# Taxi controller job: when should a firm hire its first controller?

> Hire your first controller when the phones stop you running the firm: calls ringing out at busy times, you answering at 2am, drivers waiting while jobs go unbooked. As an example, a full-time controller on 40 hours a week at the £12.71 National Living Wage costs about £30,258 a year once employer National Insurance and pension are added.

By Joe, founder of Dispatch AI. Updated 2026-10-23. The web page: https://dispatchai.co.uk/guides/when-to-hire-a-taxi-controller/

Every small taxi firm reaches the point where the owner can't drive, answer the phone and run the business at the same time. The question is whether the answer is a controller, and when. This guide sets out what the taxi controller job involves, the signs you need one, what a controller costs in 2026 with worked examples, the alternatives, and what a good controller does that no phone system can.


## What does a taxi controller do?

A taxi controller takes the bookings, sends the cars and keeps the shift running. In a small firm the taxi controller job is three jobs at once: phone operator, dispatcher and the person who sorts things out when they go wrong.

On a normal shift a controller:

- Answers the booking line, quotes prices and records each job.
- Gives jobs to drivers and keeps the pre-books for later in the day covered.
- Tells passengers when a car is running late, and sends another when one doesn't turn up.
- Takes complaints and lost property calls and writes them down.
- Keeps in touch with drivers about breakdowns, incidents and difficult passengers.
- Spots a safeguarding concern, such as a child travelling alone at night, and acts on it.

That last part is why a controller is booking and dispatch staff in the eyes of your council. The Department for Transport's Statutory Standards ask operators to keep a register of everyone who takes bookings or dispatches vehicles, with a basic DBS check for each, and a policy on employing ex-offenders in those roles. A basic check costs £20 from 5 October 2026.


## What are the signs a taxi firm needs a controller?

The signs are in your call log and your diary, not in how tired you feel. Look for these:

| Sign | What it costs you | What to try first |
|---|---|---|
| Calls ringing out in busy hours | Customers who picked you book someone else | Count the missed calls by hour |
| You answering the phone at 2am | Sleep, and mistakes the next day | Divert nights to someone or something that books |
| Drivers waiting while you're on another call | Jobs that start late, drivers who drift away | Cover the phones at the busiest times |
| Wrong addresses, double bookings, forgotten pre-books | Complaints and lost regulars | Write a booking procedure everyone follows |
| No time for accounts, venues or recruiting | The firm stops growing | Hand the phones to someone for set hours |

One sign on its own can often be fixed without a hire. Three or more, week after week, and you're paying for the lack of a controller already. Our guide to [missed calls in a taxi office](https://dispatchai.co.uk/guides/missed-calls-in-a-taxi-office/) shows how to turn the call log into a monthly figure in pounds.


## What does a taxi controller cost in 2026?

No reliable figure for controller wages is published, so start from the legal floor. The National Living Wage is £12.71 an hour for workers aged 21 and over from 1 April 2026, and £10.85 for those aged 18 to 20. Then add employer National Insurance at 15% on pay above £5,000 a year, and a pension contribution of at least 3% on earnings between £6,240 and £50,270 for anyone who's automatically enrolled.

**Example 1: a full-time day controller, 40 hours a week, all year.**

1. Hours: 40 × 52 weeks = 2,080 hours.
2. Wages at £12.71: 2,080 × £12.71 = £26,436.80.
3. Employer National Insurance: (£26,436.80 − £5,000) × 15% = £3,215.52.
4. Pension: (£26,436.80 − £6,240) × 3% = £605.90.
5. Total: about £30,258 a year, or about £2,522 a month.

If you can claim the Employment Allowance, up to £10,500 a year off your employer National Insurance, step 3 drops out and the total is about £27,043. GOV.UK says that if your company has only one director, that director must not be the only employee liable for secondary Class 1 National Insurance, so check before you count on it.

That example still leaves a gap. Workers get 5.6 weeks of paid holiday a year, already inside those 52 weeks of pay, so somebody else has to cover 5.6 × 40 = 224 hours. At £12.71 that's another £2,847 in wages, or 224 hours of you on the phones.

**Example 2: a part-time evening controller, Thursday to Saturday, 6pm to midnight.**

1. Hours: 18 a week × 52 = 936 hours.
2. Wages at £12.71: £11,896.56.
3. Employer National Insurance: (£11,896.56 − £5,000) × 15% = £1,034.48.
4. Pension, because pay is over the £10,000 automatic enrolment trigger: (£11,896.56 − £6,240) × 3% = £169.70.
5. Total: about £13,101 a year.

Both examples use the minimum wage. An experienced controller who knows every street and every regular costs more, so treat these as floors.


## What are the alternatives to hiring a controller?

There are four alternatives, and you can combine two of them before the first hire:

| Option | What it covers | What it doesn't |
|---|---|---|
| You or family on the phones | Everything, with full local knowledge | Your time, your sleep, and growth |
| A part-time controller on peak nights | The busiest hours, with judgement | The quiet hours and holidays |
| An answering service | Calls answered in your name | Bookings, unless its staff book into your system at your prices |
| An AI phone agent on overflow and nights | Bookings at your prices, several calls at once | Drivers, emergencies and judgement calls |

Dispatch AI's phone agent answers your booking line when your office doesn't, quotes your own fixed prices and books the job into your Dispatch AI account. We put it on the calls your office can't answer, when the line rings out and overnight, or on your whole booking line if you'd rather. You choose the hours. A phone agent takes bookings. It doesn't run a shift, so someone still needs to be on call for drivers and problems.

The cost of a night controller, and the options for nights, are worked through in [covering nights without a night controller](https://dispatchai.co.uk/guides/taxi-night-cover-without-a-night-controller/). For the busy hours, [taxi call overflow](https://dispatchai.co.uk/guides/taxi-call-overflow/) explains how diverts send calls on when your line is engaged.


## What does a controller do that software doesn't?

A controller makes judgement calls that need a person who knows your firm. Software can answer a phone, take a booking and record it. A controller decides what to do when the plan falls apart.

- A driver breaks down on the way to a 5am airport run, and the controller rings round for a car.
- A regular sounds confused and unwell on the phone, and the controller rings their daughter.
- Two drivers want the same long job, and the controller decides fairly, which matters for keeping drivers.
- A passenger complains, and the controller listens, writes it down and puts it right.
- A girl of 14 wants a car home alone at midnight, and the controller follows your safeguarding policy.

Those calls are where a firm earns its name. They're also where a tired owner gets it wrong at 3am. Our guides on [what to do when a driver doesn't turn up](https://dispatchai.co.uk/guides/what-to-do-when-a-taxi-driver-doesnt-turn-up/) and [safeguarding for taxi firms](https://dispatchai.co.uk/guides/safeguarding-for-taxi-firms/) set out what a controller should do in two of them.


## How do you hire your first taxi controller?

Hire for the hours your call log shows, not for a full week you don't need yet:

1. **Pick the hours.** Use your missed calls by hour. Your log may point to evenings and weekends rather than 9 to 5.
2. **Decide employed or self-employed.** The label doesn't decide it; how you work together does. Our guide to [self-employed or employed drivers](https://dispatchai.co.uk/guides/self-employed-or-employed-taxi-drivers/) explains the tests, and the same questions apply to office staff.
3. **Check their right to work** before they start. GOV.UK says the penalty is up to £60,000 for each illegal worker if you haven't done the correct checks.
4. **Get a basic DBS check** and add them to your register of booking and dispatch staff.
5. **Register as an employer with HMRC** before the first payday, and take out employers' liability insurance of at least £5 million from the day you become an employer.
6. **Write the procedures down:** how to take a booking, late cars, complaints, lost property, safeguarding, and who to ring at 2am.
7. **Sit with them for the first shifts.** Hand over one evening at a time.

Watch the hours too. GOV.UK sets a legal limit on a worker's average weekly hours, normally averaged over 17 weeks, which a worker can choose to opt out of. One controller covering every evening and every weekend can go past it, so check the limit on GOV.UK before you agree a rota.

When you're growing past one controller, [growing from 5 to 20 cars](https://dispatchai.co.uk/guides/how-to-grow-a-taxi-firm-from-5-to-20-cars/) covers the next stage.

## Frequently asked questions

### Does a taxi controller need a licence?

There's no separate controller licence in the Statutory Standards. They ask operators to keep a register of booking and dispatch staff, evidence a basic DBS check for each, and have a policy on employing ex-offenders in those roles. Check your own council's operator conditions, because some add their own rules.

### How much should I pay a taxi controller?

No reliable published figure exists for controller pay. The legal floor is the National Living Wage, £12.71 an hour for workers aged 21 and over from 1 April 2026, or £10.85 for ages 18 to 20. Add employer National Insurance, pension and holiday cover to get the real cost.

### Can I hire a controller just for weekends?

Yes, and for a first hire it's often the right size. Part-time workers get the same 5.6 weeks of holiday, pro rata: GOV.UK's example is that someone working 3 days a week gets at least 16.8 days. The part-time example in this guide comes to about £13,101 a year.

### Is an AI phone agent cheaper than a controller?

It does a different job. A phone agent takes bookings at your prices on the hours you choose, while a controller also handles drivers, problems and judgement calls. You can start with a phone agent on nights and overflow, then hire a controller for the busy hours when the call log shows you need one.


## Sources

- [National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage rates (GOV.UK)](https://www.gov.uk/national-minimum-wage-rates) £12.71 for 21 and over, £10.85 for 18 to 20, from April 2026
- [Rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027 (HMRC)](https://www.gov.uk/guidance/rates-and-thresholds-for-employers-2026-to-2027) employer National Insurance 15% above £5,000; Employment Allowance £10,500
- [Employment Allowance: eligibility (GOV.UK)](https://www.gov.uk/claim-employment-allowance/eligibility) the single-director rule
- [Workplace pensions: what you, your employer and the government pay (GOV.UK)](https://www.gov.uk/workplace-pensions/what-you-your-employer-and-the-government-pay) 3% on earnings between £6,240 and £50,270
- [Workplace pensions: joining a workplace pension (GOV.UK)](https://www.gov.uk/workplace-pensions/joining-a-workplace-pension) automatic enrolment from £10,000 a year, aged 22 to State Pension age
- [Holiday entitlement (GOV.UK)](https://www.gov.uk/holiday-entitlement-rights) 5.6 weeks; part-time example of 16.8 days
- [Maximum weekly working hours (GOV.UK)](https://www.gov.uk/maximum-weekly-working-hours) the weekly limit, averaged over 17 weeks; opting out
- [Penalties for employing illegal workers (GOV.UK)](https://www.gov.uk/penalties-for-employing-illegal-workers) up to £60,000 per worker
- [Register as an employer (GOV.UK)](https://www.gov.uk/register-employer) before the first payday
- [Employers' liability insurance (GOV.UK)](https://www.gov.uk/employers-liability-insurance) at least £5 million from the day you become an employer
- [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) section 8.2, register of booking and dispatch staff and basic DBS checks
- [DBS reduces fees for checks and Update Service from 5 October 2026 (GOV.UK)](https://www.gov.uk/government/news/dbs-reduces-fees-for-checks-and-update-service-from-5-october-2026) basic check £20

Dispatch AI is a trading name of CABO TECH SOLUTION AI LTD, registered in England and Wales, company no. 16255667.