Private driver, taxi or ride-hailing app: what's the difference?

Whatever the category, the operator must hold an operating licence, and each vehicle an identification sticker. The driver holds a certificate of competence, which requires, among other things, a record free of certain criminal convictions, a driving licence held for at least two years and a basic command of French or Dutch. Vehicles may not be more than seven years old from the date of first registration.

For customers, several safeguards are worth knowing about. Fares must be made known to you before booking or, if you have not booked, before the ride begins, and the operator must give you an indication of the final amount. After each ride, the driver of a rank or street taxi hands you a receipt, even if you do not ask for one. Rides are recorded by a digital taximeter or, for a booked ride, by equivalent equipment.

This is a regional matter. In Flanders, where Brussels Airport and much of the outskirts are located, the Flemish Decree of 29 March 2019 on paid individual passenger transport applies; it too brought taxis and chauffeur-driven hire cars together within a single framework. Wallonia has its own regulations, based on a 2007 decree. The categories and detailed rules therefore do not necessarily match from one Region to another.

In practice, the applicable framework depends mainly on where the ride starts. Pending a cooperation agreement between the Regions, the Brussels ordinance allows a Flemish or Walloon operator to pick up a customer in Brussels without a Brussels licence, on three conditions: the ride was booked, the vehicle was not in Brussels when the booking was accepted and the destination is outside the Region. For travellers, the key thing is to book with an identifiable operator.

The acronym VTC (voiture de transport avec chauffeur), used in France for ride-hailing and private hire, comes from French law and has no equivalent in the Brussels regulations. In Brussels, a ride ordered through an app (Uber, Bolt…) counts as a street taxi, with the same obligations regarding licences, certificates and price information. The minimum fares for street taxis are in fact aligned with those of rank taxis booked in advance, except for top-end luxury services.

What really sets the services apart is how you book and pay. A rank taxi is taken from a rank or ordered, and its meter runs throughout the ride. An app shows a price before you order, which may vary with demand at the time. A private driver is booked ahead, usually for a specific vehicle class, with the amount known before you confirm and a driver who knows your schedule.

None of these services is better than the others in absolute terms. A rank taxi is still the most direct option for an unplanned journey from a rank, outside a station or a theatre. An app is handy for a spontaneous trip in the evening. A pre-booked driver has the edge as soon as timing is tight, the luggage piles up or you want to know the vehicle, the number of seats and the child seats in advance.

At Atemia, a private driver service based in Wemmel, you book online with at least three hours' notice, and the price is shown before you confirm; a chauffeur by the hour, the Prestige class and events are priced on quotation. Airport transfers include flight tracking and meeting travellers at the terminal. For a last-minute trip in town, a rank taxi will often be quicker to find.