Taxi booking confirmations by SMS and email: what passengers expect

A booking confirmation does two jobs. It tells the passenger their car is booked, and it gives them one last chance to spot a wrong date or postcode before a driver turns up at the wrong door. This guide covers what to put in a taxi confirmation by text and by email, when to send reminders, and where a service message ends and marketing begins under the UK's PECR rules.

What should a taxi booking confirmation say?

A taxi booking confirmation should say enough for the passenger to check the job and find the car, and nothing they have to scroll past. Split it between the text, which they'll read in a second, and the email, which holds the detail.

Use the passenger's own words for anything they asked for, such as "two child seats" or "estate car for golf clubs". A confirmation that echoes the request back is the quickest way for them to spot a mistake.

What does TfL require in a booking confirmation?

In London, TfL's safety advice for passengers says they must receive a booking confirmation, which can come by text message, app, email or, in a minicab office, a paper receipt. TfL says it must contain at least:

1. the number plate
2. the first name of the driver
3. the driver's private hire licence number
4. a photo of the driver, where the passenger can receive one

TfL tells passengers that if the driver or the car isn't the same as in the booking confirmation, they shouldn't get in. So a London confirmation has to be sent, or re-sent, once you know which driver and car are doing the job.

Outside London, check your own council's operator conditions for what a confirmation has to contain. Either way you hold these details already. The Department for Transport's Statutory Taxi and Private Hire Vehicle Standards expect operators to record the driver's name and licence number and the vehicle registration for each booking, and suggest keeping those records for at least 6 months, so sending them to the passenger costs you nothing extra. Our guide to live tracking links for passengers covers what else to show once the car is on its way.

When should you send confirmations and reminders?

Send the confirmation straight away, then one message at each point where the passenger's plans change. A sensible sequence for a pre-booked job looks like this:

1. On booking. The confirmation, by text and email, within moments of the booking being saved.
2. When a driver is allocated. The car, the registration and the driver's first name.
3. A booking reminder before the day. For jobs booked well ahead, such as an airport run booked three weeks out. You choose the timing, but say how to cancel in the same message.
4. On the way or outside. "Your driver is on the way" with a tracking link, then "your driver is outside" with the car's colour and registration.
5. After the journey. A receipt by email, especially for anyone claiming the fare back from work.

Reminders matter most for the bookings people forget: early starts, long-range pre-books and return trips booked with the outbound. Our guide to reducing no-shows and late cancellations goes further on that.

How long can a booking confirmation text be?

A single text message holds 160 characters of plain text. Twilio's documentation explains that a message using the standard GSM-7 character set fits 160 characters in one segment, but one that needs Unicode, which includes emoji, fits only 70. Longer messages are split into parts of 153 characters each, or 67 with Unicode.

So keep the confirmation text short and plain. Leave out emoji. Watch for curly quotes pasted in from a word processor too: Twilio notes that a single curly quotation mark switches the message to Unicode and cuts the limit from 160 to 70. Here's an example that fits in one text:

Your Firm Cars: booked, ref 4821. Fri 14 Nov, 05:00, 12 High St to Bristol Airport. Paid by card. To change, reply or ring the office.

Send texts from a sender name or number your passengers will recognise, and make sure a reply reaches a person or your booking system, not a dead end.

Are booking confirmations marketing under PECR?

No. A booking confirmation is a service message, and the ICO says data protection law and PECR don't stop you telling customers important information they need to know as part of their relationship with you. Its examples of service messages include appointment confirmations and reminders.

The catch is mixing. The ICO says that if a service message has elements that are direct marketing, even if that isn't its main purpose, it counts as direct marketing. A confirmation that ends "10% off your next airport run, use code SAVE10" is a marketing message, and the marketing rules then apply to it. Keep service messages to the service.

Can you send passengers offers by text or email?

Yes, if you have their consent, or if they're an existing customer and you meet the conditions of what the ICO calls the soft opt-in. Under PECR you mustn't send electronic mail marketing to individuals unless they've specifically consented, or they bought or negotiated to buy a similar service from you before. The ICO says the rule covers emails, texts, picture messages, voicemails, direct messages via social media and any similar message stored electronically.

For a taxi firm, the soft opt-in means three things:

• You got the passenger's details when they booked and paid, or were negotiating a booking.
• You gave them a clear chance to opt out when you collected their details.
• Every marketing message after that gives them an easy way to opt out again.

The soft opt-in doesn't cover new contacts or bought-in lists. The simplest way to get it right is an unticked box on your booking form, "Send me offers by text and email", with an opt-out line in every offer you send. The ICO notes that its guidance is under review because of changes made by the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025, so check it before you plan a campaign. Our guide to turning passengers into regulars covers what to send once you have permission.

How do you make sure confirmation emails arrive?

Send them from your own domain and set up email authentication. Since 1 February 2024, Google's rules for anyone sending to Gmail accounts say every sender must set up SPF or DKIM for their domain, have valid forward and reverse DNS, use a TLS connection, and keep the spam rate shown in Google's Postmaster Tools below 0.3%.

Senders of 5,000 or more messages a day to Gmail have to go further: SPF and DKIM, plus DMARC, and one-click unsubscribe on marketing messages. A busy firm sending a booking confirmation email, a reminder and a receipt for each job can reach that sooner than you'd think. Ask whoever sends your emails, your booking software or your email provider, to confirm all three records are in place for your domain.

Dispatch AI is booking and dispatch software for taxi and private hire firms. The passenger gets a confirmation by text and email, and a live link to track the car.