MOBILITY MATTERS
DRIVER FINED FOR REFUSING GUIDE DOG AND OWNER IN EXETER
A taxi driver refused to pick up a disabled person from a care centre in Exeter last June because he had a dog with him. Mohammad Alam, 31, was called to the WESC Foundation on Topsham Road but when he saw the dog said he would not take it. The cab driver, who works for Apple Taxis, claimed dogs brought him out in a rash. But Magis- trates in Exeter were told he did not have an exemption cer- tificate based on an allergy and his actions were in breach of the Equal- ity Act 2010.
The defendant, from Exeter, was fined and told to pay costs of £316. He said he was sorry about what he had done but genuinely did have an allergy. He pleaded guilty to failing to carry out a booking for a dis- abled person accom- panied by a dog. Magistrates were told the taxi firm had accepted a booking from the centre which had a contract with Apple but when Alam turned up he re- fused to take the dog, saying he had a medical condition. A new cab was ord- ered and arrived 20
minutes later. Alam has now been given an exemption certificate by the council. Exeter City Council asked for costs of £1,934. Magistrates queried the amount as there had been a guilty plea. Usually the Crown Prosecu- tion Service would ask for costs of £85 in a criminal case. Scott Horner, prose- cuting for Exeter City Council, admit- ted the costs may seem alarming but at lot of work had gone into preparing the case and the majority of the bill would fall on rate payers in the city.
ASHFORD DRIVERS PROSECUTED FOR REFUSING GUIDE DOGS
Two taxi drivers have been success- fully prosecuted by Ashford Borough Council for refusing to take a visually impaired passenger and their assistance dog. On the evening of 21 March 2019 outside the town’s railway station, the first taxi driver Jamshed Nasir refused to carry the passenger who was accompanied by their assistance dog. This was quickly fol- lowed by a refusal by another taxi driv- er, Kemal Yalcin. The refusals left the pas- senger struggling to get home. After an investiga-
tion, the council’s licensing team pros- ecuted the drivers under the Equality Act 2010 and last month at Folkestone Magistrates’ Court both defendants were found guilty. They had both denied the offence and the matter had gone to a full trial. In summing up, the Judge commented that the taxi drivers had knowingly turn- ed the passenger away. Parliament’s intention was to stop what was hap- pening, to prevent disabled people being told to go to someone else down the cab rank - to
interpret the Act any other way would “drive a coach and horses” through the inten- tion of Parliament when they drafted the Equality Act. Yalcin was fined £180, ordered to pay £30 victim sur- charge and costs of £1,200. Nasir was fined £270, ordered to pay a £30 victim surcharge and costs of £1,200. Both drivers also had their HC and PH driver’s licences re- voked by the council at a prior hearing. They are not appeal- ing the council’s decision to revoke their licences.
‘CAB CURFEW’ FOR WHEELCHAIR USERS IN HARROGATE
A charity is warning of a night-time ‘cab curfew’ for wheel- chair users in Har- rogate. According to Stray- FM, Disability Action Yorkshire claims some wheelchair users can’t get a taxi after 5pm. The char- ity says that the situation has wors- ened since the New Year, leaving wheel- chair users unable to get around. It says wheelchair accessible taxis used to be bookable days before a journey. But it was told by local cab firms this was no longer possi- ble, and bookings could only be made on the day and only
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up to 5pm. Chief executive of the charity, Jackie Snape, was to speak to elected members of the council to ask them to address the issue. She has also met with Harrogate and Knaresborough MP Andrew Jones. Jackie Snape said: “The lack of wheel- chair accessible taxis in Harrogate has be- come intolerable and the council needs to act. Our customers are now living under a ‘cab curfew’ through no fault of their own. “Wheelchair users in the town are being discriminated ag- ainst. It’s not just our customers who are
being affected, it’s everyone who uses a wheelchair and needs the use of taxis. We have been told that taxi firms will take wheelchair bookings for long- distance journeys in the evening, but not for short trips. We can’t continue like this. It’s not fair on our customers and should not be hap- pening in this day and age. “We have commis- sioned a study to assess the provision of WAVs in the Har- rogate area and a report outlining the options available will be considered by the licensing com- mittee on 11 March.”
MARCH 2020
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