Taxi Driver Online

Good thinking.

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Grandad,

Its obvious your licensing officer does not have a clue what he's doing, so I would only ever ask him anything in writing,so he can't change his mind and deny things. You can get a copy of the minutes of your meeting,where the questions were asked in front of others? So check these minutes and make sure that everything you asked is recorded in them? If not insist they are as it is not a true record of the meeting? You will then be able to pass this information on to the ombudsman,he will also require your email correspondence,this is further proof you have tried to get the information, he will need to know you have tried everything to get the information required.
You should normally make your complaint within 12 months of realising that the council has done something wrong. But as soon as possible? The ombudsman Has the same powers as the High Court to obtain information and documents. So when your happy you have tried everything,and got all your replies you should get in touch with the ombudsman? You can do it online.

This is the latest email I have sent to the complaints department. I have also copied the Chief Executive in the email.

Dear sir or madam,
I wish to make a complaint about the way the licensing department has handled the increase in fees that came into force on April 1st 2013.
I believe that the way in which the fees were increased was unlawful because the correct procedure as laid out in the local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) act 1976 section 70 were not followed. Paragraph 5 of the act states that
"If objection is duly made as aforesaid and is not withdrawn, the district council
shall set a further date, not later than two months after the first specified date, on
which the variation shall come into force with or without modification as decided by
the district council after consideration of the objections."
The word Shall means Must not May or Maybe but Must.
So because the licensing department refuse to set a further date they are in breach of the act. Also despite asking for the information to enable me to work out the true costs for the licensing function, no usable information has been received. Furthermore it seems that the objections sent into the council were dismissed at a meeting between the Head of regulatory Function and the licensing officer without any elected member of the council present and with no minutes being taken. I believe that meetings to discuss matters like this should be open to the public but despite many people asking for details of the meeting none were informed of any such meeting.
I ask that the rises that were implemented on April 1st 2013 be suspended pending the outcome of this complaint.
Regards,

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Grandad,

Also ask when the Annual Statement of Accounts are available for public view?

A few tips when complaining

Ask for details of the complaints procedure and find out who will be handling your complaint.
Make sure to write ‘complaint’ at the top of your letter or email, so there can be no doubt.
Keep notes of any telephone calls about the complaint, including the name of the person you spoke to. This may be important later.

Don't forget the traffic commissioner you can object through them as well

really?

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Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin

Yes we did and won when sbc put the rates up

I think that's Scotland only skip

_________________
Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin

You couldn't make it up again. I have received an acknowledgement from the council re the complaint.
My complaint has been passed to the Head of Regulatory services for investigation. This is one of the people who I have complained about so it seems he will be investigating himself.

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Grandad,

That's good lets hope so,but I guess it's just there procedure ? Save all the info for the ombudsman:-)

I thought this might be of interest? Perhaps it should be posted?

Complaints about taxi and private hire vehicle licensing

This fact sheet is aimed at people who are concerned that the council is not taking appropriate action over issues relating to taxis and private hire vehicles and may be considering making a complaint to the Ombudsman.
I am unhappy with the way the council has handled my concerns about taxi or private hire vehicle licensing. Can the Ombudsman help me?

Yes, if you are complaining about the way the council has dealt with a complaint about a taxi driver or the driver of a private hire vehicle, even if you are the driver being complained about. However, we can’t overrule the council’s decision on whether or not to take action if it has followed the right procedures in reaching a decision. But, if you believe the council did something wrong in the way it investigated a complaint about a driver and can also show that it caused you problems, then you can complain to us and we can investigate. However, before doing so, we will consider whether the problems you have been caused are sufficient to warrant an investigation.
We can also investigate complaints about the way a council has dealt with issues such as fare increases and licence fees, or about delays in handling licence applications.
However, if you are complaining about the decision to refuse a licence, the imposition of a condition or the revocation of a licence, you have a right of appeal to a magistrates’ court which we would normally expect you to use.
How do I complain?

You should normally complain to the council first. Councils often have more than one stage in their complaints procedure and you will usually have to complete all stages before we will look at your complaint.
Then, if you are unhappy with the outcome, or the council is taking too long to look into the matter – we think 12 weeks is reasonable – you can complain to us.
You should normally make your complaint to us within 12 months of realising that the council has done something wrong.
To complain to the Ombudsman phone our helpline on 0300 061 0614 (8.30am to 5.00pm, Mondays to Fridays). You will be able to discuss your complaint with one of our advisers. You can text us on 0762 480 3014.
You can complete an online complaint form.
If you can consider my complaint what will the Ombudsman look for?

We consider whether the council has done something wrong in the way it has dealt with the matter you complain about and, if so, what effect this had and what problems it has caused for you. Some faults we might find are that the council:
dismissed your complaint without carrying out a proper investigation
did not give a driver an opportunity to comment on an allegation before issuing a written warning
took too long to deal with an application for a licence
took too long to make a decision on fare increases, or
failed to consult properly before making a decision to increase licence fees.
What happens if the Ombudsman finds that the council was at fault?

It depends on the fault and what the consequences are for you. However, we may suggest that the council apologises for any failings. In some circumstances, for instance when a delay has resulted in a loss of income, we may ask the council to pay compensation.
If the council has not investigated your complaint properly or has failed to consider evidence that it should have, we may suggest that the council reopens its own investigation with a view to rectifying any omissions.
Where a flawed investigation has resulted in a warning letter being issued, we may ask for the letter to be removed from a driver’s file.
We may also ask for compensation for the time, trouble or expense you have been put to in pursuing your complaint.
Where we find fault with the council’s procedures we will often recommend that the council introduces changes so that the same problem does not occur again in the future.
Examples of some complaints we have considered

Mr P, a licensed taxi driver, complained that the council issued him with a warning letter about his behaviour, following a complaint from a member of the public, without first obtaining his views. The council accepted that it had been wrong to do this, and that it had not followed its own procedures for dealing with such complaints. It apologised to Mr P and paid him £100 for the upset he had been caused.
Mr L complained about council’s decision to revoke a taxi licence he had held for 12 years. The council had advised Mr L that he could appeal against the decision to its licensing sub committee and that, if the committee upheld the decision to revoke his licence, he would have a right of appeal to the local magistrates’ court. We told Mr L his complaint was not for us as he had clearly been advised of his appeal rights.
Other sources of information

Taxi and private hire vehicle licensing: best practice guidance – document available from the Department for Transport www.gov.uk/government/organisations/dep ... -transport
Our fact sheets give some general information about the most common type of complaints we receive but they cannot cover every situation. If you are not sure whether we can look into your complaint, please phone 0300 061 0614.
The Local Government Ombudsmen provide a free, independent and impartial service. We consider complaints about the administrative actions of councils and some other authorities. We cannot question what a council has done simply because someone does not agree with it. If we find something has gone wrong, such as poor service, service failure, delay or bad advice and that a person has suffered as a result the Ombudsmen aim to get it put right by recommending a suitable remedy.

Well it was a lively meeting this morning. It seems that they just don't get this providing information bit. We did manage to extract a little information but it was like pulling teeth. They now say that the cost of taxi licensing is apportioned at 40% of the total licensing budget but they still insist that they do not keep records of the expenditure separately and that they don't need to. The could not give us any figures to back up the 40% claim. All we could get out of them was that they were doing us a favour by not asking for full cost recovery. When asked again about the information not being available they just said that they can't give what they don't have. I pointed out that maybe it was time to start collecting the information correctly and when they have it then they can put the fees up but they were having none of it. As for acting outside the act, there answer was if you don't like it take us to judicial review. I asked for a copy of the minutes of the meeting that considered the objections and was told that there were none and when I suggested that the act didn't allow for Civil Servants to act alone on objections I was told that they were not Civil servants but Council employees.


I bet this is not in the minutes of your meeting:-) make sure you get the names of all who attended

Great thread and lots of valuable info, though I am not sure what applies here in Scotland.

Here is our story so far.

Council put up all fees every year on 1st April and we didn't know why or when agreed

After asking questions since 2011 we find out it is increased by the same margin as all council charges agreed at the Budget meeting.
We point out this is not correct and are told that if all costs were added up it would be even higher, so don't push it.

Regardless we insisted.

By Nov 2012 License officer confirm that all figures were being produced and the Information would be in by Christmas, to be collated in time for March meeting of Licensing Committee.

Put back to May meeting.

On 1st April 2013 Council increased driver license to £216.32 for one year, plate to £485.64 for 3 yrs Booking office £687.90 for 3 yrs.

An ID badge on its own is £25.96

From reading this thread I think our next move must be to object and ask the questions that have been posted.

Any further advice appreciated.

That seems to be a standard scaremongering tactic and one that was said at the meeting this week with our council.
My answer is that if all costs are correctly accounted and the costs work out at more than anticipated, so be it but the important part is that they are correct.

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Grandad,