Taxi Driver Online

Middlesbrough Council forced to apologise to Boro Taxis


A COUNCIL has been forced to apologise to one of the North-East’s biggest taxi companies after failing to properly administer taxi licences.

Middlesbrough Council has been reprimanded by the Local Government Ombudsman for not keeping adequate records about licence fees and for not providing crucial information on drivers to Boro Taxis.

It was investigated after a member of staff made a complaint.

Ombudsman Jane Martin said that Christine Bell, Boro Taxis' company secretary, was “understandably concerned” that she might be paying too much for her taxi licences.

She said: “The council will conduct a review of its fees and apologise to ‘Ms C’.

“The key point is the council cannot show the fees are appropriate to cover the cost of performing the service as it cannot show how it calculated the fees.

“The council is at fault for not keeping adequate records.”

The Ombudsman also ruled that the council’s practices with regard to licence renewal and updating a register of private hire driver details were “ineffective”.

But she added: “Although ‘Ms C’ is trying to ensure the efficient running of her company the council has no duty to provide ‘Ms C’ the information she wants in the form she used to request it.
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“The council will apologise to ‘Ms C’ for her anxiety and frustration.”

Ms Bell lodged a complaint after she discovered through a Freedom of Information request that the council could not demonstrate how it calculated its licence fees.

She said: “Local authorities have a duty to residents and businesses to conduct their operations in a fair, accountable and transparent way and Middlesbrough Council has failed to do this.

“Its poor handling of my legitimate concerns is appalling.”

Mohammed Bashir, owner of Boro Taxis, was also involved in a long-running battle with the council three years ago after a disagreement over access to the Morrisons supermarket at Berwick Hills.

A spokesman for Middlesbrough Council said: “We accept the Ombudsman's findings and can confirm that an independent review of taxi licensing fee structures is under way.

“This will be carried out in consultation with local operators and the final recommendations implemented in 2015/16.

“We are always keen to rectify any errors we find in our systems so are grateful to the complainant with regards to these issues and will be writing to apologise.”

The council has changed it procedures to ensure the register is updated regularly and has given assurances that information about driver suspensions will be passed on to operators where relevant.

The Ombudsman was satisfied with these actions and said the Council has improved its practices.

source: http://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/news/1 ... oro_Taxis/

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Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin

I have forwarded this article to our chair of Licensing and the head of regulatory services.

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Grandad,

mind you might be regarded as a RADICAL

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All posts by this contributor are made in a strictly personal capacity

I AM PROUD TO BE A CITIZEN NOBODY'S SUBJECT http://www.republic.org.u

F88K EM ALL WHAT GOES AROUND COMES AROUND

BOOZE BOOZE BOOZE

I would send it to your ombudsman.

They are supposed to be looking into the way that fees are calculated now. a report to the licensing committee is due in January. I gave them a copy of how Bournmouth calculate their fees as a guide. I will wait and see the report in January before Doing anything. I will of course copy the report to the forum.

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Grandad,

The Ombudsman’s final decision
Summary: The Council cannot show how it calculated the fees for its various taxi licences as it has not kept adequate records. As a holder of a Private Hire Operator Licence Mrs C is uncertain about whether the fees she pays are fair and appropriate. The Council will conduct a review of its fees and apologise to Mrs C.
The complaint
1. The complainant, who I will call Ms C, says the Council cannot show how it calculates each of the various taxi licensing fees. The Council does not know how the fees are calculated as they are based on historical data which the Council no longer has.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
2. The Ombudsman investigates complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word fault to refer to these. If there has been fault, the Ombudsman considers whether it has caused an injustice and if it has, she may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1))
3. If the Ombudsman is satisfied with a council’s actions or proposed actions, she can complete her investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(i))
How I considered this complaint
4. I considered information provided by Ms C and the Council. I considered the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976. I shared a draft of this statement with both parties and considered the responses.
What I found
5. Ms C works at a private hire taxi company. The company holds a Private Hire Operator Licence issued by the Council. Ms C questions the Council’s calculation of the cost of this licence.
6. The Council does not hold data to show how it originally calculated the fees for taxi licences. Since 2005/2006 the Council has increased the fees in line with inflation, some years were less than inflation, and there has been no increase since 2011/2012.
Section 70 of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976 says if the Council varies its fees it will publish the proposal in at least one local newspaper and have a notice in the Council office.
8. The Council has not confirmed whether it consulted on the increases in accordance with the law. However, the key point is the Council cannot show the fees are appropriate to cover the costs of performing the service as it cannot show how it calculated the fee. The Council is at fault for not keeping adequate records.
9. The Council has said it will review its taxi licensing fees, taking account of the views of the local industry. The Council will carry out the final recommendations from the review in 2015/2016. The Council could have taken this action sooner in response to Mrs C’s complaints, that would have avoided her time and trouble of having to complain to the Ombudsman.
10. There is a surplus in the taxi licensing account. The Council says this has mainly happened over the last few years because of savings in staffing costs, changes in working practices, and an increase in driver and vehicle licenses issued. As part of the review of fees the Council will decide what to do with the surplus.
11. Ms C is concerned that part of the taxi licence fee she is paying might be used towards the provision of other licensing services. The Council says fees generated by taxi licensing are kept in the taxi licensing budget and only used for the costs of administering that service. I have seen no evidence to support the taxi licensing fees are being used to fund other departments, the fact there is a surplus in the account evidences that money is remaining in that department’s account.
Agreed action
12. Mrs C is understandably concerned that she and others may be paying too much for their taxi licences, because the Council cannot show how it calculated the fees due to its poor record keeping. The Council will carry out a review of its taxi licensing fees, it will consult with the trade, and it will confirm what it will do with the surplus in the account.
13. I do not consider the Ombudsman can achieve anything further at this stage. We cannot know if Mrs C has overpaid over the last few years until the Council has completed its review. Therefore I do not know if the failure to show the calculation of its taxi licensing fees has caused Mrs C a financial injustice. If Mrs C is unhappy with the outcome of the Council’s review and what it decides to do with the surplus in the account, she can make a new complaint to the Council about that issue.
14. The Council will apologise to Mrs C at this stage for the uncertainty caused by its failure to hold adequate records to show the calculation of fees, and that had it taken action to review matters sooner her time and trouble in complaining could have been avoided.
Final decision
15. I have completed my investigation on the basis the Council has agreed to take satisfactory action. I do not consider the Ombudsman could achieve anything further at this stage. It is appropriate for the Council to conduct a review of its fees and consider what to do with the surplus in the account.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman