FIT AND PROPER... WORTHING TAXI DRIVER LOSES LICENCE FOR ‘INAPPROPRIATE BEHAVIOUR’ WITH FEMALE PASSENGER
Mohamed Alkhayat was at Worthing Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday, Feb- ruary 5, to appeal against his private hire driver’s licence being revoked on August 7 by Wor- thing Borough Council. The Worthing Her- ald reports that Magistrates Chair- man William Gib- bons dismissed the appeal. He said: “We feel both the stan- dard of driving and behaviour of Mr Alkhayat fell below the accepted stan- dards of a licensed
driver.” The court heard how Mr Alkhayat touch- ed a young woman’s leg during the jour- ney. Mr Gibbons said: “He claimed her leg was close to the gearbox. This isn’t accepted by the bench.” He was seen to kiss her hand without permission, Mr Gib- bons said, and tried to exchange phone numbers with her, which the chairman found ‘totally inap- propriate’. During another jour- ney from Gatwick Airport to Worthing,
Mohamed Alkhayat
CCTV footage show- ed Mr Alkhayat driv- ing while using his mobile phone and without a seat belt before picking up his passenger. His highest recorded speed was 85mph,
and he was seen driving with one hand on the wheel, the court heard. In an interview with Worthing Borough Council on August 6, Mr Alkhayat said he ‘felt more com- fortable’ with one hand on the wheel and admitted he was ‘overfriendly’ with the female pas- senger, Mr Gibbons said. He said ‘other incidents had been reported to Arrow Taxis that were not investigated fur- ther’. After the decision, Arrow Taxis com-
STOCKTON PHV DRIVER’S LICENCE SUSPENDED AFTER OUTBURST AT PARKING WARDEN
A taxi driver who was once banned from driving has now been suspend- ed for a foul- mouthed outburst at a parking war- den. TeessideLive reports that Middlesbrough Council has taken action after a com- plaint
from a
Stockton Council parking patrol offi- cer.
Details of the sus- pension of the private hire driver’s licence have been set out in newly re- leased council li- censing committee documents. The driver has not been identified fol- lowing the row, which took place on
72
November 5. Councillors heard that the parking officer alleged the driver used “foul and abusive” lan- guage towards them in a public place. The driver was inter- viewed by a li- censing enforce- ment officer on Dec- ember
17. He
claimed the parking warden mouthed the word “moth- er******” at him during the row, but the council said there was no evi- dence of this. The driver added he regretted the inci- dent and was ex- tremely remorseful. Bodycam video foot- age of the incident was also shown to
councillors. The meeting heard how the driver had received a warning in 2001 after a row over allowing a guide dog in his vehicle. He was sent on a driver improvement scheme in 2011 after racking up three speeding offences and using a mobile phone. The driver surren- dered his licence later that year after a further speeding offence led to a driving ban. He re-applied to get his licence back in 2013, which was refused, but was successful after a further application a year later.
Mi d d l e s b r o u g h Council suspended the driver’s private hire licence for four weeks after breach- ing its code of conduct. It said: “The com- mittee considered it was wholly unac- ceptable for a licensed driver to insult and swear at an official carrying out their duties which was also a clear breach of the driver’s conditions and his code of con- duct.”
Mmmm… With res- pect, does this council really believe that a person with such a previous record will reform his character after four weeks? – Ed.
mented: “This in- dividual was never actually employed by Arrow Taxi Group although did sub- contract taxi book- ings as a self- employed Worthing licensed driver. “Upon being in- formed of these incidents the driver was suspended from fulfilling any further booking through our booking agency. “Internal reports were produced based on our recorded data (vehicle GPS, driver activity etc.) and statements were obtained from all
individuals involved. We advised all par- ties to report the incident to Wor- thing Taxi Licensing and the local police station. “We contacted Wor- thing licensing auth- orities and provided all recorded evi- dence and incident reports with state- ments. “The driver in this instance has not received sub-con- tracted work from Arrow since and we are relieved that an appropriate conclu- sion has been reached.”
ELLESMERE PORT TAXI DRIVER FINED
An Ellesmere Port taxi driver has appeared at Chester Magistrates’ Court for breaking private hire rules. CheshireLive reports that Mohamed Dar- da, 44, broke the law by accepting an immediate booking in his private hire vehicle. The court heard how the driver had picked up two mem- bers of the public off the street in his Toyota Avensis and had then transport- ed them to Dares- bury. The council’s licens- ing team launched an investigation fol- lowing a report they received on the evening of the
event. It was later found that there was no prior booking in place when checks were made with his private hire opera- tor. The court heard how Mr Darda had lied in his initial interview but later revealed the truth. He pleaded guilty to all charges and was fined £261. He received six penalty points for invalidat- ing his insurance and was ordered to pay £85 costs and a victim surcharge of £32. The council’s Gener- al Licensing Sub- Committee will now review the licence held by Mr Darda.
MARCH 2020
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