Taxi Driver Online

Not so many of these from Scotland.

And while it's normally PHDs down south, here it's an HCD and a rank job.

And I wouldn't think there would be too many similar scenarios in Ayshire, if you get my drift

But I'd guess there's a big factor here that's not mentioned in the piece - first it's an allergy, next it's simply a fear of dogs...

Quite a detailed narrative here, though. And as a rank driver in a mid-sized town it all seems more, er, relatable than the usual stuff.

Hardly ever see any assistance dogs here, though. But plenty of 'companion' dogs going to some of the caravan sites in summer, for example


Taxi driver refused hire to blind pensioner with guide dog

https://www.irvinetimes.com/news/258289 ... guide-dog/

A NORTH Ayrshire taxi driver who refused a hire to a blind pensioner and his guide dog has been suspended.

Abdulsalam Idlebi was found to be in breach of council policy on discrimination following the incident on Irvine's Bank Street.

He was handed a two-week suspension, which will take hold next month, following a meeting of the authority's licensing committee earlier this week.

The incident took place on November 26 last year when Mr Idlebi was parked at the front of the street's taxi rank.

Shortly after 8pm, he was approached by a 71-year-old man, his wife and his guide dog Lawrence, who were seeking a hire after shopping nearby.

The meeting was told that the man had been registered blind for 12 years and had got his trained service dog, which wears an identifying hi-vis, three years ago.

After approaching Mr Idlebi's car, the front passenger seat was opened and the man's wife opened the front passenger door and started to remove Lawrence's harness.

At this stage, the taxi driver stated: “I cannot take you. I am allergic to dogs".

The man told Mr Idlebi that this was illegal and he could not refuse, and his wife noticed that he was becoming agitated. To avoid an argument, they moved to the next taxi in line where there was no such problem.

The matter was then reported and all parties were later interviewed by North Ayrshire's civic licensing standards officer, Drew Robertson.

At this point, Mr Idlebi stated he recalled the incident and admitted he was not allergic to dogs but was frightened of them.

He was advised that any exemption for transporting service animals would require a letter from his GP, which he did not currently hold.

The licensing committee then heard further details of the incident from the complainants, stating that this was a common occurrence.

It was noted that, in the past, some drivers at the front of taxi ranks have 'driven round the block' to avoid taking the pair and Lawrence.

They said: “Every time we walk round that corner, we are thinking who is going to say no. Who’s not going to take us this time, because of the dog.

“That’s exactly how we feel every time we go for a taxi. They always say there’s a reason they can’t take the dog.

“I get frustrated, I’m just looking for a taxi to take me home. Not the hassle. It’s not right.”

Mr Idlebi stated he was flustered as the taxi he was driving was not his and the owner told him it was registered as pet-free.

The driver, who is originally from Syria but has lived in Scotland for the past nine years, also explained further how his fear of dogs arose.

He said: “I am so sorry and apologise about what happened. I didn’t notice any sign on the dog. They never told me it was a guide dog.

“If I knew they had a guide dog I would have served them, 100 per cent.

“I normally pick up another guy who has a guide dog. I have picked them up a couple of times.

“I get frightened from dogs because I have bad memories with them. I always ask them to keep it away from me, but I always serve them.”

Committee members then adjourned for discussions before it was decided to impose a 14-day suspension of Mr Idlebi's licence.

Chair, Councillor Eleanor Collier, added: “We’re very disappointed at what happened and that you put our constituents through such an experience of feeling unequal and not valued.

“It’s not good, it’s not what we want to see. We want everybody having equal access to all vehicles. We’ve got a zero tolerance on this.

“We don’t want to see you back. Next time, please check the status of the dog.”

And a good example here for anyone who thinks compliance and enforcement stuff is similar across the UK.

In some councils down south, he'd have been revoked and prosecuted

Instead, a slapped wrist.

And, of course, I'd guess there's no official consequences arising from the vast majority of similar refusals.

So even if you could compare enforcement stuff like this across different areas, how many actual incidents actually arise is anyone's guess, because most either won't be complained about officially, or any enforcement measures won't even get to this stage.

And a bit scary the way you can simply post the article and my comments into Google, and it provides an AI summary of it all. Just goes to show how easy it is to rehash and rearrange stuff into what doesn't look like the original piece, but basically just takes a couple of clicks to produce

If the same scenario outlined above happened in B&H, I can guarantee there would be a prosecution.

Frankly, I'm amazed that it didn't happen here.

_________________
IDFIMH

For what it's worth, a bit more detail in this alternative version


Taxi driver who refused to pick up guide dog and owner has licence suspended

https://news.stv.tv/west-central/taxi-d ... -suspended

The driver told the couple he was allergic to dogs but later admitted he was frightened of them

A taxi driver who refused to pick up a guide dog and his owners has had his licence suspended.

Abdulsalam Idlebi appeared before the North Ayrshire Licensing Committee on Wednesday after an allegation of discrimination by refusing to take a guide dog and his owners as a taxi hire, or refusing to undertake a hire in North Ayrshire without a reasonable explanation.

Licensing officer Drew Robertson said: “There was a failure to adhere to North Ayrshire policy on guide dogs or, without a reasonable explanation, failing to adhere to passenger hires.

“Mr Idlebi has lived here now for nine years and has held a licence since last January, with a renewal pending.

“There have been no previous complaints regarding him

“For the past 12 years, Mr McDonald, 71, has been registered blind and three years ago he got Laurence, a Standard Poodle-Labrador cross.

“Laurence is a working dog and guide dog, and his lead has an identifier saying he is a guide dog.”

The McDonalds and Laurence had finished shopping on the night in question and walked around the corner to the taxi rank and approached a blue Skoda.

Mr McDonald started removing the dog’s harness while his wife, Mary, opened the front passenger door. The driver said he could not take them as he was allergic to dogs, but Mr McDonald said that was illegal.

Then Mrs McDonald moved to the next taxi, where there was no such problem, and they went home.

A member of the public took a picture of the offender’s car.

The committee played a video which showed the driver turning them down.

Mr Robertson said that when the driver was interviewed, he later admitted he was not allergic to dogs but frightened of them, and he was asked to visit a GP if he wished for an exemption.

He apologised for the distress he had caused.

Guide dogs, the official said, were classed as medical aids.

The Licence holder must carry the dog and allow it to remain with the owner.

Mrs McDonald said: “We were walking around for a taxi, expecting to get home, and every time we walked around the corner, we thought ‘Who is not going to take us this time because of the dog?’. They always say there is a reason they cannot take the dog.

“Billy gets stressed, and he gets agitated, and that gets me agitated.”

Committee chair Eleanor Collier said: “It is very disappointing for this committee to hear this. We have a zero tolerance policy and have worked really hard on this issue since this committee was formed three and a half years ago. It is outrageous that you are not getting equal treatment.”

Mr Idlebi said: “This is the first time in this big room I am apologising for what happened. I said the car was registered pet-free with Streamline. I did not notice the sign on the dog; she never told me it was a guide dog.”

Cllr Collier said: “Not once did you get out of your car. The couple are older people, vulnerable. You declined the couple on a wet, dark night – you let them stand on the pavement. If you had got out of your car, you would have seen it was a guide dog. They were standing for some time.”

Mr Idlebi said: “I have picked up guide dogs before.”

Cllr Christina Larsen said: “You are being contradictory, you say you were frightened of dogs but have taken guide dogs before. There is no reason why you would not have seen Laurence wearing a high viz vest; there is a duty of care for you.

“Then you say your boss said the car was pet-free – you are making it up as you go along. These guide dogs, working dogs, are highly trained. You should have known the couple were standing about, and you did not get out when photos were being taken.

“Have you read the licensing conditions?

“We had for a period of time a number of taxi drivers coming before this committee because they refused to take working dogs, one of the reasons we did get was they ‘didn’t know’ and ‘they never told me’. That is unacceptable.

“We take this very seriously, and the committee will come down very hard on taxi drivers who do not obey the law and do not obey the rules.”

Cllr Larsen proposed suspending the licence for 14 days and this was seconded by Cllr Ronnie Stalker and unanimously agreed by the committee.

The licence was renewed, but it will be suspended from March 4 to March 18.

Cllr Collier added: “We are disappointed you put our constituents through such an experience of feeling of unequal and not valued. We don’t want to see you back.”

Mr Idlebi apologised again.