Taxi Driver Online

Driver loses taxi licence after failing to report speeding offences

https://www.devonlive.com/news/devon-ne ... er-3612847

Torbay Council’s licensing sub-committee revoked John Cree’s private hire and hackney carriage licence after a hearing

A driver has had his taxi licence withdrawn after failing to report three speeding offences.

Torbay Council’s licensing sub-committee revoked John Robert Cree’s private hire and hackney carriage licence after a hearing.

Councillors heard Mr Cree failed to notify the authority of the three offences which happened within a fortnight in February and March this year.

The offences led to nine penalty points being put on his licence and were discovered during a routine check of DVLA records by the council’s licensing team in October.

The authority’s taxi licensing policy states offences including speeding have to be reported by licence holders within five working days.

Mr Cree told the sub-committee one offence was for driving at 57mph in a 50mph limit when it reduced from 70mph on the motorway as he returned from Bristol, and he was “just going with the traffic”.

The other two were for breaking the 30mph area in Newton Road, Torquay, near his home.

He said he was caught at 36mph in a non-residential area when the reduction from a previous 40mph limit “slipped my mind”.

Mr Cree said he had not been driving a taxi for two and a half years, but wanted to keep his licence and renew it next year so he could resume the work if he wanted.

He said he was doing other work at the moment but wanted to keep the option to drive a taxi which was better for him when health problems with his back recurred.

Mr Cree said he was not working and was alone in the car at the time of each speeding offence.

He said he had never had a complaint or driving offence in the 10 years he had worked as a taxi driver.

He failed to tell the licensing authority because he had not been working as a driver for some time. “All I would say is, out of sight, out of mind,” he told the hearing.

Sub-committee chair Cllr Vic Ellery announced the decision to revoke Mr Cree’s dual licence with immediate effect.

Not sure if that was a bit or harsh or not.

Yes getting nine points in such a small space of time is not on, but wouldn't it have been better to get him to do a taxi driving assessment before re-licencing.

That might have helped society a bit too.

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IDFIMH