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Dead time and the approach: the cost nobody counts

They are the most expensive kilometres of your day, because the others pay for them.

3 questionsUpdated on August 13, 20261 min read

In this guide — 3 questions

01 / 03

What are empty kilometres for a private-hire driver?

Every kilometre driven with no passenger on board: reaching the customer, heading back to an area with demand, driving home at the end of a shift. They burn fuel, wear the vehicle and take time, but appear on no invoice.

02 / 03

How do you fold empty kilometres into your cost?

By carrying their cost on the billed kilometres alone. If 40% of your kilometres are not billed, your total costs spread over the remaining 60%. Mechanically, your cost per billed kilometre climbs by two thirds against your cost per kilometre driven.

On 45,000 annual kilometres with 40% empty, total costs of €19,800 give €0.44 per kilometre driven — but €0.73 per kilometre billed. The second figure is the one that decides.

03 / 03

Can you reduce the share of empty kilometres?

Partly, by working areas and hours rather than accepting everything. But it never reaches zero: reaching a customer is structurally unbilled. The goal is not to remove it, it is to know it and have your rate pay for it.

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In this guide