VILE VICIOUS VANDALS
BRISTOL CABBIES FEEL LET DOWN BY POLICE AFTER 50 VEHICLES DAMAGED IN THE PAST MONTH
Taxi drivers in a Bristol area say they feel let down by police after claiming more than 50 vehicles have been damaged in the past month. The drivers claimed that vehicles are being targeted “every single day” around the BS5 and BS2 areas of East Bristol, mainly having windows smashed but also having registration plates stolen. Sharif Deria, the owner of JS Hire Bristol Ltd, told Bristol Live that Avon and Somerset Police is failing the community. He said that four of his vehicles have been damaged in recent weeks. “The level of anxiety that drivers now have when going to bed is beyond imagination, but police are not even bothering to investigate,” he said. “They just give you a crime reference number so you can go to your insurance. “You will be out of work for a couple of days while you are waiting for the repair and you will also have to pay the excess. And then it goes on your record of claims so your insurance goes up. “They are failing the whole community, not just taxi drivers. Police are not taking it seriously at all and I think it is discrimination. “If this crime was happening in a white area, there would be action immediately but because this is a largely immigrant community they are not listening. They are not even bothering to investigate.” Saif Hussain, chairman of Blue Taxis, said vehicles have been damaged for some time now but that it has got a lot worse in the past four months. He said that, in the past four weeks alone, 50 vehicles have been damaged. “It is
PHTM OCTOBER 2022
happening every single day,” he continued. “Just on Wednesday night, there were
four
vehicles damaged. “Drivers are not leaving valuables in their cars but they’re still being smashed. “Four cars have had their registration plates taken. We are only aware of them targeting taxis and PHVs. It’s having a big impact. It is at least £200 [to have a side window fixed], but a windscreen can be £300. Quite a lot of people have been hit twice now.”
Mr Hussain said that each driver has contacted the police but that, as far as he is aware, they have not come out on any occasion. They have now decided to contact their councillors as they felt the police was not listening, despite the impact on their livelihoods. “It feels they are at last starting to realise what is happening,” he added. “In some cases, if they had come out quicker, they would have caught the guys. The message that is being given at the moment is that there is no police action.” Jama Hussein, who has been a taxi driver since 2013, said he has had his vehicle targeted twice, including having his windscreen smashed at the end of August. The driver claimed that, in an incident earlier this month in Barton Hill, the offenders were confronted and they pulled a knife out. They smashed a taxi, Mr Hussein added. “We have dozens of CCTV in
Barton Hill but it is not making a difference
as the
police are not even checking it.” Patrick Masih - a taxi driver for 17 years - was also unhappy with the lack
of
police response. “This place [Barton House] is supposed to be safe as it has a gate,” he said. “If it happens
here, it can happen anywhere. They [the offenders] are getting encouraged because the police are not taking any action. I have not seen this problem in this scale before - they really need to act.” Saeed Ismael - who has driven a hackney carriage for 23 years - has been targeted twice. He said: “It’s about stealing, but I also think it’s a racial issue - we get a lot of hate crime as taxi drivers.” Sergeant Stuart King, from Avon & Somerset police said: “We recog- nise the impact such damage has on taxi drivers is significantly higher than other motorists, with their ability to earn reduced while repairs are carried out. We are increasing patrols during evenings and night to act as a deterrent and to provide reassurance to taxi drivers and wider community. “When reporting an incident we ask that cabbies tell the call handler the damaged vehicle is a taxi. We’d also ask all incidents are reported to us along with all instances of suspicious behaviour. The more information we have the better we can target our resources.”
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