Section 37A of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (“the 1995 Act”) imposes a duty on licensed private hire vehicle drivers and operators in relation to the carriage, without additional charge, of an assistance dog when it accompanies a disabled person. It also provides that a private hire vehicle driver may be exempted from this obligation on medical grounds.

These Regulations, which apply to private hire vehicles, prescribe the form of the notice of exemption which must be displayed by an exempted driver and the manner of its display in the private hire vehicle.

The Regulations also prescribe the charities for the purposes of the definition of assistance dog in Section 37A(9) of the 1995 Act.

A Regulatory Impact Assessment has been produced and is available from the Driver and Vehicle Agency at www.dvani.gov.uk.