Edinburgh cabbies being sued for refusing to pay airport pick-up charges face 'bankruptcy'https://www.edinburghlive.co.uk/news/ed ... g-20649237Paul McCall is one of 'at least 15' taxi drivers facing legal action for picking up passengers at Edinburgh Airport in the wrong zone - but he says they were just doing their job.
Image: Edinburgh LiveA capital cabbie has said taxi drivers fear "bankruptcy" after being taken to court for refusing to pay charge notices at Edinburgh Airport.
Paul McCall, who works for Central Taxis, says the charges - which are due to drivers picking up passengers in the drop-off zone - could amount to thousands and bankrupt drivers after one of the hardest years for the industry in the wake of the pandemic.
In a joint statement with his solicitor, he explained: "At least 15 taxi drivers are being forced to defend court proceedings raised against them at Edinburgh Sheriff Court by a company whose actions seek to comply with the directions of the airport operator, Edinburgh Airport Limited (EAL).
"The legal actions seek payment of tens of thousands of pounds worth of 'fines' imposed on taxi drivers simply for picking up desperate passengers from Edinburgh Airport’s drop-off zone.
"There are hundreds (perhaps thousands) of fines which are yet to feature in legal proceedings, but which are anticipated to form the basis of additional court actions in the event that some or all of the 15 current actions succeed."
Paul, who has been working two jobs to make ends meet following the Covid crisis, launched a fundraiser to ensure the first driver set to appear in court will have "a robust defence".
Describing it as a "test case", due to take place at the end of June, the taxi driver of over a decade says the decision will set a precedent for the other cases, including his own, which are to follow.
Under the current rules at Edinburgh Airport, most taxi drivers - aside from City Cabs who are the official taxi provider at Edinburgh Airport - can let passengers out in the drop-off zone opposite the terminal, or in the free long-stay car park, but must pick them up in the zone on the ground floor of the car park.
Prices for pick-up and drop-off zones start at £4 for the first ten minutes and go up in price the longer drivers are there.
New measures to crackdown on taxi touting in the drop-off zone at Edinburgh Airport were introduced in 2019. Cameras that track vehicle use and flow were installed to identify those taxi and private hire vehicles "illegally picking up passengers in the wrong area".
"It comes after an increase in touting, tailgating through the exit barriers and congestion", a spokesperson for Edinburgh Airport said at the time.
They added any drivers picking-up passengers in the drop off zone would receive a parking charge notice of £100 and that a private company would manage this for the airport.
Paul says frustrated drivers feel "Edinburgh Airport has changed their mind" after their services were needed during peak busy periods and have since been hit with pay charge notices.
"Many of those fined are being so only because they picked up passengers who had been directed to them by Airport staff who were desperately seeking to deal with the inadequate numbers of taxis at the Airport’s official rank during busy periods.
"They're now taking us to court to enforce us to pay and we have the solicitors involved at the moment. The airport would rather passengers stood there for two hours and were serviced by a very small number of taxis", he told Edinburgh Live.
Paul believes he and other drivers have not broken the rules after passengers approached them while waiting in queues.
He said: "We got told we weren't allowed to tout, so we didn't. Touting is basically getting out and saying 'taxi over here, taxi over here' - none of us did that, we just dropped off and half the time what happens is people waiting in the queue would walk around and ask if we were free.
"As an Edinburgh taxi driver, if your light is on and you're in Edinburgh boundaries, you cannot, under council rules, refuse a fare. If I don't pick them up I get pulled up at the cab office. So, effectively all we're doing is our job."
Expressing regret it has "reached this stage", an Edinburgh Airport spokesperson insisted that a number of drivers were illegally touting, which is why legal action is being brought against them to pay pick-up charges.
They said: "Regulations on the safe and proper use of the area were made clear to all firms, as was the introduction of enforcement measures to combat the unsafe and illegal practice of touting. We instructed a third party to manage this on our behalf and that company is bringing action.
"A number of drivers continued to act against these anti-touting measures despite being informed about them and it is unfortunate that the issue has reached this stage."
Speaking of the toll the legal action is taking on weary drivers, Paul said: "At the end of the day, we're just taxi drivers Covid has hit us and we're struggling.
"I'm doing two jobs and still trying to drive the taxi to pay the bills. Having this hanging over your head is just tough.
"I know it's affecting the other drivers as well, it's been on hold because the courts are on hold and we're asking 'what are we going to do about this', it's constantly on your mind that if we do lose, well we're all bankrupt. That's the long and short of it."
You can donate to Paul's fundraiser here.
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