Taxi Driver Online

Cabbie wars: Minicab driver in 'first ever' conviction for touting

Sohail Masood put on a yellow high-vis jacket with 'Book a Cab Here' on the back and approached people at a train station, ahead of waiting black cab drivers

A minicab driver has been convicted of touting for passengers in what is believed to be the first case of its kind.

Sohail Masood, 34, put on a yellow high-vis jacket with 'Book a Cab Here' on the back and approached people at a train station, ahead of waiting black cab drivers.

A court heard he had already clashed with rival drivers outside the rail station in Milton Keynes, Bucks., on a previous occasion before he was arrested.

Masood, who owns Northants-based 'Starline Cabs', was found guilty of soliciting people for private vehicle hire.

It is believed to be the first time the Crown Prosecution Service has managed to secure a conviction for the charge, commonly known as 'taxi touting.'

Dad-of-two Masood, from Milton Keynes, told the city's magistrates: "The first time there was an incident between myself and taxi drivers there.

"The black cab drivers were not very happy about it. They were shouting and me and pushing me to try to stop me from what I was doing.

"I stayed calm and did not retaliate. I was just doing my job."

He said on that occasion police attended and calmed the situation down and told him to move on to diffuse the situation.

Masood insisted that he did not approach anyone and only booked 'taxis' for customers to him who approached him - as the council had told him he could legally do.

But prosecutor Matthew Knight said: "You wore a high visibility jacket that said, book your cab here'.

"Which means that your actions were enticing people to come to you and book their 'taxi' with your company."

Shiraz Rustom, defending, said Masood was a reputable businessman of good character.

He said: "Mr Masood faces losing his livelihood for something he made the effort to make several checks on about whether he would be breaking any laws. He believed his actions were within the law."

Masood was given an absolute discharge, meaning he faces no punishment because the magistrates said he had tried to find out if he would be acting within the law.

He was ordered to pay £150 court costs.

source: http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/cabbie-war ... st-4501169

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

StarLine Taxi Cab Service Milton Keynes:

Our company is fully licenced by South Northamptonshire Council as well as all our friendly drivers and cars. You are safe in our hands.

http://www.starlinecabs.co.uk/


Cross border merchants

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

Wasn't the problem at Milton Keynes Station?

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Grandad,

yes - and its still touting

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

But nothing to do with cross border hiring as suggested by yourself in what could be seen as a very clumsy attempt to back up your opposition to the deregulation bill changes.

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Grandad,

Rubbish - the bloke operates hackney carriages from South Northants and advertises as a MK provider - and he touts and he's now a criminal - if that's the type of person you want, then your deregulation bill is going to be great.

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

Perhaps the drivers on the rank should have just kicked the living [edited by admin] out of him.

That would have had the deterrent affect, plus saved the cost of a trial.

It has worked in the past.

The deregulation bill won't actually affect him because, as you point out, his is a Hackney company and not Private Hire.

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Grandad,

Yeah but you said;



whereas I don't think I mentioned the deregulation bill

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

Not by name but by implication.

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Grandad,

Yet another licensing department getting the law wrong.

The yellow high vis vest is used as a symbolic gesture to distract (external state) and disorientate (internal state) potential passengers and turn them into children (induced regression). Officialdom and enforcement: you take charge of the customers and direct them where to go to purchase a service.

Solicitation: the act of enticing a person to do something wrong.



The easy out...

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All animals are equal but some animals are more equal than others.
George Orwell, "Animal Farm"

The easy out... [/quote]

Yes, the licensing officer who told him it was lawful should have been on trial for dereliction of duty.

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