Agenda item

To determine a private hire/hackney carriage driver’s licence.

The driver in relation to this item had not attended the hearing, although the case had already been deferred twice due to the driver’s non-attendance on 4 June and 16 July.  

The panel considered the Enforcement Officer’s report.

Members discussed whether the driver no longer met the Council’s licensing standards due to the six penalty points the driver had received for a single offence, and, subsequently, whether the driver remained a ‘fit and proper’ person to retain his licence. Members considered the driver’s previous Council caution and appearance before the Committee in November 2013, as well as his failure to notify the Council of his conviction in June 2017.

At 11.30, the panel retired to make its decision.

At 11.50, the panel returned.

The Chairman read out the decision.

Decision:

The application before the Panel today is for the suspension or revocation of the driver’s joint private hire/hackney carriage licence number PH/HC0748 dated autumn 2015, in accordance with S61 (1) (b) Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976.- any other reasonable cause. The three year licence is due to expire on 31st October 2018. The driver is also the holder of the private hire operator licence for a chauffeur service and is the proprietor of a private hire vehicle. He has been licensed by the Council since 2012 and we note that he has appeared before us on a previous occasion.

We have had the opportunity of reading the officer’s report in this case, a copy of which has been served on the driver, and we have also seen, as has he, the background documents annexed thereto.  They include:-

a.         Uttlesford District Council licensing standards for drivers.

b.         Email dated 17 May 2013 with a copy of “Taxichat” notifying changes to the Council’s licensing policies.

c.         Certificate of caution for the driver dated 26 October 2013.

d.         Minutes of Licensing and Environmental Health Committee dated 19 November 2013.

e.         Emails between the driver and the licensing department on 16 May 2016.

f.          Drivercheck of the driver’s DVLA records on 29 January 2018.

g.         Emails with the driver between 17-27 April 2018.

As part of the licensing department’s due diligence procedures, a check on the driver’s DVLA records on 29 January 2018 showed that he committed an SP50 offence (exceeding speed limit on a motorway) on 18 October 2015 for which he was convicted on 10 May 2016 receiving three penalty points. Further, he had again been convicted of an SP50 offence on 13 June 2017 occurring on 10 November 2016.   For this latter offence his licence was endorsed with a further six penalty points which means he now has a total of nine penalty points on his licence. The maximum penalty points for this offence is six penalty points.

As a result of receiving six penalty points for a single offence, the driver no longer meets the Council’s Licensing Standards for drivers. Paragraph 2 of Appendix A thereof states:

“No convictions or fixed penalty notices endorsed on a driver’s licence within the last three years where six or more points have been endorsed in respect of a single offence.”

Additionally, licensed drivers are required by condition 18c of Appendix G of the Standards to notify UDC in writing of:-

 “Any convictions, cautions or fixed penalty notices…within 7 days of the conviction, caution or the issue of a fixed penalty notice.”

We note the driver had contacted a member of the licensing department to  report his May 2016 conviction for which he had received three penalty points.   However, there is no record of the driver submitting a written report of the more serious conviction in June 2017.  

The driver was contacted on 17 April 2018 regarding the DVLA check and the consequences of the information contained therein, namely that he no longer met the licensing standards for drivers. He was also informed that he would need to appear before this Committee for consideration as to whether he remained a ‘fit and proper’ person.  The driver responded by claiming that he had notified the Council of the penalty points but has not provided proof of this.

The driver was invited to attend an informal meeting with the Enforcement Officer to discuss the matter. Instead, he sent in the following written submission:

I was traveling in a private capacity late one Sunday night on the M25. I allowed my speed to increase in excess of the 70 mph limit and activated a roadside camera. I received the letter requesting the details of the driver. I returned it. I then received the conditional offer to admit guilt. I signed it admitting guilt and sent it off. I received notification of the points and the fine. I duly paid the fine and notified the council of the conviction

We have read the papers before us and we have also read the statement and references the driver has put before us. This is the third time this matter has been in our list and after two deferrals to enable him to attend we are prepared to deal with this matter in his absence.  Every deferral extends the time for which the driver can continue to drive.

The primary function of this Committee is the protection of the public and we consider that we have no alternative but to revoke the driver’s licence under S61 (b) of the 1976 Act as he is no longer a fit and proper person to hold it.

There is a right of appeal against this decision which must be exercised within a period of 21 days and during this period the licence remains in force. The driver will receive a letter from the Legal Department explaining this.

We also note that he is the proprietor of a licensed private hire vehicle, a BMW 730 licence number 491.  The driver should bear in mind that once the revocation of his drivers’ licence becomes operative he will no longer be permitted to drive this vehicle and he should contact the Enforcement Team regarding this without delay.