FOI 25-003 Total Taxi Expenditure 2024
Freedom of Information Request
- Reference
- FOI 25-003 Total Taxi Expenditure 2024
- Request Date
- 01 Jan 2025
- Response Date
- 16 Jan 2025
- Information Requested
I wish to make a Freedom of Information Request the amount spent on taxis in 2024.
- Response
The Scottish Ambulance Service will always dispatch an ambulance for patients who require an ambulance intervention and/or monitoring on route to hospital.
Taxis are only arranged after clinical assessment through our Integrated Clinical Hub or clinicians at scene, who have identified that a patient requires further assessment at hospital, it is safe and appropriate for the patient to travel by this method and not necessary for an emergency ambulance to transport them to hospital.
Since January 2024, use of taxis to convey patients to hospital accounted to 0.7% of all incidents managed by the Scottish Ambulance Service.
The Scottish Ambulance Service’s total expenditure on taxi services during 2024 was £115,126.99.
The Taxi Contract line captures all fares paid in agreement to contracts with taxi companies; this line can include both staff and patient fares.
There is no way to separate the costs for patient and staff usage without assessing each journey which would be creating new information; this is not something authorities are obliged to do under FOISA 2002.
