TAXI LAW EXPLAINED COVID19 – COMMON ISSUES AFFECTING THE TRADE


This article was supplied by: Stephen McCaffrey Head of Taxi Defence Barristers and Taxi Defence Scotland 020 7060 4773 www.taxidefencebarristers.co.uk


PHV to seek permission for alterations of this nature.


However, there are wider powers for licens- ing authorities to suspend, refuse of revoke vehicle licences on the basis of fitness; in particular, sections 60 (Suspension and revocation of vehicle licences) and 68 (Fit- ness of hackney carriages and private hire vehicles) of the Local Government (Miscel- laneous Provisions) Act 1976.


As the Covid-19 pandemic continues to affect the licensed hackney carriage and private hire trades, we look at some legal considerations of the most common issues facing the trade.


PARTITION SCREENS – LEGAL CONSIDERATIONS


Why protective screens?


Social distancing requirements will be part of everyday life for a considerable time to come. If licensed hackney carriages and PHVs want to trade, steps to adhere to Gov- ernment guidance will be critical.


However, there has to date not been any for- mal guidance from the Government on the requirement to provide a physical barrier of this type in licensed vehicles. Notwithstand- ing however, these screens would give the travelling public confidence using hackney carriages and PHVs and perhaps more importantly, protect licensed drivers.


The last point is particularly important because ONS statistics1


have shown that


hackney carriage and private hire drivers are at particularly high risk of contracting the coronavirus and unfortunately at partic- ularly high risk of succumbing to the virus.


Do you need permission to install a protective screen in your licensed vehicle?


As with everything in hackney carriage and private hire licensing, each licensing authority will have its own rules. However, it is very like- ly that every local authority will have some provisions in place to require proprietors of licensed HC or PHVs to seek permission for material changes to a licensed vehicle.


Law


There is no explicit legislation relating to the need for a proprietor of a licensed HC or


94


There is no legal precedence on the specific issue but the courts have previously ruled that the section 68 power is broad and could include the installation of protective screens without permission or poorly fitted screens, for example.


Aside from specifically licensing legislation, there will be other legal considerations. Any protective screen will need to comply with Construction and Use Regulations and general vehicle roadworthy rules.


Policy and conditions


Although there might not be any specific legal provisions in place, the requirement to seek permission fromyour licensing author- ity for material changes is likely to be contained in licensing policy and/or condi- tions.


In addition to specific licensing conditions, there will also be similar, but more general, provisions and requirements contained in licensing policies requiring proprietors to seek permission for the installation of pro- tective screens.


Model Byelaws for Hackney Carriages


It is also worth mentioning the relevance of the Model Byelaws for hackney carriages. The byelaws do not place any specific duty on a proprietor in respect of seeking per- mission; they do however contain a number of relevant considerations: • Section 3(a): The proprietor of a hackney carriage shall provide sufficientmeans by which any person in the carriage may communicate with the driver.


• Section 3(f): The proprietor of a hackney carriage shall cause the fittings and furni- ture generally to be kept in a clean condition, well maintained and in every way fit for public service.


• Section 4(e): the taximeter shall be so placed that all letters and figures on the


face thereof are at all times plainly visible to any person being conveyed in the car- riage, and for that purpose the letters and figures shall be capable of being suitably illuminated during any period of hiring


REFUSING FARES – IS A MASK ENOUGH? Refusing fares


Since the Government announced addition- al public health measures in England and Wales, there has been much debate about having to wear face coverings in hackney carriages and PHVs and whether this might be reasonable grounds for refusing a fare.


The issue of refusing fares is restricted to the use of hackney carriages more than it is for PHVs. This is because a private hire operator has the discretion to turn down a booking request whereas a HC plying for hire is expressly prohibited from doing so in law without reasonable excuse.


The question therefore in the context of the current pandemic is whether it is reasonable for a hackney carriage driver to refuse a fare if passengers are not wearing a mask.


Legislation S.53 of the Town Police Clauses Act 1847 (applies to both England & Wales) states in relation to hackney carriages:


“A driver of a hackney carriage standing at any of the stands for hackney carriages appointed by the commissioners, or in any street, who refuses or neglects, without rea- sonable excuse, to drive such carriage to any place within the prescribed distance, or the distance to be appointed by any byelaw of the commissioners, not exceeding the prescribed distance to which he is directed to drive by the person hiring or wishing to hire such carriage, shall for every such offence be liable to a penalty not exceeding level 2 on the standard scale.”


It is clear in law therefore that:


1. For HCs, journeys that start and end in the area where that driver is licensed (controlled district), a fare cannot be refused without reasonable excuse.


2. For HCs journeys that start in the con- trolled district but end outside of that area, a fare can be refused as there is no statutory duty on the driver to accept a booking outside of the controlled district.


JULY 2020


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