IoL - ALL THINGS LICENSING LATE RENEWALS OF LICENCES
Article by Mike Smith, Senior Specialist for Licensing and Community Safety at Guildford Borough Council and Vice-Chair of the Institute of Licensing South East Region.
Please note that this article represents my own views which are not presented as the views of the Institute of Licensing.
The Cartledge and Gedling decision reported on in January’s edition needs to be fully understood by both the trade and local authorities in order for the renewal process to work effectively.
The majority of licence renewals are relatively straightforward and are determined well ahead of expiration so as to allow a seamless transition from one licence period to another.
As widely reported, the above case concerned a pros- ecution of Mr Cartledge by Gedling Borough Council for driving a licensed vehicle in the short period between his renewal application being submitted and determined by the Council.
Mr Cartledge initially applied well before the expira- tion of his licence, however had not completed the Council’s required ‘safeguarding’ training, which was completed a couple of days before expiration of his licence and submitted to the Council. Gedling BC however did not determine his application until after expiry and subsequently prosecuted Mr Cartledge for driving whilst unlicensed in the period between expiration and ‘renewal’.
This was a successful appeal in the Crown Court by the driver against an earlier decision of the Magis- trates’ Court to convict him of driving without a
licence. As this was heard by the Crown Court, it is very much a decision based upon the circumstances of the individual case, rather than setting a precedent and clarification of the legal position, as a decision of the High Court or Court of Appeal creating stated ‘Case Law’ would.
There is already some case law concerning the ‘late renewal’ of a licence. Exeter v Sandal (2011) is a High Court decision which confirms that a licence could be renewed after it expired provided the application was made within a short time of expiry and there was a good reason for the delay.
This case concerned a hackney carriage proprietor whose licence expired and whose late renewal was refused on the basis that Exeter had a limit on licence plates, with the plate being allocated to another proprietor upon expiry. However, whilst an expired licence can be ‘renewed’ (if there is only a short delay with compelling reasons), this doesn’t give an entitle- ment to keep working if a licence has expired and a renewal application not made.
Most council’s will set out in their Licensing Policy that they require a licence holder to submit their renewal a certain number of working days before expiry. For councils, most renewals generally fall at the end of the month and as such this time allows for the processing of a large number of applications at peak times. Councils also vary in their procedures for renewal with some offering appointments and others allowing applications to be made at the drivers convenience with licences sent out or made available for collection.
Even if there is a short period between the application being made and determined, whether a driver rightly or wrongly continues working, it is uncommon for a council to go so far as to prosecute that individual.
EXPO PHTM SCHOOL HOLIDAY WEEK: Tue 31 May / Wed 1 Jun
78 FEBRUARY 2022
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