Record keeping for PHV drivers

The handbook does not have a section on record keeping. But it mentions notes, records and documents in many places, and together they make a good habit list. This guide collects them and adds a few simple suggestions of our own, clearly marked.

Documents the handbook mentions

• Your PHV driver's badge. Wear it whenever you work.
• Your PHV driver's licence. Keep it at home in a safe place and give a copy to each licensed operator you work with. Show it to a police officer or TfL Authorised Officer there and then or within seven days.
• Your licence letter. It explains your responsibilities and any conditions. Keep it.
• Exemption notices. If you have an exemption (from wearing the badge, from displaying vehicle licence discs, or from wheelchair or assistance dog duties), you must carry or display the notice as the handbook describes.
• Insurance details. The handbook encourages you to carry details of the vehicle's valid hire or reward insurance and evidence that you are insured to drive it, for example where the operator insures it. You can carry them or display them in the vehicle. You must make them available to the police when asked, and give them to a passenger or member of the public if you are in a collision.
• Letters from TfL or a manufacturer about your vehicle, if you are the registered keeper. Read them and follow their instructions.

Records your operator keeps

Before each journey, your operator records the booking date, the passenger's name, the agreed pick-up time and place, the main destination, the agreed or estimated fare, and your name and vehicle details. Operators must also keep copies of your PHV licence and your driving licence, records of complaints, and a record of lost property. You are not personally responsible for collecting these, but the handbook says you should tell your operator about changes such as a new destination. A quick message is a record in itself.

When the handbook tells you to make notes

1. Incidents. If you are attacked, threatened or nearly harmed, record it. The handbook lists what to include: when and where, information about the attacker, whether they were your passenger, a brief description, anything that might have caused it, witnesses, the type of incident, any injuries and the action you took. It says to record and report near-misses too.
2. Safeguarding concerns. Keep a written or recorded note with dates, times, a description, and the names, addresses and descriptions of people involved. See our safeguarding guide.
3. Helping a passenger who needs assistance. The handbook says to spend only a short time away from your vehicle and to note the passenger's details and booking in case you get a PCN. The council that issued the PCN decides whether to accept it.
4. Lost badge or licence. Note the dates, who you told and any crime reference number. See lost or stolen badge.

A simple notebook habit

These are our suggestions, not handbook rules. Keep a small notebook, or a notes app, and write quickly:

• Date and time of anything unusual.
• Booking reference or passenger name as shown in your operator's system.
• What happened in two or three plain sentences. Facts, not opinions.
• Who you told and when: your operator, the police, TfL.
• Any reference numbers you were given.

Write it as soon as it is safe. The handbook says after an incident to talk to a friend, colleague or your operator and to report it. A note makes that easier.

Dates worth tracking

Item	What the handbook says
Licence period	Normally three years. The end date is on your badge.
Change of home address	Tell TfL within 21 days, and the DVLA by law.
Vehicle collision (if you own it)	Tell TfL within 72 hours if it affects safety, performance, appearance or comfort.
Vehicle licence	Lasts one year, with another inspection before a new licence.
Medical	From 45, at each renewal. From 65, every year.

See what you must tell TfL for the full set of reporting rules.

Privacy matters

The handbook says never to use a passenger's personal contact details for anything other than the booked journey, and not to share one ride-share passenger's details with another. Keep your notes secure and do not keep passenger information longer than you need it. We have not confirmed any data-protection rules that apply to drivers, so if you are unsure, check with the Information Commissioner's Office or your operator.

What the handbook does not say

It gives no rules on keeping income, expense or mileage records, and no retention periods. For tax or accounting records, speak to a qualified adviser. We are not one.

General information, not tax, accounting or legal advice.

Estimate what to put aside for tax with the self-employed tax set-aside calculator.