Taxi Driver Online

Sex offenders and dangerous drivers from Coventry have applied to be taxi drivers

Convictions of possessing firearms, dangerous driving and assaults were on records of those living in the city applying to become taxi drivers
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Sex offenders and dangerous drivers are among the Coventry people who have applied to be taxi drivers in the last three years.

Just over 2,000 applications were made to drive the city’s taxis over a three-year period and between them the applicants had a total of 1,234 previous convictions.

Those crimes included making indecent pictures of children, indecent assault, dangerous driving, making threats to kill and false imprisonment.

Of those who applied between April 2014 and March 2015, 422 previous convictions were revealed on 89 of 723 applications.

Some of the applications may have been made more than once over the total three-year period which covers April 2012 to March 2015.

The figures, obtained through a Freedom of Information request, show that of those from Coventry applying for taxi licences in in that time, 86 had previous convictions for having no motor insurance, 30 for driving while disqualified, 47 for driving while over the limit and six for dangerous driving.

Other previous convictions revealed by the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) included 57 for assault occasioning actual bodily harm, one for making an indecent picture of a child and two for an indecent assault on women aged 16 and over.

There were also two convictions for indecent assault on girls aged under 16 and three more indecent assaults where the age was not specified.

Other convictions found included: theft, shoplifting, carrying a firearm in a public place and supplying a firearm to someone under 14, racially aggravated assault by beating, outraging public decency, child cruelty, false imprisonment, threats to kill and indecent exposure.

The DBS figures cover people from Coventry – not necessarily people applying to drive in Coventry.

Those who have applied to be taxi drivers are not necessarily granted licences - although local authorities can overlook previous offences.

In a separate freedom of information request Coventry City Council have looked at a sample of the 1,124 taxi drivers who hold a licence in the city.

From the 127 drivers checked, the council said that 23 have committed speeding offences, three have convictions for assault and one for careless driving.

There was also one spent conviction for dangerous driving and four offences coded as ‘other’.

All applicants for new or renewed hackney carriage or private hire licences must obtain a DBS check.

source: http://www.coventrytelegraph.net/news/c ... y-10905906

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