Taxi Driver Online

Angry Derby taxi driver accuses council of making him jobless

https://www.derbytelegraph.co.uk/news/d ... s-10597408



A fuming Derby taxi driver has accused the council of making him jobless and taking his “life away” following a row over the condition of his car. Shameer Madarbakus has been a taxi driver for 20 years – but claims his job and future is in jeopardy after Derby City Council “suspended” his vehicle license.

The 47-year-old says he has been in dispute with council chiefs after he was told by the authority to do a sudden vehicle test on his 19-year-old Skoda Octavia – which he feels was not required.

The car failed the test with the council saying it didn’t meet its conditions. But the driver disputes his car is unfit for the roads and is awaiting response after supplying “evidence” to the council.

Mr Madarbakus, who has worked for Chad Cars and Albatross Cars, has blasted the local authority for removing his license and consequently making him unemployed.

Derby City Council said it could not comment on individual cases. But it said in a statement that vehicles over 15-years-old “are subject to an exceptional condition check”.

The driver claims his car has passed mandatory tests for safety standards twice a year but it failed an “out of the blue” exceptional test.

He said: “I’ve abided by their laws and done two-times a year testing. But the council still comes to me and says ‘cheers for that but you are out of business’.

“I’ve had my life taken away. I was happy and self-employed.

“The council is doing everything to get old cars off the road even though I’ve spent hundreds of pounds maintaining it to their high standards. It’s ready to drive as normal.”

The Alvaston resident says he is now “just getting by” through Universal Credit payments and a carer allowance to look after his ill mum.

But he claims getting another job is not straightforward due to his need for flexible hours to care for his mum and co-parent his child away from home. He says being a taxi driver was perfect for his lifestyle.

And Mr Madarbakus says his situation is further complicated by the city council’s rule that vehicles licensed for the first time by the authority must be less than five-years-old.

He added: “Derby City Council disgust me. To get a new taxi license in Derby I need a car less than five-years-old and you are looking at £15k to buy one, which I don’t have.”

The controversial five-year age limit restriction is under review following protests and petitions by dozens of private hire taxi drivers in recent months against the city council.

A spokesperson for Derby City Council said: “We do not comment on individual licensing cases.

“We understand that changes to vehicle standards and licensing requirements can have a significant impact on drivers and their livelihoods. However, the licensing committee has a responsibility to ensure that all licensed vehicles meet strict safety and condition standards to protect both drivers and passengers.

“Vehicles over 15-years-old are subject to an exceptional condition check to confirm they remain safe and roadworthy. Where a vehicle does not meet these standards, the licence may not be renewed.

“In line with the current policy, any vehicle being licensed for the first time as a taxi or private hire vehicle must be less than five-years-old at the date of application. This helps maintain a modern, efficient, and safe fleet for Derby’s travelling public.

“The council is considering changes to the five-year age policy. This was considered by the licensing committee in September and is now out for public consultation. Full details of the existing and proposed policies can be found on our website.”

Mr Madarbakus says he is considering applying for a taxi license with another local authority and is exploring what options are available.

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IDFIMH

Interesting case, particularly in view of the age of the car, and the never-ending debate about the age rule in Derby - I'm guessing the driver here isn't a fan

Unfortunately no details of the fail items here, nor any number plate or whatever, so can't check mileage etc via the MoT database...

And zero detail about why precisely it failed the test, and why it can't now be repaired to meet the required standard.

I wonder which other local authority that might be

Hint - even Wolves won't licence a 19-year-old car, so he'd have to get another one anyway.

Of course, he'd get away with an older car than Derby's spec for renewals if he did plate with Wolverhampton.

And I daresay some authorities might even plate his Octavia, but who knows what he's thinking?

Absolutely zero information in the piece about why the car failed the random check, but I'd guess he's not keen on advertising the fine details

I wonder if the vehicle would have passed a standard test, or was it condemned simply because it didn't conform to the 'exceptional condition' criterion for cars of that age

Presumably it's not capable of being repaired to meet the 'exceptional condition' standard, so it may be the latter

Of course, it may not be repairable to meet any standard, but who knows?

And I wonder if that's a genuine Tommy What's-his-name t-shirt?

Expect to pay something like £30-40 for something like that

About as much chance of me paying the likes of that for a t-shirt as putting a bet on a horse or getting a Netflix subscription

And there's around 30 comments on the Telegraph's website, and approximately zero sympathy for the driver

Was expecting a bit of that, but also comments about jobsworth councils, or similar. But nothing like that at all, for a change...

Of course, maybe 19-years-old is pushing it a bit for a car, even in the eyes of the most anti-council member of the public. And Derby's historically rust-bucket yellow HCs won't have done the trade's image much good in the eyes of the public - a 'taxi's' a 'taxi' from their point of view.

If you had checked the Derby licensing database, you will have seen the reg was AE56 NLA.

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IDFIMH

Yes, thanks, Sussex - did think about that, but had a feeling it might by a bit of a rabbit hole, but in fact by the standards of these things it's quite clear and straightforward

And I had assumed he wouldn't be on it anyway (since he doesn't have a licensed vehicle at present, presumably), but it's a fixed spreadsheet rather than a dynamic database (like Wolverhampton, say) and it says it's only updated every three months.

And they haven't got a date on the register anyway...except that it's kind of hidden away a bit in the filename - May 25, so it's actually a lot more than three months out of date

But which in a way is a good thing as regards finding the registration number for the MoT database...which, as think I recall after having a quick look last night, reveals nothing particularly remarkable, and the mileage is relatively modest (less than 180,000 when last MoTd) for a motor of that age in the trade.

https://www.derby.gov.uk/media/derbycit ... -may25.xls

And, on a slightly different note, could only see one WAV out of 779 PHVs in total

Shouldn't that be about 400 or something like that? (Or at least, that was more like the figure suggested by the TaxiPoint survey )

Interesting, too, that the DfT figures from about one year earlier show 706 total PHVs, so quite a substantial increase in 13 months or so

(Although just the one WAV back then as well...)

But I suppose the new age rule will make the stats quite fluid at the moment, and maybe that's one reason the register is so out of date. And, presumably, if the age rule stays in place the numbers might be quite fluid for some time as the new regime settles down, and cars fall out and maybe aren't replaced...