A Pembrokeshire private hire firm has won permission to display small internal plates instead of standard external plates on its newly bought Chinese luxury car.
At the October 27 meeting of Pembrokeshire County Council’s licensing sub-committee, members were asked to consider an application by Ewan and Laura Rees operating as ‘VIP Wales’ in Crymych to display a small licence plate inside their private hire vehicle rather than the normal external plates.
Private hire vehicles normally display licence plates for “public safety and reassurance”, but councils can waive the requirement for chauffeur or executive hire vehicles rather than standard short-haul bookings.
A report for members said VIP Wales had been operating since 2019 and a previous vehicle had been granted the exemption, on the basis “that the vehicle in question was a private hire vehicle to be used mainly for executive-type chauffeur bespoke hire travel for tour purposes”.
The latest application covered a newly bought, licensed, Chery Tiggo, a luxury hybrid SUV made by Chinese manufacturer Chery Automobile.
In his business case, Mr Rees said: “VIP Wales is a specialist private tour company providing prebooked, bespoke tours and experiences for visitors to Pembrokeshire and West Wales.
“Our work is very different from conventional private hire or taxi work. We do not operate from taxi ranks, undertake street pick-ups or carry passengers who have not booked with us in advance.
“Our guests have pre-arranged itineraries and know in advance that they are travelling with VIP Wales. They are often collected from hotels and other accommodation providers, cruise ships or agreed meeting points as part of a pre-booked private tour.
“The presentation of our vehicle is also an important part of the service we provide. We work with high-end accommodation providers, tour operators and international visitors, and the vehicle forms part of the overall private touring experience. For this reason, we feel that displaying the large external private hire plates is not appropriate for the type of work we undertake.”
At the meeting, he said the Tiggo had heated and ventilated leather seats and a large customised screen for passengers, adding to its “chauffeur-style” experience.
He stressed that the business had no plans to move into taxi work or airport runs and would stick to the approach outlined in the business case.
Members backed the call for the plates exemption.
The decision came as the council considered wider licensing changes, including tougher private hire operator duties and a minimum Euro 6 emissions standard for vehicles first licensed from January 2027.
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