 | |
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| ASX: A2B | |
| Industry | Land transport |
| Founded | 1976 |
| Founder | Reg Kermode |
| Headquarters | , Australia |
Area served | Australia Europe United Kingdom |
Key people |
|
| Revenue | $147 million (2023) |
| $27 million (2023) | |
| Parent | ComfortDelGro Australia |
| Subsidiaries | 13cabs |
| Website | www.a2baustralia.com |
A2B Australia (formerly Cabcharge Australia) is an Australian based taxi operator.
Founded in 1976 by Reg Kermode, Cabcharge was listed on the Australian Securities Exchange in 1999. Its subsidiaries operate booking and dispatch services for taxis in Australia under the Taxi Networks and 13cabs brands.
Its activities have sometimes been controversial and it has faced strong criticism at times from inquiries and regulatory bodies, especially over its Cabcharge taxi payment system. The company was the subject of Federal Court proceedings in 2010 over alleged anti-competitive practices including predatory pricing activities.
It was heavily fined and paid a record high $15 million settlement for these behaviours. [1] The company is also facing accusations of profiteering for the 10% surcharge it imposes on taxi fares paid by a payment card and the matter was investigated by the Reserve Bank of Australia. [2]
The surcharge has been reduced by law to 5% in Victoria following recommendations made by the Taxi Industry Inquiry and a further review of the surcharge in that State may lead to the figure being set at well below 5%. [3] In December 2014 the surcharge was also reduced to 5% in New South Wales. As at November 2018, it operated 9.963 taxis.
The Cabcharge taxi payment system was established in 1976 to provide an alternative payment system to cash in the taxi industry. [4]
In January 2002, Cabcharge acquired Combined Communications Network to provide taxi booking and dispatch services in Sydney. Today, it provides taxi booking and dispatch services through Taxi Networks in New South Wales (Combined Communications Network [5] ) and 13cabs in Victoria. [6] Today, over 7,000 taxis operate on Cabcharge booking and dispatch networks in Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Newcastle. [7]
In March 2003 it acquired Black Cabs, Melbourne's second largest taxi company, to be followed by Newcastle Taxis and Melbourne's Arrow Taxis.
In 2001, Cabcharge formed a joint venture with Singapore-based DelGro Corporation (now ComfortDelGro) to form CityFleet Networks in the United Kingdom, in which Cabcharge held a 49% interest. [8] [9] In 2005, Cabcharge formed another joint venture company with ComfortDelGro to form ComfortDelGro Cabcharge (CDC) in Australia, in which Cabcharge held a 49% interest. CDC purchased Hillsbus and Westbus and later Blue Ribbon. In 2009, CDC purchased the Kefford Corporation in Victoria, and expanded by acquiring other bus operations. In February 2017, Cabcharge sold its shareholding to ComfortDelGro. [10] [11] [12]
In 2008, Cabcharge established EFT Solutions which develops payment system software for other clients, including major banks and retailers, as well as for the Cabcharge system.
In October 2018, it was announced the business would be rebranded as A2B Australia. [13] The motion to change the name change was passed by the shareholders at the company's annual general meeting in November 2018. [14]
In December 2023, A2B entered into a scheme of arrangement for ComfortDelGro Australia to purchase the business, subject to shareholder and regulatory approval. [15] On April 11, 2024, ComfortDelGro Australia announced that it had completed the purchase of A2B Australia. [16]
A2B Australia's principal activities include:
In June 2009, the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) began proceedings in the Federal Court of Australia against Cabcharge alleging that Cabcharge had breached the Trade Practices Act (TPA) by misusing its market power and entering into an agreement to substantially lessen competition. The action centered on Cabcharge's conduct in refusing to deal with competing suppliers to allow Cabcharge payments to be processed through EFTPOS terminals provided by rival companies and supplying taxi meters and fare updates at below actual cost or at no cost. [17]
On 24 September 2010, Cabcharge admitted to three contraventions of the TPA to settle the proceedings. The Federal Court approved the settlement, and declared that Cabcharge had breached the TPA by taking advantage of its substantial degree of power in the Australian markets for the supply of services to enable non-cash payments for taxi fares and charges by taxi passengers and non-cash instruments that could be used only for the payment of taxi fares and charges. The Court imposed the highest ever penalty for misuse of market power, imposing a fine of $15 million ($14 million in civil penalties and $1 million in costs). [17]
Cabcharge's former CEO Reg Kermode was the subject of a sustained campaign of criticism by Sydney Morning Herald journalist Linton Besser. Besser calls Kermode, "The Taxi Tsar". [18] Besser claims that Cabcharge and Reg Kermode "...along with the industry's other big players, continues to benefit from millions of dollars worth of free taxi plates issued to it by successive governments..." as a result of political and bureaucratic connections and favouritism stretching over a generation. [19] [20] [21]
ComfortDelGro Corporation Limited, commonly known as ComfortDelGro, is a multi-national transport group based in Singapore. It is listed on the Singapore Exchange and operates more than 40,000 vehicles across 12 countries. It was formed on 29 March 2003 through a merger of Singaporean land transport companies Comfort Group and DelGro Corporation.
Taxis of Singapore come in two main varieties. Traditional taxi companies offer flag down and call bookings and their drivers are hired employees of the company. Ridesharing companies allow bookings through a smartphone, allowing ease for passengers, these are mostly known as private hire vehicles (PHV). Their apps also allow the flexibility to work and pick up passengers with their own vehicle, be it owned or rented, provided the various requirements are met depending on the company.
CDC Victoria is a transport company which operates in Victoria and is a subsidiary of ComfortDelGro Australia. It was renamed from Kefford Corporation, which was acquired by ComfortDelGro Cabcharge in February 2009.
Westbus was an Australian bus and coach operator that operated bus services in Western Sydney from 1955 until October 2013. Founded by the Bosnjak family, it later became a subsidiary of National Express and later ComfortDelGro Cabcharge.
Hillsbus was an Australian bus company that operated services in the Hills District of Sydney. Founded in 2004 when National Express merged its Glenorie Bus Company and Westbus subsidiaries, it was later part of ComfortDelGro Australia. In early 2023, the Hillsbus brand was replaced by ComfortDelGro's CDC NSW brand.
ComfortDelGro Australia is a major Australian public transport company and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Singapore-listed company ComfortDelGro. Founded in October 2005 as ComfortDelGro Cabcharge, a joint venture between ComfortDelGro (51%) and Australian-listed Cabcharge (49%), it became fully owned by ComfortDelGro in 2017. It operates public transport, taxi and patient transport services nationwide across Australia, except in the states of Tasmania and South Australia.
The Cabcharge account payment system was established in 1976 to provide taxi passengers a way to pay for taxi fares by non-cash means. The payment system is owned and operated by A2B Australia, part of ComfortDelGro. In the UK and Singapore, Cabcharge is operated by other subsidiaries of ComfortDelGro.
Taxis in Australia are highly regulated by each Australian state and territory, with each state and territory having its own history and structure. In December 2014, there were 21,344 taxis in Australia. Taxis in Australia are required to be licensed and are typically required to operate and charge on a fitted taximeter. Taxi fare rates are set by State or Territory governments. A vehicle without a meter is generally not considered to be a taxi, and may be described, for example, as a hire car, limousine, carpool, etc. Most taxis today are fueled by liquid petroleum gas. A2B Australia owns and operates the Cabcharge payment system, which covers 98% of taxis in Australia, and operates one of Australia's largest taxi networks.
CDC Geelong, formerly known as Benders Busways, is a bus company operating in Geelong, Victoria, Australia, with routes as well as charters. It is a subsidiary of CDC Victoria, in turn a subsidiary of ComfortDelGro Australia, in turn a subsidiary of Singapore-based ComfortDelGro.
CDC Canberra, formerly Qcity Transit, is an Australian bus operator based in Queanbeyan, New South Wales. It operates services from Queanbeyan to Canberra, Bungendore and Yass. It is a subsidiary of ComfortDelGro Australia.
Australian Competition and Consumer Commission v Baxter Healthcare Pty Ltd, (Baxter) was a decision of the High Court of Australia, which ruled on 29 August 2007 that Baxter Healthcare Proprietary Limited, a tenderer for various government contracts, was bound by the Trade Practices Act 1974 in its trade and commerce in tendering for government contracts. More generally, the case concerned the principles of derivative governmental immunity: whether the immunity of a government from a statute extends to third parties that conduct business with the government.
The Taxi Industry Inquiry or the Fels Inquiry was an inquiry commissioned in 2011 into the taxi industry and taxi services in Victoria, Australia, by the Taxi Services Commission. The inquiry was headed by Professor Allan Fels assisted by Dr David Cousins.
A surcharge, also known as checkout fee, is an extra fee charged by a merchant when receiving a payment by cheque, credit card, charge card or debit card which at least covers the cost to the merchant of accepting that means of payment, such as the merchant service fee imposed by a credit card company. Retailers generally incur higher costs when consumers choose to pay by credit card due to higher merchant service fees compared to traditional payment methods such as cash.
ACCC v Cabcharge Australia Ltd is a 2010 decision of the Federal Court of Australia brought by the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) against Cabcharge. In June 2009, the ACCC began proceedings in the Federal Court against Cabcharge alleging that it had breached section 46 of the Commonwealth Trade Practices Act (TPA) by misusing its market power and entering into an agreement to substantially lessen competition. The action alleged predatory pricing by Cabcharge and centred on Cabcharge's conduct in refusing to deal with competing suppliers to allow Cabcharge payments to be processed through EFTPOS terminals provided by rival companies and supplying taxi meters and fare updates at below actual cost or at no cost.
CityFleet Networks, also known as CityFleet, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Singapore-based ComfortDelGro that operates coach services under the brand Westbus UK, as well as taxi services in a number of UK cities under the brands ComCab, CityFleet Business and Comfort Executive.
Hunter Valley Buses is an Australian bus operator who operates bus, coach and charter services in the Central Coast and Hunter regions of New South Wales. Previously known as Blue Ribbon, it was one of the first companies to be bought by ComfortDelGro Cabcharge in 2005, now ComfortDelGro Australia.
Reginald Lionel Kermode was an Australian businessman and taxicab operator most well known for founding Cabcharge in 1976.
CDC Ballarat, formerly known as Davis Bus Lines, is an Australian bus company operating in Ballarat, Victoria, Australia. It is a subsidiary of CDC Victoria, in turn a subsidiary of ComfortDelGro Australia, in turn a subsidiary of Singapore-based ComfortDelGro.
CDC NSW is a bus operator in New South Wales, Australia. It is an umbrella brand of ComfortDelGro Australia established in 2017 to cover the latter's New South Wales operations, some of which had been owned by ComfortDelGro since 2005. It was subsequently established as a legal entity (company) in 2019. Beginning from 2023, its Hillsbus, Forest Coach Lines and Blanch's Bus Company brands were phased out in favour of the CDC NSW brand.