To consider a report of the fit and proper status of a Driver licensed by Torbay Council.

Members considered a report on the fit and proper status of the holder of a Torbay Council issued dual Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Driver’s Licence and Private Hire Vehicle Proprietor’s Licence.

The Licensing Officer presented the report which set out information that the holder of a Torbay Council issued Driver’s Licence had accumulated 9 DVLA penalty points arising from three separate speeding offences committed on 2 April 2024, 1 January 2026 and 8 May 2026.  Members also noted that the Respondent had failed to notify the Licensing Authority of any of the offences and had failed to provide a DVLA check code following repeated requests from Licensing Officers, resulting in his Driver’s Licence being suspended with immediate effect until the information was provided.

Members received oral representations from the Respondent.

Decision

That the Respondents Torbay Council Driver’s Licence be suspended for a period of three months taking effect following the statutory 21-day period, in accordance with Section 61(1)(b) of the Local Government (Miscellaneous) Provisions Act 1976.

In addition,

1.         Within three months the Respondent shall successfully undertake a RoSPA Defensive Driving Level 2 course, and produce written evidence of successful completion to Torbay Council’s Licensing Department; and

2.         That the Respondent shall also read and familiarises himself with the contents of Torbay Council’s Hackney Carriage (Taxi) and Private Hire Policyand that keep a copy of the Policy in the Licensed vehicle at all times when on duty as a Licensed Driver for future reference.

No action will be taken in respect of the Private Hire Vehicle Proprietor Licence.

Reasons for Decision

Having carefully considered all the written and oral representations before them, and the Taxi Policy, Statutory Guidance, IoL Guidance and Button on Taxi’s.  Members resolved that the appropriate and proportionate sanction was to suspend the Respondent’s Torbay Council Driver’s Licence for a period of three months, together with a requirement to successfully complete a RoSPA Defensive Driving Level 2 course and to familiarise himself with Torbay Council’s Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Licensing Policy.

In reaching their decision, Members were mindful that their primary responsibility was the protection of the travelling public and to determine whether the Respondent remained a fit and proper person to hold a Torbay Council Driver’s Licence.  Members carefully considered whether they would permit a person for whom they care, or any vulnerable person, to travel alone in a vehicle driven by the Respondent.  Whilst Members did not conclude that the Respondent should be permanently removed from the licensed trade, they determined that his conduct fell sufficiently below the standards expected of a professional Licensed Driver to warrant a period of suspension.

Members heard that the Respondent had accumulated nine DVLA penalty points arising from three separate speeding offences, and that he could not really explain how he had got them, he thought one was as a result of a disturbing customer but he could not really remember.  Members were concerned that none of those offences had been reported to the Licensing Authority despite the clear requirement within the conditions attached to his licence and Torbay Council’s Taxi Policy requiring Licensed Drivers to notify convictions and fixed penalty endorsements.

Members regarded the accumulation of nine penalty points by a professional driver as a serious matter.  Whilst they accepted that individual speeding offences may arise from lapses in concentration, the Respondent had accumulated three separate endorsements over a relatively short period.  Members considered this to demonstrate a pattern of behaviour that fell below the standards expected of a Licensed Driver responsible for transporting members of the public safely.

Members were especially concerned to note the Respondent’s repeated failure to engage with the Licensing Authority.  Members noted that the Licensing Team had made numerous attempts to obtain a DVLA check code as part of its routine compliance checks.  Despite repeated emails and subsequent attempts to contact him by telephone, the information was not provided until after the Respondent’s Licence had been suspended with immediate effect, although the suspension was removed shortly after as the check code was provided.

Members considered the Respondent’s explanation that he had missed emails, did not ordinarily answer unknown telephone numbers and had mistaken the Licensing Officer’s call for a sales call.  Whilst Members accepted this may explain one missed communication, they found it difficult to reconcile that explanation with the number of attempts made by the Licensing Authority to contact him.  Members were concerned that a Licensed Driver whose livelihood depended upon maintaining a Licence with the Council had failed to engage with important correspondence over an extended period.

Members also attached significant weight to the fact that the Respondent had renewed his Licence on multiple occasions and had repeatedly confirmed that he had read and understood Torbay Council’s Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Licensing Policy.  Members therefore found it difficult to accept that he was unaware of the requirement to report motoring convictions and endorsements.  The failure to notify any of the three offences, viewed alongside the lack of engagement with Licensing Officers, demonstrated a disregard for the responsibilities that accompany the privilege of holding a Driver’s Licence.  They were disappointed to hear that whilst the Respondent had held a Driving Licence for 28 years and been a taxi driver for 20 years, 10 of which had previously been in Manchester, that the last time he had read the Council Taxi Policy was 10 years ago.

Whilst Members acknowledged the Respondent’s long history within the taxi trade and noted the absence of complaints regarding passenger safety, Members were not persuaded that the Respondent fully appreciated the seriousness of repeatedly failing to comply with Licensing requirements and found his responses regarding the convictions, non-disclosure and correspondence to be insufficient mitigation.

Members accepted that there were no allegations involving dishonesty, safeguarding concerns, violence, passenger complaints or inappropriate behaviour towards members of the public, and did not consider the evidence before them justified revocation of the Licence.  However, the combination of three speeding offences, the complete failure to notify any of them, the repeated failure to engage with the Licensing Authority and the need for the Council to suspend his Licence before obtaining the required information represented a significant departure from the standards expected of a professional Licensed Driver.

Accordingly, Members concluded that a three-month suspension together with mandatory completion of a RoSPA Defensive Driving Level 2 course and a requirement to familiarise himself with the Council’s Taxi Policy was a reasonable, proportionate and necessary response to the circumstances of this case.  Members were satisfied that this approach balanced the overriding need to protect the public whilst providing the Respondent with an opportunity to demonstrate that he understands and can comply with the responsibilities placed upon Licensed Drivers.