Rogue taxi drivers caught in police sting op

Source: Evening Chronicle

BOGUS taxi drivers have been caught picking up city centre revellers in unlicensed cabs.

Five dodgy cabbies were banned from the streets of Newcastle when police and council officers teamed up to check scores of taxis on Saturday night.

Three of the drivers were suspended with immediate effect after their cars were found to have dangerous defects such as worn tyres, faulty lights and a split drive-shaft boot.

And two unlicensed drivers – people who were found to be operating as cabbies when they had no business to do so – now face prosecution.

The operation, codenamed Detour 5, also saw a number of drivers issued with official warnings, giving them five days to bring their cars up to scratch or further action would be taken.

Newcastle city centre neighbourhood beat manager PC Zoe Hingston, said the operation aimed to make sure that all taxis picking up customers in the city centre would get them home safely.

“During the operation, we found two people who were unlicensed but purporting to be taxi drivers and operating their vehicles as cabs,” she said. “People who do this are uninsured and potentially putting people’s lives at risk, and we just won’t tolerate it in Newcastle.”

Police stopped and checked a total of 76 taxis during the operation.

Of these, 38 were Newcastle Hackney carriages, 25 Newcastle private hire taxis and the remaining 13 were licensed by other authorities, namely Berwick, Northumberland, Durham and North Tyneside.

One private hire driver was reprimanded for picking up a fare without a booking.

And seven non-compliance notices were issued to drivers giving them five days to rectify defects.

Follow-up action will be taken with 10 private hire and six Hackney carriage owners, who were told to present insurance documents to the local authority.

Of the remaining 13 taxis from other authorities, six were found to be in contravention of required standards, with a number of vehicle information plates incorrectly displayed, together with lighting failures.

Northumbria Police also issued documents requiring drivers to present insurance details as well as issuing fixed penalty notices for those found to be exceeding the speed limit.

Operation Detour is a joint initiative between Northumbria Police’s City Centre Neighbourhood Policing Team and Newcastle City Council’s Taxi Licensing Department.

PC Hingston said: “This should act as a warning to others that these operations will continue and we will take action against unlicensed drivers. Not only are they putting the passengers at risk but they’re also taking business away from legitimate, hard-working taxi drivers in Newcastle.

“The public should be aware that a legitimate taxi is required to have a metal plate with licensing details fixed to the vehicle and the driver is required to have an identification card on display. They shouldn’t get into a taxi that doesn’t have these items.

“It should be reiterated that the vast majority of taxi drivers abide by the law, are reliable and trustworthy and offer a safe service to the public.

“It’s pivotal that people enjoying a night out get home safely, and operations such as this are targeted at the small percentage of drivers who are flouting regulations and road safety laws.”

Newcastle city council’s licensing manager Jonathan Bryce added: “We want Newcastle residents and visitors to the city to be confident and feel safe when they hail a taxi. Operations like this identify defects to our own fleet which require addressing as well as affording us the opportunity to stop and examine vehicles licensed outside the authority but operating in Newcastle. This has again proved very successful.”

Tagged as: bogus taxis, illegal taxis, taxi violations