Agenda item

To determine a Private Hire/Hackney Carriage Driver's application.

The Enforcement Officer gave a summary of the report.

The applicant previously held a private hire/hackney carriage driver’s licence

between 20 September 2012 and 20 August 2018, when it was revoked. This was because he contacted the Licensing Officer on 24 August 2018, and explained that he had been disqualified from driving for a period of six months by Colchester Magistrates Court under the ‘totting-up’ provisions. Should a driver re-apply for a licence, it cannot be re-instated if it has been revoked and no appeal was lodged.

The applicant’s solicitor Mr Schiller contacted the Council’s solicitor on 25 March

2019, and explained that Colchester Magistrates Court overturned the allegation of driving in excess of the speed limit. This now resulted in the applicant only having three penalty points on his DVLA driving licence.

The applicant attended the Council Offices on 03 April 2019, and completed

his enhanced DBS application form. He took a new group 2 medical on 04 April 2019, which he passed successfully.

B Drinkwater said the Magistrate’s decision to overturn the allegation of driving in excess of the speed limit had changed the applicant’s circumstances, as he had never then fallen below licensing standards.

The applicant confirmed the decision had been overturned on the basis of the signage on the road having been inappropriate.

At 12.45, the Committee retired to make its decision.

At 1.15, the Committee returned.

The decision was read to the applicant.

DECISION NOTICE –

The applicant’s application dated 25^th March 2019 is for a new Private Hire/Hackney Carriage Driver’s licence.  He has been previously licenced by UDC between September 2012 and August 2018, and if successful intends to resume driving under his operators’ licence trading as J and R Cars.

He is represented before us today by Mr Drinkwater.

The applicant’s licence was revoked by the Environmental Health Manager – Commercial under his delegated powers on 30 August 2018.   The revocation was with immediate effect under section 61(2B) Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976 and was because the applicant contacted the Licensing Officer on 24 August 2018, and explained that he had been disqualified from driving for a period of six months by Colchester Magistrates Court under the ‘totting-up’ provisions.  It was therefore illegal for him to drive at all.  The applicant subsequently surrendered his private hire/hackney carriage driver’s licence.

The applicant had the opportunity to appeal this revocation to the Magistrates Court within 21 days of the revocation, however, he chose not to exercise this option.  It would have been open to him to enter an appeal and ask for the hearing thereof to be adjourned pending the determination of his appeal against the substantive penalty to which he was subject.  He was at all material times in receipt of specialist legal advice so should have been made aware of this possibility. As he did not appeal, the effect of an appeal being to prolong the life of the licence, the licence no longer exists and cannot be re-instated by administrative means.

The driver’s solicitor Mr Schiller contacted the Council’s solicitor on 25 March 2019, and explained that Colchester Magistrates Court overturned the allegation of driving in excess of the speed limit.   This has now resulted in the driver only having three penalty points on his DVLA driving licence. Copies of this correspondence are included with the papers before us.

The driver attended the Council Offices on 03 April 2019, and completed his enhanced DBS application form.   The driver has also undergone a new group 2 medical on 04 April 2019, which he has passed successfully.

However, the fact remains that the driver does not meet Condition 11 of Appendix A to the Council’s Licensing Standards for Drivers, namely

“Not to have had a hackney carriage and/or private hire driver’s licence revoked within the last three years”.

The appellate process has now reduced the number of penalty points upon the driver’s DVLA licence to three, and these fall away next month.

We have read the papers before us and we have listened very carefully to what  both the driver and Mr Drinkwater have said. First and foremost, the legislation gives no power to reinstate a licence once surrendered and/or revoked. There was therefore no alternative open to the driver but to apply de novo for a fresh licence.  Secondly, in no way can Mr Cobden’s letter of 30^th August 2018 be construed as a promise to treat the driver as a special case. It would have been both unlawful and inappropriate for him to make such promises and we specifically find that he did not do so. Thirdly, at the date upon which that letter was written the driver had fallen below the Council’s Licensing Standards: he had accumulated twelve penalty points leading to his disqualification from driving under the totting up provisions. On 25^th March 2019 the case against him was dismissed because the CPS failed to produce the evidence necessary to make out their case to the requisite standard.

We are aware that the driver’s remaining points fall away next month and thereafter he will have a clean DVLA.  For this reason only we are prepared to grant him a new licence and he will receive the paperwork in due course.  We do not expect to see him before us ever again.