Can I Request a Female Driver?
Yes, you can request a female driver, and we arrange it where availability allows. What we will not do is guarantee it. We are a small operator, there is no pool of drivers waiting in reserve, and whether the request can be met comes down to one thing: whether that driver is already booked. Ask early and say it matters, and you will get a straight answer before you commit.
By JAX, New Forest Taxi Driver · Last reviewed · How we check this
Why people ask
People ask for all sorts of reasons and we do not need to know which one applies. A long motorway run alone before dawn. A religious or cultural preference. A previous experience somebody would rather not repeat. A teenager travelling on their own. A parent booking for an elderly relative.
None of those needs explaining to us, and we do not ask. Put the request in the booking and it is simply part of the job spec, like a child seat or a wheelchair.
What "availability" actually means here
There is no clever system behind this and no policy with rules in it. We are a small New Forest operator, not a city fleet with a filter in an app. The question is only ever whether the driver you are asking for already has a job at that hour.
Which means the answer is mostly decided by notice. A request made three weeks out for a Tuesday morning is usually straightforward. The same request made at nine the night before, for a 04:30 airport run in half term, frequently is not — not because anybody is unwilling, but because the diary is already full.
- Ask when you request the quote, not after you have accepted it. It affects whether we can take the job at all.
- Say if it is essential rather than preferred. Those are genuinely different bookings for us, and we will treat them differently.
- Early mornings and peak weeks are the hardest. Everything is tighter at 04:30 and in school holidays.
- Return legs need asking for separately. A request on the outbound journey does not automatically carry to the return — tell us if it applies to both.
What we will not do
We will not accept the booking, say nothing, and hope it works out. If we cannot meet the request we say so while you still have time to book elsewhere. An operator who promises this and then sends whoever is free has not done you a favour — they have taken away your choice at the point where you can no longer exercise it.
We also will not charge extra for it. It is a scheduling constraint, not an upgrade.
If the answer is no
You will get it in writing, with the quote, before anything is committed — the same way every other condition of a booking is confirmed. Sometimes a different time works when the original one does not, and if moving the pickup by an hour makes it possible we will say so rather than leaving you to guess.
Whatever is agreed, every driver who works for us is licensed by New Forest District Council and DBS checked. That is the baseline for every journey, not something attached to a particular request. The licence details are on our about page.
To ask, send the journey details through the quote form or call us — the numbers are on the contact page — and include the request with everything else. It is not an awkward thing to ask for and you will not be the first.
Can you guarantee a female driver?
No. We can often arrange it, and we will tell you before you book whether we can for your specific journey. A guarantee would be a promise we could not reliably keep.
Does it cost more?
No. It is a scheduling constraint, not a surcharge.
How much notice do you need?
As much as you can give. Weeks is comfortable, days is often workable, the night before for an early airport run usually is not.
Do I have to give a reason?
No. We do not ask and you do not need to explain.
Does the request cover the return journey too?
Only if you say so. Tell us whether it applies to one leg or both, because they may be covered by different drivers.
Get a written quote
Send your pickup address, date, time, passengers and luggage. You will receive a written quote with the exact fare — including any airport charge or out-of-hours supplement — before anything is booked.