Terms of Service
These terms govern the booking and use of private hire services provided by Westmere Private Hire ("Westmere", "we", "us"). By confirming a booking you agree to these terms.
1. Our Service
Westmere is a licensed private hire operator providing pre-booked private-hire transport across Sussex and the South East of England. All journeys must be booked in advance — we do not accept flag-downs or rank work.
2. Bookings & Quotes
- Fixed-price quotes are valid for the specific date, time, pickup and destination provided at the time of booking.
- Quotes assume direct routing. Additional stops, route deviations or significant waiting time may incur extra charges, which will be communicated before they apply where possible.
- Your booking is confirmed once you receive a written confirmation from Westmere.
3. Cancellations & No-Shows
- Cancellations made more than 12 hours before the scheduled pickup are free of charge.
- Cancellations inside 12 hours may be subject to a cancellation fee of up to 50% of the quoted fare.
- No-shows (passenger not present at the pickup location and unreachable for 15 minutes) are charged at the full fare.
4. Waiting Time
For standard pickups, we allow 10 minutes of complimentary waiting time. For airport pickups, 45 minutes of complimentary waiting time is included after flight landing, with flight-tracking monitored by our dispatch team.
5. Passenger Conduct
Drivers reserve the right to refuse or terminate a journey if a passenger is abusive, intoxicated beyond safe travel, or damages the vehicle. Any cleaning fees resulting from soiling will be charged to the passenger.
6. Assistance Dogs
We welcome assistance dogs on all journeys at no additional charge. If you are travelling with an assistance dog, please let us know when booking so we can ensure the vehicle is prepared. We will never refuse a booking because an assistance dog is travelling.
7. Luggage & Child Seats
Please declare luggage and child-seat requirements at the time of booking so that we can allocate the correct vehicle. We cannot guarantee carriage of undisclosed oversized luggage.
8. Liability
Westmere holds appropriate public liability and private hire insurance as required by our licensing authority. Our liability for delays is limited to refund of the fare paid, save where a statutory right otherwise applies.
9. Payment
- Payment is accepted by card (in-vehicle or online), bank transfer, or cash. Corporate accounts are available on request.
- There is no minimum transaction amount for card payments.
- A written receipt will be provided on request.
10. Business Accounts
- A business account is held in the company’s name. Journeys booked on it are billed to one monthly invoice to that company, and no passenger is asked to pay in the vehicle.
- The company nominates an account contact — usually their receptionist or office manager — who books the journeys and is our point of contact for all of them.
- We do not hold passengers’ telephone numbers on a business account. We record the passenger’s name so the driver knows who he is collecting. Drivers are instructed to call the account contact on arrival, never the passenger, and we do not pass a passenger’s number to a driver.
- The account contact is responsible for telling the passenger that the car has arrived, and for the accuracy of the bookings placed on the account.
- Invoices are payable by the date shown on them. Statements, invoices and a full record of journeys can be downloaded from the account at any time.
11. Complaints
We take every complaint seriously. Please contact us at bookings@westmereprivatehire.co.uk or 07930 342593 within 14 days of your journey.
If you are not satisfied with our response, you have the right to escalate your complaint to our licensing authority: Lewes District Council, Licensing Team, Southover House, Southover Road, Lewes, East Sussex, BN7 1AB. Telephone: 01273 471600. Email: licensing@lewes-eastbourne.gov.uk.
12. Governing Law
These terms are governed by the laws of England and Wales.