# Airport transfer booking software: what operators need > Airport transfer booking software takes pre-booked airport runs and records what each job needs: the flight number, terminal, landing time, passengers, luggage and any meet and greet. Price each run as a fixed fare that already covers the airport's charges. Heathrow charges £7 every time a car enters its drop-off zones, and Gatwick charges £10 for up to 10 minutes. By Joe, founder of Dispatch AI. Updated 2026-10-12. The web page: https://dispatchai.co.uk/guides/airport-transfer-booking-software/ Airport runs are some of the best jobs a firm takes. They're pre-booked, they're longer than town work, and a good one comes with a return. They also go wrong in their own particular ways: a late flight, a passenger waiting in the wrong car park, a drop-off charge nobody put in the price. This guide covers what airport transfer booking software should hold, how to price and plan the pickup, and what the big UK airports charge your drivers. ## What is airport transfer booking software? Airport transfer booking software is a booking system set up for pre-booked runs to and from airports. Underneath, it does what any [taxi booking system](https://dispatchai.co.uk/guides/taxi-booking-system/) does: it takes the booking, prices it, saves the record your council expects and gives the job to a driver. The difference is in the details it asks for. A town job needs a pickup, a destination and a time. An airport job needs the flight, the terminal, the number of bags, whether the passenger wants meeting inside, and what happens if the plane is two hours late. If your system has nowhere to put those things, your controller ends up writing them in a notes box, and notes boxes get missed at 4am. Private hire work is all pre-booked anyway. The Department for Transport's Statutory Taxi and Private Hire Vehicle Standards say every private hire journey must be booked through a licensed operator, so airport work fits the way a private hire office already runs. ## What should an airport booking record hold? An airport booking should hold everything the driver needs to find the passenger without ringing the office. Here's a practical set of fields: | Field | Why it matters | |---|---| | Flight number | The one fact that lets you check the real landing time | | Scheduled landing or departure time | Sets the pickup time, and the time the passenger must be at the airport | | Terminal | Gatwick has a North and a South Terminal, and the pickup points differ | | Passengers and bags | Decides between a saloon, an estate and an MPV | | Child seats | The driver has to bring them | | Meet and greet or kerbside | Meet and greet means parking and walking in, so it costs you more | | Pickup point agreed | Saves the "where are you?" call | | Return journey | Booked now, not when the passenger lands | | Passenger's mobile number | The driver needs it when the flight lands | | Waiting terms accepted | Stops the argument about waiting charges later | The legal minimum is the same as for any job. In England and Wales outside London, section 56 of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976 says an operator must record the particulars of every booking before the journey starts, in the form the council sets. The statutory standards expect that record to include the passenger's name, the time of the request, the pickup and destination, the driver and vehicle, and who took and dispatched the booking, and suggest keeping it for at least 6 months. Our guide to [private hire operator record keeping](https://dispatchai.co.uk/guides/private-hire-operator-record-keeping/) goes through each field. ## How do you plan pickups when flights run late? Book every arrival against the flight number, then check the real landing time before the driver sets off. A booking for "14:30 at Gatwick" tells you nothing when the plane is held in Madrid. A booking for a flight number lets the controller look it up on the airport's arrivals page or the airline's app and move the driver. Some booking systems check flights for you. If yours doesn't, make it a step in the controller's routine: check each arrival an hour before the job, again before the driver leaves, and once more when the driver gets close. Decide in advance what happens when a flight diverts or is cancelled. Who rings the passenger, what the driver is paid if the job falls through, and whether you charge anything. Write it into your terms and say it in the booking confirmation, so nobody makes it up at midnight. ## What do UK airports charge for drop-off and pick-up? Airports charge for using the kerb, and the prices differ a lot between airports. These are the figures on each airport's own website when this guide was checked: | Airport | Drop-off outside the terminal | Free option | Picking up a pre-booked passenger | |---|---|---|---| | Heathrow | £7 each time a vehicle enters the terminal drop-off areas; taxis and private hire cars pay too | Park & Ride car parks (formerly Long Stay), with a free bus to the terminal | Private hire drivers wait at the Authorised Vehicle Area (£1.00 an hour for the first five hours), then collect from Terminal Parking or Park & Ride | | Gatwick | £10 for 10 minutes, then £1 a minute up to 20 minutes; £30 a day at most, 30 minutes' maximum stay | Long Stay car parks, up to 2 hours free with a shuttle bus | Express pick-up in North Terminal Car Park 6, Level 4, and South Terminal Car Park 3, Ground Floor; the driver must stay with the car | | Manchester | £5.50 for 5 minutes, £6.50 for 10 minutes, £25 up to 30 minutes | Free Drop Off area in JetParks 1, with a free shuttle bus | Private hire uses the Express Pick Up areas at T2 and T3; the airport lists pick-up at T2 at £6.60 for up to 15 minutes | | Bristol | Drop Off & Pick Up car park from £8.50 for up to 10 minutes | Waiting Zone, up to 1 hour free, with a shuttle bus to the terminal | Collect from the Drop Off & Pick Up car park; the site has red routes with no stopping | Three rules catch drivers out. Pay on time. Heathrow, Gatwick and Manchester all expect payment by midnight the day after the visit. Heathrow's penalty is an £80 parking charge, cut to £40 if paid within 14 days. Gatwick and Manchester issue a £100 notice, cut to £60 within 14 days. Don't pick up in a drop-off lane. Manchester says it will charge £100 to anyone picking up passengers in the drop-off zone. Don't stop on the roads. Bristol Airport runs red routes across the site and charges £100, cut to £60 within 14 days, to vehicles that stop on them, even to drop off. Heathrow suggests drivers and operators open a free business account so charges are paid by autopay. That's worth doing for any airport you use every week. ## How should you price airport runs? Price airport runs as fixed fares, and build the airport's charges into the fare rather than adding them on later. The Department for Transport's best practice guidance notes that councils have no power to set fares for private hire vehicles, so your airport prices are yours to set. Hackney carriage fares are different: councils can set maximum taxi fares for journeys within their area, and the guidance says most do. A fixed price per zone is the simplest way to do it. Our guide to [taxi zone pricing](https://dispatchai.co.uk/guides/taxi-zone-pricing/) shows how to draw the zones. For airport work, check three things in each price: 1. The drop-off or pick-up charge at that airport, at today's rate. 2. Parking, for meet and greet jobs, where the driver parks and walks into arrivals. 3. The empty run back, if your drivers rarely get a return fare from that airport. Then show the passenger one total. The Competition and Markets Authority's price transparency guidance (CMA209, published 18 November 2025) explains the rules on mandatory fees, drip pricing and partitioned pricing under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024. An airport charge every passenger has to pay belongs in the price you quote, not in a surprise line at the end. Meet and greet is worth selling as a priced extra. It costs you parking time, so charge for it, and offer it to passengers with children, heavy bags or a first trip to the UK, who get the most from someone holding a name board. ## What waiting time policy should you set? Set a written waiting time policy before you take airport work, and put it in front of the passenger when they book. Waiting costs real money: at Heathrow the Authorised Vehicle Area costs £1.00 an hour for the first five hours, then Terminal Parking rates, and Bristol's Drop Off & Pick Up car park starts at £8.50 for up to 10 minutes. A clear policy answers four questions: - When does free waiting start: at the scheduled time, or when the plane actually lands? - How long is free waiting, and what do you charge after it, in what blocks? - How long does the driver wait, and who do they ring, before the job counts as a no-show? - What does the passenger pay if they don't turn up at all? Pick numbers you can stick to on a bad night. Then send the same words in the booking confirmation, so the passenger has read them before they fly. Our guide to [reducing no-shows and late cancellations](https://dispatchai.co.uk/guides/reducing-no-shows-and-late-cancellations/) covers deposits and card links. ## Do you need a licence to do airport transfers? Yes. If you send private hire cars to the airport, you need a private hire operator licence from your council (from TfL in London), and every driver and vehicle you send needs its own licence. The statutory standards describe a "triple licensing lock": the operator fulfilling the booking must use drivers and vehicles licensed by the same council that licensed the operator. Hackney carriages work differently. GOV.UK says a taxi only needs a taxi vehicle licence and a taxi driver licence, and the DfT's best practice guidance says taxi drivers can carry pre-booked fares anywhere in England and Wales. Airports check too. Heathrow says drivers using its Authorised Vehicle Area need a valid private hire operator's licence or licensed taxi operator licence, and must show it on request to staff or the police. If you take airport bookings for another firm's area, or pass them to another operator, read our guide to [cross-border hiring and subcontracting](https://dispatchai.co.uk/guides/cross-border-hiring-and-subcontracting/) first. A firm starting out can find the full list of licences in [how to start an airport transfer business](https://dispatchai.co.uk/guides/how-to-start-an-airport-transfer-business/). ## Where does Dispatch AI fit? Dispatch AI is booking and dispatch software for taxi and private hire firms. It answers your phone, WhatsApp, texts and emails, books the jobs at your prices and sends them to your drivers on your own app. The passenger gets a text and an email to confirm, a secure link to pay by card and a live link to track the car. You can [ring the demo line](https://dispatchai.co.uk/ring-it/) to hear it, or [see the prices](https://dispatchai.co.uk/prices/). ## Frequently asked questions ### Can I pass the airport drop-off charge on to the passenger? Yes, it's your price, so you decide what it covers. Include the charge in the total you quote rather than adding it at the end. The CMA's price transparency guidance explains why fees every customer must pay belong in the price they see first. ### Do black cabs pay the Heathrow drop-off charge? Yes. Heathrow says all taxis (black cabs) and private hire vehicles must pay the £7 charge each time they enter the terminal drop-off zones. Heathrow recommends drivers and operators register a free business account so they can pay by autopay. ### What happens if a driver forgets to pay a drop-off charge? The airport issues a parking charge. At Heathrow it's £80, cut to £40 if paid within 14 days. At Gatwick and Manchester it's £100, cut to £60 within 14 days. Decide in your driver terms who pays when it happens. ### Can a driver wait at the terminal kerb for an arriving passenger? At the big airports, no. Manchester charges £100 for picking up in its drop-off zone, and Bristol charges £100 to vehicles that stop on its red routes. Use the airport's pick-up car park or waiting area, and tell the passenger where to walk. ### Should airport bookings be paid in advance? Taking payment when the job is booked protects you on long runs and early starts, because a no-show at the airport costs you the whole journey there. A secure card link sent with the confirmation does it without anyone reading card numbers down the phone. ## Sources - [Terminal drop-off charge (Heathrow Airport)](https://www.heathrow.com/dropoff) £7 per entry, taxis and private hire included, payment and penalties, free Park & Ride drop-off, free business accounts; read 9 October 2026 - [Authorised Vehicle Area (Heathrow Airport)](https://www.heathrow.com/transport-and-directions/taxis-and-minicabs/authorised-vehicle-area) £1.00 an hour for five hours then Terminal Parking rates, licence check, where pickups are made; read 9 October 2026 - [Drop-off (London Gatwick)](https://www.gatwickairport.com/transport-options/drop-off.html) forecourt tariff, maximum stay, Long Stay option; read 9 October 2026 - [Pick-up (London Gatwick)](https://www.gatwickairport.com/transport-options/pick-up.html) express pick-up locations; read 9 October 2026 - [Drop-off charge terms and conditions (London Gatwick)](https://www.gatwickairport.com/terms-conditions/drop-off-charge-terms-and-conditions/) payment deadline and parking charge notice; read 9 October 2026 - [Pick up and drop off (Manchester Airport)](https://www.manchesterairport.co.uk/parking/pick-up-and-drop-off-info/) prices by time, penalties, JetParks 1; read 9 October 2026 - [Taxis and private hire (Manchester Airport)](https://www.manchesterairport.co.uk/getting-to-and-from/by-taxi/) private hire Express Pick Up areas; read 9 October 2026 - [Drop Off and Pick Up Car Park (Bristol Airport)](https://www.bristolairport.co.uk/parking/drop-off-and-pick-up/) from £8.50 for 10 minutes, red routes; read 9 October 2026 - [Waiting Zone (Bristol Airport)](https://www.bristolairport.co.uk/parking/waiting-zone/) up to 1 hour free, no return within 30 minutes; read 9 October 2026 - [Price transparency, CMA209 (Competition and Markets Authority, 18 November 2025)](https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/price-transparency-cma209) mandatory fees, drip pricing and partitioned pricing under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 - [Taxi and private hire vehicle licensing: best practice guidance (Department for Transport, updated 17 November 2023)](https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/taxi-and-private-hire-vehicle-licensing-best-practice-guidance/taxi-and-private-hire-vehicle-licensing-best-practice-guidance-for-licensing-authorities-in-england) section 10.1 on fares; taxi drivers carrying pre-booked fares anywhere in England and Wales - [Private hire vehicle operator licence (GOV.UK)](https://www.gov.uk/operator-licence-private-hire-vehicle) taxis need only taxi vehicle and driver licences - [Statutory Taxi and Private Hire Vehicle Standards (Department for Transport)](https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/statutory-taxi-and-private-hire-vehicle-standards/statutory-taxi-and-private-hire-vehicle-standards) pre-booking, the triple licensing lock, booking records - [Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976, section 56](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1976/57/section/56) operators' booking records Dispatch AI is a trading name of CABO TECH SOLUTION AI LTD, registered in England and Wales, company no. 16255667.