Taxi firm FREE NOW joins Government vaccine push by offering £1 million in free taxi rides
Updated: Aug 17, 2021
Taxi firm FREE NOW has joined more of the country’s leading businesses from a variety of industries pledging their support for the UK’s COVID-19 vaccination programme by offering incentives to vaccinated customers.
Asda, lastminute.com, National Express, FREE NOW taxis and Better leisure centres will be offering discounts to people who get a COVID-19 vaccine, joining the national effort to protect the country as it continues its cautious return to normality.
The companies will be joining Uber, Bolt and Deliveroo, which committed last month to backing the vaccination programme by providing exclusive offers to those who have received a jab.
FREE NOW will provide up to £1 million in free taxi rides for over-18s attending their vaccine appointment each way until the end of September.
Health and Social Care Secretary, Sajid Javid, said: “It is fantastic to see more companies backing the phenomenal vaccine rollout and joining the public as they do everything they can to continue protecting their loved ones, themselves, their community and this country.
“This truly is a national effort and we would not be where we are today without the support of the NHS, volunteers, businesses and the people of the UK themselves as we continue to build the wall of defence through every jab given.
“With over 84,000 lives already saved and 23 million infections prevented by the vaccines, get the jab as soon as possible and take advantage of these excellent offers – whether that’s for taxi rides, gym passes, or trips away with family and friends.”
Mariusz Zabrocki, General Manager at FREE NOW, said: “From festivals to spending time with our loved ones the vaccine will restore many of the freedoms that have been limited or lost over the past two years in order to save lives and protect the NHS.
“Since the pandemic started FREE NOW has sought ways to play our part in the fight-back against the COVID-crisis from providing a way for drivers to still make a living at the height of lockdown, offering free transport to key workers, partnering with the NHS to deliver vaccines to the elderly vulnerable and giving away free PPE kits. We therefore thought it was the right thing for us to also support the UK's vaccination programme with our offer of up to £1m in free trips to and from vaccination centres.”
Teenagers within three months of turning 18 can now book their vaccine appointment online through the National Booking Service or by calling 119. Vaccination sites across the country are working hard to complete the rollout with more than 300 sites already offering the jab to 16 and 17 year olds, including GP teams who began vaccinating eligible teens last week.
Children aged 12 to 15 who are clinically vulnerable to COVID-19 or who live with adults who are at increased risk of serious illness from the virus are also being contacted by the NHS and invited for their vaccine.
The latest data from Public Health England (PHE) and Cambridge University shows that vaccines have saved around 84,600 lives as well as preventing 23.4 million infections and 66,900 hospitalisations in England up to 6 August.
Data from PHE also shows COVID-19 vaccines are highly effective against hospitalisation from the Delta (B.1.617.2) variant, the dominant strain in the UK. The analysis shows the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is 96% effective and the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine is 92% effective against hospitalisation after two doses.
Vaccines Minister Nadhim Zahawi said: “Over 70% of young people aged 18 to 29 have now had their first jab – another superb milestone in our historic vaccination programme.
"A big thank you to all the companies who are helping us to protect the country – I urge everyone to get the jab and get shopping with these excellent discounts.”
