Taxi Driver Online

Four Torbay taxi drivers suspended

https://www.devonlive.com/news/devon-ne ... d-11115443

One driver was slammed for showing 'a lack of professionalism'

Four Torbay taxi drivers have had their licences suspended after councillors heard how two of them had been booked for speeding while the other two waited for fares outside designated ranks.

The first driver picked up three points for speeding in September 2023, three more for failing to comply with traffic lights in May 2024 and another three for speeding in September 2025.

They failed to notify the council of two of the offences and did not report the third within the required timescale.

The driver’s licence will be suspended for three months, during which they must complete an advanced driving course. If they complete the course in less than three months, the suspension will cease.

Members of torbay -council>Torbay Council’s regulatory sub-committee accepted that the offences were not deliberate and that each offence, taken individually, was relatively minor. The driver’s evidence and mitigation were ‘honest and credible’.

However, they said they were concerned by the pattern of repeated offending by a professional driver.

The second driver also collected nine points for speeding - in February 2024, January 2026 and February 2026 - and will also be suspended for three months, a period which could be reduced if the advanced driving course is completed quickly.

According to the minutes of the meeting, the driver accepted full responsibility for the offences and has since fitted a speed limiter to their vehicle. Members found them to be ‘open, honest and genuinely apologetic’.

The third driver had been seen three times on CCTV parking outside a designated taxi rank - known as over-ranking - and will be suspended for a month. The driver said the incidents had happened at a quiet time when space on the rank was limited.

Councillors said the conduct showed a lack of professionalism.

The fourth case involved a driver who had parked outside the designated rank in Vaughan Road, Torquay despite being warned not to. Their licence was also suspended for one month.

In each case the committee decided not to revoke the licences altogether.

That's big of them not to revoke the driver over one instance of over-ranking

Just a one month suspension instead

What, against the side of the car?

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IDFIMH

You have got to be f***ing joking.

Over-ranking can be a pain, but taking someone's livelihood away from them for a month? FFS.

How is he going to pay his bills?

Idiot councillors, idiot licensing officers, and yes, idiot driver, but let's get some proper perspective here.

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IDFIMH

Looks like one of the four didn't learn her lesson.

Torbay taxi driver stripped of licence 'in the interests of public safety'

https://www.devonlive.com/news/devon-ne ... e-11169644

A Torbay taxi driver has had her licence taken away ‘in the interests of public safety’ after complaints about her driving standards.

The driver, who has not been named, was one of four of the bay’s Hackney carriage licence holders to appear before a meeting of Torbay Council’s regulatory sub-committee.

Councillors heard that the driver had previously appeared before them in November last year when her licence was suspended for three months following a number of complaints.

There were 19 complaints in all at that time, which according to a council report included poor driving standards, sleeping in a licensed vehicle while on duty, failure to queue correctly on taxi ranks, refusing card payments and passengers, aggressive behaviour and poor attitude.

After completing mandatory driving and customer service training she went back on the road, but has since admitted an offence of driving without due care and attention following a crash in March this year. There have also been more complaints around driving standards and interactions with other licensed drivers.

According to the minutes of the licensing meeting, which was held without press or public in the room, ‘members considered that a professional licensed driver must be held to a higher standard than an ordinary motorist and viewed the incident as further evidence of poor driving standards’.

The driver told councillors that English was her ‘fourth language’, and that she had experienced stress arising from family circumstances. Driving a taxi was her sole source of income.

Members of the committee said they were sympathetic, but financial hardship was not a relevant consideration.

The minutes sum up: “Members concluded that the respondent’s regulatory history demonstrated a continuing pattern of poor judgement, disregard for licensing requirements and driving standards falling below those expected.

“They considered whether a further suspension could achieve the necessary objectives, but concluded that having already been afforded a significant opportunity to improve through a previous suspension and training, there was little confidence that a further period of suspension would result in any meaningful change.”

A driver who clocked up nine penalty points with three speeding offences received a formal written warning and was ordered to take a defensive driving course.

A driver who collected nine points for two speeding offences and one involving traffic lights was also given a formal written warning and ordered to complete the same course.

And a driver who collected nine points for three speeding offences within four months and failed to notify the council had his licence suspended for three months, with a similar order to take the defensive driving course.

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IDFIMH