skippy41 wrote:
:?: Our council in the Scottish Borders has introdused an age limit on cabs and that is 7 years, but if you have a car 6ys 11months and 30 days old and if it passes the test you can run it for another 3 years how daft is that, It should be 7 years from the date of first registration just to be fair to all owners who have broken the bank to get newer cars, By the way I have tryed to put a 1995 metro cab on and they said no way.
When you change your car,at any time (they only allow saloons or mpvs) we have to pay the full amount for the test that is £70. then an anual licence fee of £162. for that you get exactly the same test and paperwork as the £70 one, and yes we have argued why we have to pay £92 more for the same thing, usual council answers

mind you they are not very bright at the best of times like most councils in the uk.
Chalenge them under HUMAN RIGHTS ACT 1998 ARTICLE 1 OF THE FIRST PROTOCOL - PROTECTION OF PROPERTY
rights to run a business or economic interest connected to the running of a business
Although property has a wide meaning it covers only existing possessions and existing legal rights. For example, it covers the right to receive benefits under a pension scheme but not the right to inherit property at some point in the future. It would not cover the refusal to grant a licence but it might cover revocation or refusal to renew a licence.
In other words if a person is granted a llicence for a vehicle older than yours I recon a challenge could be made. An example of this is if a Licensing Authority grants a licence only on age of vehicle and a vehicle the same age as yours or older is granted a licence only on the fact that it has been registered as a PH prior to the cut off period could be a human rights issue in that you have the right to run a business and the economic interests connected to running that business and that such interests are being allowed to others but not you. If there is a rule saying that all vehicles of a certain age have to be off the rd then that would be okay but whilst others are allowed to have licences renewed against you that would be unfair. It has always been my argument that although licences are renewed from the renewal date they are in effect new licences for that term.
You could use argument that if you purchase a £59,000 rolls royce and it happens to be over 7 years by a day it would fail to be granted a licence set against a Lada that cost £300 that just so happens to have got a licence before its 7 Birthday (I don't know if you can get a 7 year old Lada still)
The age limit on vehicles is Council Spin unless there is a upper age limit ban. The spin is that they can say they have a policy to prevent old vehicles running about as PH when some big councils put this out but allow the vehicle to be kept registered as a Tax or private hire as long as it passes the test. So the moto is SPIN THE PUBLIC SPIN THEM ALL
Pickup