WORLDWIDE TAXI FOCUS from Singapore
12 WEEKS’ JAIL FOR COVID CABBIE WHO FERRIED PASSENGERS
A taxi driver from Singapore, who had been given a medical certificate (MC) for five days as he had symptoms that could indicate a Covid-19 infection, did not stay home but continued working. Ho Kieh Lueh, 66, was jailed for 12 weeks in November after he pleaded guilty to two charges under the Infectious Diseases Act. Deputy Public Prosecutor Jane Lim said Ho visited a surgery in July 2020, complaining of a sore throat and phlegm. The doctor diagnosed Ho with acute respiratory infection after examining him and told Ho he would be giving him a MC for five days and that he was required by law to stay at home during that period. The doctor also said he would refer Ho to take a swab test to check if he had Covid. Ho collected his medicine, but refused the MC or to go for a swab test. Later that day, the doctor notified the Ministry of Health that Ho refused to accept the MC. DPP Lim said that on that day and for the next four days, Ho continued driving the taxi and picking up numerous passengers despite having reason to believe that he might have contracted Covid-19. Ho asked the court for leniency. For each charge under the Infectious Diseases Act, Ho could have been jailed for up to six months, fined up to $10,000, or both.
from Tunisia
LATE CABBIE LEAVES FAMILY STRANDED IN TUNISIA COSTING £1000s
A family has been left “stranded” in Tunisia after a pre- booked taxi driver showed up an hour late meaning they missed their flight. Virginia Hobson, 41, said her daughter has missed GCSE resits and her son has missed university lectures. The mum-of-four has had to fork out an eye-watering
PHTM DECEMBER 2022
£2,500 on new flights and hotel rooms due to a simple case of bad timekeeping.
Mrs Hobson, from Bourne, Lincs, travelled to Hammamet in Tunisia with her husband and children with travel company Love Holidays. On Friday, October 28, the day before they were set to fly back, Mrs Hobson double-checked with the hotel when they were getting picked up. She was told 12.30pm, which would have given them plenty of time to make their 3.45pm flight. The next morning, it was pushed back to 1pm. Mrs Hobson thought that was “leaving it a bit fine” and worry started to set in when the driver was still nowhere to be seen at 1.15pm. She added: “We went to reception and they told us not to worry because the driver was on their way. This happened several times, and in the end, they turned up an hour late - at 2pm. The drive was an hour, so by the time we got there, the check-in desk had closed.” Love Holidays’ customer service line was closed until Monday, so a consultant got in touch with them through their live virtual chatrooms. “They said that because we’d missed the flight, there was nothing they could do about it,” Mrs Hobson said. “They just said ‘bye-bye’ and hung up the chat, leaving us high and dry in a Tunisian airport. You book a holiday through a company and you think you’re going to be protected. To be dumped at the airport and basically told you’re on your own is just awful.” The earliest flight home they could get was in three days’ time and the new flights cost more than £1,500. A last-minute room in another hotel near the airport also set them back a further £700. She said: “But that £2,500 is just the beginning. We’ve left our car at the airport and Love Holidays were the only one who could amend the parking times, but because our booking was ‘over,’ they said they couldn’t do anything. So we have no idea if our car will have been clamped and our dogs are stuck in kennels meaning more in fees.” She added: “The week’s holiday cost around £2,000 and for another couple of days, we’ve more than doubled that.” A spokesperson for Love Holidays said they were “sorry” to hear what Mrs Hobson had been through and would be reimbursing her for “any additional expenses”.
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