DaC's software department in the shape of Tom and Debbie Carter have sent the following update news for Call Sign readers...

Credit Card Bookings
Credit and debit card usage is on the rise at Dial-a-Cab. Between April and May, there was an increase in credit card usage of some 265% - an astonishing amount! Meanwhile,  Dial-a-Cab's IT department is striving to acquire additional card business with system enhancements that will broaden the range of accepted cards, while safeguarding against the unscrupulous.
   The first system enhancement is the authorising of card trips.  Currently, trips exceeding £50 for the total fare, gratuity and handling charge, require a bank authorisation code that is obtained by Call Centre dispatchers before the trip is completed. This code guarantees payment for the trip. It is not feasible for dispatchers to acquire authorisations for every card trip and yet there is no guarantee of payment without the authorisations.
   Therefore, COMING SOON... V6 will interface with the bank and obtain authorisations for all card trips.  This piece of software has been written by Tom and will start to  		DAC'S SOFTWARE UPDATE
V6 DEVOLOPMENTS
Tom and Debbie Carter
Tom and Debbie Carter

function when the whole fleet has been fitted with the new terminal - hopefully by the end of this month (July) or early next.
 The V6 bank interface has three stages. The first contact with the bank occurs when the cardholder books the trip. This contact will ensure the card has not expired, been stolen or that the holder's account is not lacking funds. 
The next bank contact occurs when the driver swipes the card. An estimated fare should be specified at that time and an authorisation or guarantee of payment will be obtained for that amount. So it's better to slightly over-estimate than to go under. The final authorisation is obtained for the actual fare, gratuity and handling charge when the trip is completed and cleared. The V6 interface to the bank will occur across ISDN lines with a response time of 1 to 5 seconds per request. Extra lines will be provided to ensure the benchmarked response time and provide backup for peak volumes and failures.
  

  Drivers will need to go to Roman Way for a 15 second upgrade which will allow them to accept credit cards gaining authorisation at source. That means that you will no longer have to take a copy of the credit card slip to DaC although you should keep your own copy for 6 months.

Trip Bookings Via The Internet
Another area undergoing enhancement is the booking of trips. Currently, booking a Dial-a-Cab trip requires the pickup address be specified with a V6 district, which is internally mapped to a V6 taxi zone.  Districts are unknown to the general public, but there is a one-to-one correlation of postal code prefix to V6 district. So the Internet and Call Centre bookings will soon allow postal codes to be specified in lieu of the unknown district. By removing the proprietary district from the bookings, the door is wide open for any member of the public to book a trip with Dial-a-Cab via a credit card and the Internet.

Tom and Debbie Carter
DaC Software,
Indiana, USA
LTI DONATE £5000 TOWARDS SICK CHILDREN'S DISNEY TRIP
October 4 to 6, 2002 will represent the ninth consecutive year that the Company of Hackney Carriage Drivers will be taking chronically and terminally ill children on their 'Magical Taxi Tour' from hospitals in and around the capital to the wonderful Disneyland Paris. Going along with the children are their families and carers.
  

 All the drivers, including many from Dial-a-Cab, give their time free and indeed without those volunteers, donations and sponsorship, the trip would never take place.

  One particularly generous gift came from London Taxis International, who kindly donated a cheque for £5000 towards the trip to a group from the CHCD who were touring LTI's Coventry factory at the time!The photo shows LEI Managing Director Peter Shillcock handing the cheque to a delighted Phil   Davis, Chairman of the trip's organising committee and to the Company's Master, Geoff Richards (far right of photo). Sitting in the taxi seat is an honorary member of the Company, the Finish Ambassador to the UK, Pertti Salolainen. Mr. Salolainen is the proud owner of two LTI FX4 taxis.
While making the presentation, Peter Shillcock said:
   "We are delighted once again to be supporting the Magical Taxi Tour which brings such great enjoyment into the lives of these children and their families. The event would not be possible without the commitment of the Company of Hackney Carriage Drivers and their members who give up their time to make the trip each year."
   As usual, Call Sign's Ken Crawford will be going and bringing readers photos and news from the trip.
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