...FIT AND PROPER
GLASGOWTAXI DRIVER WHO CHARGED £25 FOR FOUR-MILE TRIP SUSPENDED
A taxi driver has been suspended after he switched off a meter and refused to let a couple leave his car in Glasgow. BBC News reports that Dharmindar Singh picked up the couple from Central Station and was due to take them to Bellahous- ton Park for the
Summer Sessions in August.
He said the journey would cost a flat rate of £25 and that it would be more expensive to turn on the meter.
Mr Singh claimed there was a “ misun- derstanding” on the location and said he did not charge for his mistake. The passengers
asked the driver if the meter could be switched on but he refused. When they arrived at the park - less than four miles away from the sta- tion - Mr Singh locked the doors until the £25 rate was paid. The customers wrote to Glasgow City Council’ s en-
STOKE PHV DRIVER DISQUALIFIED AFTER ILLEGAL FESTIVAL PICKUP
A private hire driver has been banned from driving after inadvertently pick- ing up two en- forcement officers at last year’s Down- load festival. The successful North West Leices- tershire District Council (NWLDC) prosecution comes after an operation at the music festival held at Donington Park which attracts around 80,000 people each year. Leicester Magis- trates’ Court heard that two members of the licensing team from NWLDC were at the final day of the festival on Sunday 16 June monitoring drivers and conducting test purchases. The two officers were approached by Nasar Hussain
and he pulled over in his PHV. Hussain gestured to the li- censing officers and asked them if they needed a taxi. The officers agreed and asked Hussain to pull over shortly after their journey began, where the driver was cau- tioned and advised of the plying for hire offence that had been committed. A private hire vehi- cle is not insured to carry passengers who don’t have a booking, making the offence a seri- ous matter and putting passengers at increased risk. Hussain, 31, from Stoke-on-Trent, and who was licensed by Stoke-on-Trent City Council, plead- ed guilty ahead of the hearing on Wednesday 18
FEBRUARY 2019
December. He was given six points on his driving licence which led to a disqualification from driving of six months due to points already accu- mulated. Hussain was also fined £240 and ordered to pay the council’s costs of £500 and a victim surcharge of £30. Councillor Andrew Woodman, Portfo- lio Holder for Community Ser- vices, said: “Our enforcement offi- cers regularly conduct test pur- chases at big events such as Download, but also in our town centres, and cases like this one show we won’t tolerate this of- fence. This driver has lost his driving licence as a result.”
forcement officers to say that they felt they had been taken advantage of because they were not local to the area.
Mr Singh also wrote a letter to officers saying there was confusion over the destination and that he had taken his passengers to Braehead Arena by mistake. The city council’s licensing and regu- latory committee met last month to
discuss Mr Singh’s case.
Members raised concerns that there was no mention of the mix-up in the original complaint. It was also brought to their attention that he was previ- ously suspended for overcrowding in his vehicle and overcharging. Mr Singh’s repre- sentative Mr Gor- don said: “My client feels like he was in the right. Despite being previously
suspended he has been a taxi driver for 15 years.” Cllr Alex Wilson said: “The two areas sound noth- ing alike. Most taxi drivers will know about the Summer Sessions. My main concern is that the driver turned off his meter. This should never hap- pen.” Following the dis- cussion, members agreed to suspend the licence for four months.
DRIVER CAUGHT IN STING AFTER MANCHESTER UNITED MATCH
A taxi driver has been prosecuted by Trafford Council after he was found to be breaking the law when he picked up passen- gers after a Manchester United match. Mosaraf Hossain, 54, a private hire driver licensed by Manchester City Council for the last five years, pleaded guilty to two charges and was fined £400 for driving without insurance and £133 for picking up a passenger without a booking. He was also ordered to pay prosecution costs of £625 and a vic-
tim surcharge of £40 - making a total of £1,198. He was also given six points on his driving licence. Mr Hossain was one of a number of drivers caught out as part of a licens- ing enforcement operation after the Manchester United home game versus Barcelona in April, 2019. He agreed to take two council enforcement staff, posing as cus- tomers, to Deans- gate for £15. The council ex- plained his insur- ance was invalidat- ed by the fact that the fare had not been booked via a licensed operator.
The council checks on that day were part of ongoing operations, in res- ponse to drivers illegally picking up passengers without going through the correct procedure on match days. Cllr Mike Freeman, Trafford Council’s cabinet member for public safety, said: “This is an expensive lesson for Mr Hossain, costing him nearly £1,200. PH drivers caught in this way face prosecution and will be referred to the council issu- ing their licence which means they also face the pros- pect of having their licence revoked.”
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