in the arrivals hall at the appropriate time. This can help avoid extra waiting time charges.
The driver will be waiting for you in the arrivals hall, with a Brunel name board with your name on it, and they will accompany you to the vehicle.
Hold off time
As there are occasions when it can take longer for passengers to go through customs and baggage reclaim after disembarking a flight, we offer a hold off time option. This allows you to add a buffer into your collection time, is free of charge and can be chosen at the time of booking (web, email, app and phone).
For example, if your flight lands at 11:00 am and you request to be collected (e.g.) 30 minutes after landing, the driver will be waiting for you in arrivals from 11:30 am. Should your flight land early at 10:50 am, our driver will be waiting for you at 11:20 am.
On top of this, our usual airport grace period (see above) will apply after the adjusted pickup time. In the above scenario, so long as you get into the car within 50 minutes (30minutes hold off + 20 minutes grace waiting period for retail bookings) of the actual landing time, no waiting time charge would apply.
Car Parking
For all airport pick-ups (and most airport drop-offs), car parking is an additional cost. This is because all drivers are obliged to park and come to the arrivals halls to collect you. The car parking charge is added at the end of the journey and is charged at cost.
Some airports are now charging for dropping off passengers. This is the case for airports such as Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted and Luton. We have included these charges in the quoted fare.
Cancellation Charges – Standard Cars*
| Pick Up Location | Minimum Cancellation Time** | Charge |
| Inner London postcodes (E, EC, N, NW, SE, SW, W, WC prefixes) | 30 minutes before pick up | Minimum Booking Fee + any applicable extra charges |
| Outer London (and not more than 40 miles from SW1) | 60 minutes before pick up (180 minutes if more than 40 miles from SW1) | 75% of Completed Journey Price + any applicable extra charges |
| ASAP | Within 5 minutes of booking | Minimum Booking Fee + any applicable extra charges |
NB: For auxiliary services, please see the relevant sections below.
Cancellation charges vary depending on the service and account used, and may be amended by us in writing at any time. Please contact your account manager or client relations for more information – customerservice@brunel.com
* Cancellation periods for pre-booked ‘specialist’ vehicles (other than Luxury bookings), i.e. vehicles other than Standard Cars, are double those required for Standard Cars. For Luxury bookings (Cars or MPVs), the minimum notice periods are 6 hours (Inner London) and 12 hours (elsewhere). There is no change for ASAP bookings.
** During extreme periods where delays are more likely than usual, e.g. severe bad weather, fuel shortages, pandemics, demonstrations and so on, cancellation charges are applicable according to the default periods OR once the booking has been allocated to a driver.
Cancellations for bookings where Bank Holiday rates apply to a period must be made no later than 17:00 the day before the rates first apply for that period, failing which a 75% cancellation fee will apply (and any additional charges as set out above.
Due to ongoing industry-wide driver shortages (caused mainly by Brexit and Covid), there is a higher-than-usual possibility of a vehicle being delayed in peak periods. If you wish to cancel your booking without incurring a charge, please let us know at the time we communicate the possible delay (we will call or send a text using the passenger contact details provided). If you decide to keep the car coming for more than 5 minutes after we notify the possible delay and you subsequently decide to cancel the booking, a cancellation fee will be incurred in accordance with the above parameters.
Pick up within Inner London
A minimum of 30 minutes’ notice (60 minutes for specialist vehicles, 6 hours for Luxury Vehicles) is required to cancel a booking without charge. If the cancellation is made after the pickup time, you may incur waiting time and car parking charges.
Pick-up outside Inner London
A minimum of 60 minutes’ notice (120 minutes for specialist vehicles, 12 hours for Luxury Vehicles) is required to cancel a booking without charge (180 minutes if more than 40 miles from SW1, 12 hours for Luxury Vehicles). If the cancellation is made after the pickup time, you may incur waiting time and car parking charges. The cancellation charge is 75% of the price of the intended journey. This is to adequately compensate the driver for time and fuel spent on travelling to the collection point.
As soon as possible (ASAP) cancellations
A cancellation charge will apply if the booking is cancelled more than 5 minutes after creation. If the cancellation is made after the pickup time, you may incur waiting time and car parking charges.
No Show Cancellation Policy
If we have been unable to contact either the booker or the passenger within the times listed below, we will remove the driver from your booking and a cancellation charge will apply as outlined above. Car Parking and waiting time charges may apply.
Non-airport collections
Our policy depends on the method of payment.
Cash bookings – The driver will be removed from the booking 10 minutes after the pickup time if no contact has been made with either the booker or the passenger. A cancellation on arrival (COA) charge will apply.
Credit card & Account bookings – The driver will be removed from the booking 30 minutes after the pickup time if no contact has been made with either the booker or the passenger. A cancellation on arrival (COA) charge will apply.
Airport collections
Our policy depends on the method of payment.
Cash Bookings – The driver will be removed from the booking 30 minutes after the pickup time if no contact has been made with either the booker or the passenger. A cancellation on arrival (COA) charge will apply.
Credit card & Account bookings – The driver will be removed from the booking 90 minutes after the pickup time if no contact has been made with either the booker or the passenger. A cancellation on arrival (COA) charge will apply, including the applicable waiting time charges.
International Bookings
When booking an international journey, we recommend giving us at least 3 hours’ notice. Below this threshold it is significantly less likely that our network will be able to service your requirements.
Cancellation policy
A minimum of 6 hours’ notice is required to cancel a booking without charge (longer if and as required by the local supplier). If the cancellation is made after the pickup time, you may incur waiting time and car parking charges.
The cancellation fee depends on the vehicle and service booked. Please speak to Client Relations or your Account Manager for more information.
Airport Pick Ups
We offer 60 minutes of free waiting time at all international airports outside the UK. This is included in the quote provided at the time of booking.
Wheelchair Accessible Vehicles
We partner with London Black Cabs to service wheelchair accessible vehicle requests.
Our quotes are only rough estimates as the journey will be on the meter. We offer a 2 minute grace period on these bookings.
For cancellations, a minimum of 60 minutes’ notice is required to cancel a booking without charge. For “as soon as possible” bookings, a cancellation charge will apply if the booking is cancelled more than 5 minutes after creation. If the cancellation is made after the pickup time, you may incur waiting time and car parking charges.
Debit and credit card pre-payment
Cash and Card Bookings
When you make a booking to pay by credit or debit card, payment of the fare shown will be processed when you confirm the booking. If there is any subsequent change to the fare – e.g. due to a change in destination, or waiting or parking charges – a further charge or refund will be applied accordingly after completion of the booking. Any such changes (credits or debits) may take up to 5 business days to show on your card statement.
Account Card Bookings
When you provide us with a new card for your account, your card will be pre-authorised by us to confirm that you have the correct details. This pre-authorisation does not take money out of your account but merely ring-fences £1.01. It will take around 3 – 5 days for the £1.01 to be released, this is determined by your card issuer.
Additional Charges
Phone Booking Fee
As well as our ongoing investment in online and app booking technology, we have recently adopted the London Living Wage across our Contact Centre and introduced performance-related bonuses in order to attract and retain higher calibre employees. To help meet these costs, we charge a booking fee on bookings made through our contact centre (the charge is variable based on account grade).
Our app is available for download on Android and iOS or you can try our web-portal at www.brunel.com
Out of Area Uplift (all bookings)
As we are a London-based operator, it costs us more to provide local services away from London than operators local to those areas. Where the pick up and final destination are both outside the M25 and the journey is not a negotiated rate, the mileage fare will consist of the fare from the pick up to the final destination, plus mileage at the standard rate for the shorter of the distance (a) from the closest point on the M25 to the pick up, and (b) from the final destination back to the closest point on the M25.
Additional Pickup/Drop Off Address
We define as an extra pick up or drop off, any location where a passenger either exits or enters the vehicle. There is an additional charge of £3 per extra stop as well as any extra mileage incurred.
Car Parking, Airport Drop Off Fees, Tolls
The above are only charged where unavoidable, and charged at cost.
Clean Air Charge
All bookings incur a Clean Air Charge, which varies depending on booking type (Standard, MPVs, Executive or Luxury vehicles). This charge will be added to completed bookings and those to which a cancellation charge applies.
There is no Clean Air Charge for Zero Emission bookings.
Peak Hours Uplift Charge
Effective 22 November 2021, all bookings incur a Peak Hours Uplift Charge (“PHUC”) of £7.50, where the pick up time is between 03:30 and 09:00, 15:30 and 19:00 (21:29 Tuesday-Thursday, Christmas Day and Boxing Day), or 21:30 and 01:00 (all inclusive), weekdays and weekends.
The PHUC also applies to cancellations and no-shows to which a cancellation fee applies.
Uplifts for Exceptional Circumstances and Major Events
To maximise driver availability for exceptional circumstances and major events, please note that we reserve the right to uplift our charges by up to 50% (and consequently the fare originally quoted may increase): (i) during any period of industrial action which significantly affects or is likely to affect the transport system operating in London, such as during a Rail or Tube Strike; and (ii) for a major Sporting or Entertainment Event such as Royal Ascot, the Wimbledon Tennis Championships, the Silverstone Grand Prix and events that take place at Wembley Stadium or Wembley Arena.
Penalty Charge Notices (PCNs)
In circumstances where a driver has incurred a PCN due to the requirements or instructions of a customer, we reserve the right to pass this charge on as an extra charge on the booking in question. This recharge will include an administration fee of 15% of the PCN’s value.
Soiling
Any soiling that requires the car to be taken out of service for cleaning will result in a charge equivalent to the fare from where the passenger was dropped, to our depot or a third party car wash of our choice, plus the cost of cleaning and waiting charges in respect of the time spent for the vehicle to be cleaned, up to a maximum charge of £200.
Christmas and New Year
There will be an extra charge for journeys during the Christmas, Boxing Day, and New Year’s holidays. This will apply to all London Licensed Taxis and generally across the transport industry. This encourages drivers to work during these busy times, so that taxis and minicabs are available when you need them the most.
For all customers, there will be a 100% uplift on journeys where the collection time is between 18:00 on 24th December and 06:00 on 27th December. Also, this uplift will apply between 18:00 on 31st December and 06:00 on 2nd January. This uplift applies to all charges, except the Clean Air Charge which is charged at the same rate regardless of date.
If you expect to make a large number of bookings during the Christmas holiday period, please contact your account manager or sales@brunel.com