Quite a lot to unpack here, potentially.
For a start, it says he's specifically HC, but there's stuff about competing for business and reviews of his service on social media, so I'd guess he's maybe a one-man band HCD with a mobile number-based business.
Also stuff about plying for hire and ranking issues in his past. Not clear what, precisely, but presumably the plying for hire is out-of-area, or maybe there's a strictly enforced rule here about only plying for hire at official ranks, or something like that.
Anyway, I think he's lucky to get his licence back here, and he reminds me of the kind of 'banter' that my friend in the local takeway in St Andrews would have done on a habitual basis, although he obviously took it a bit further. Allegedly
On the other hand, in view of the "young woman's" reaction to it all here, you wonder how she even manages to leave the house. Presumably she doesn't go to any pubs or clubs, or whatever
Taxi driver licence restored after 'inappropriate banter' but 'no evidence' for grooming allegationhttps://www.gazettelive.co.uk/news/tees ... d-31019543Stockton Council's licensing committee decided the motorist was 'credible and convincing', with a large number of good referencesA driver has had a taxi licence suspension lifted after councillors found there was no evidence to support allegations of grooming against him.
Councillors on Stockton Council's licensing committee found the unnamed motorist was "credible and convincing" with a large number of good references. They felt he "overstepped the mark" in conversation but found this was an "isolated matter".
The driver's hackney carriage licence was suspended after a mother complained he had "groomed" her daughter, a vulnerable young adult, and had inappropriate conversations of a sexual nature while she was a passenger in his cab, say council documents. It was alleged he suggested "they should go on holiday together to Benidorm, that his friends had been to Benidorm on a stag do and had been to see a live sex show", according to minutes of a licensing committee meeting.
The taxi driver said in interview "with hindsight he had probably broken the customer taxi driver relationship protocol but denied that anything untoward had occurred". He said he suggested a group trip, but "this was never going to happen and this was just as a joke and banter".
It was also alleged the cabbie "suggested going to Newcastle for drinks and talked about running away together for a weekend", said "they would not tell anyone and that the police would be looking for them", that "they could get a room with separate beds" and made a comment about her nightwear. He denied making any such comments or suggestions.
Witness statements were taken from the woman and her mother, and the police were contacted. "However due to a lack of evidence the police would not be able to investigate further," say the minutes.
The committee saw part of a social media conversation with a relative of the woman, where the driver apologised and said he was "out of order". But he denied inappropriate conversations in interview.
'Dumbfounded'The committee heard the taxi driver previously sent the woman a social media friend request while driving. She "felt obliged to accept" and he later sent her a message asking whether she missed him, which she felt was inappropriate, and he later said he possibly sent this message but it was "for banter and a daft laugh".
The young woman could not come to the committee meeting, but gave a statement on how the matter had affected her life. Her mother gave evidence, saying she was "dumbfounded" by what her daughter told her and it kept her awake all night.
She said the alleged conversation made her daughter feel frightened and uncomfortable, it was "totally inappropriate" given her vulnerabilities and "she had never been exposed to this kind of 'banter'". She said her daughter was "petrified" of seeing the driver in the street and could not leave the house alone as a result.
The driver told the committee he felt his conversations with the young woman were simply "friendly banter", and he tried to lift her mood and bring her out of her shell. He "admitted suggesting that they go out together and get drunk together with their families", but "in reality this was never going to happen".
'Just wanted to have a laugh'He admitted "he did overstep the mark when describing the things that occurred on the stag do". But he was "gobsmacked" by the complaint, and denied any inappropriate comments, saying he just wanted to have a laugh with the passenger.
He said he did not know why the allegations were made, he thought "perhaps for attention", and said he had lost weight and been impacted financially by his suspension. He said the allegations against him were "ludicrous" and described himself as a reliable, honest and trustworthy driver who "went above and beyond" for customers.
Another anonymous taxi driver said the cabbie "claimed that he had 'crossed the line' with customers in their early twenties" and admitted inappropriate conversations and "'dalliances' with customers", the committee heard. In response, the driver denied having sex with passengers and said he believed these claims were "an attempt to sabotage his business as other drivers wanted to gain his customers, as he was a very popular taxi driver".
He brought 13 positive character references to the committee, along with his own letter, and councillors saw good customer reviews from social media and examples of care for his customers. They heard he was previously given written warnings or verbal advice over a plying for hire complaint, concerns over pick-up points and ranking, and a complaint of alleged racism via a Facebook post regarding another driver.
The minutes say: "The committee noted that there was no evidence to support the allegations made by the complainant and her daughter... The committee found [the driver] to be credible and convincing in his submissions, and felt that, although some of what he described as his 'banter' was inappropriate, the committee added weight to the large number of positive testimonials.
"The committee noted that [the driver] recognised that he had overstepped the mark in relation to some of his topics of conversation, but felt that this was an isolated matter, and a mistake that [he] would not make again having been through this investigation, suspension and committee process." They decided he was a "fit and proper person" and reinstated his hackney carriage driver's licence.
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