Taxi Driver Online

Shame of cherry-picking taxi drivers Mar 19 2007

by Mary Murtagh, Liverpool Echo

A RIP-OFF taxi driver has been stripped of his licence for cherry-picking fares.

It is the first time a rogue black cab driver has been taken off the city streets for ripping passengers off with inflated fares.

Police, Liverpool council and trading standards are cracking down on Hackney cab and private hire drivers who over-charge people in the city centre, mainly late at night, as they struggle to get home.

Now one rogue black cab driver has lost his livelihood through his greed with four others having their licence suspended for two weeks.

Over the last six months officials have taken part in a series of undercover stings watching rip-off taxi drivers at work.

They estimate that there are approximately 30 rogue black cab drivers out of 2,750 licensed city drivers.

With help from tip offs from the public and CCTV footage many of these drivers have been quizzed, and punished, over their behaviour at the taxi licensing panel.

Peter Jones, Liverpool’s Chamber of Commerce’s business crime direct manager, said: “This is an ongoing campaign to crack down on this behaviour. Cherry picking fares could be one of the reasons why there is a downturn in the number of people coming in to town on the weekend.

“We get lots of anecdotal evidence about this behaviour but we need passenger to get these drivers’ cab number so something can be done about it.”

The average takings for a city taxi driver are approximately £500 a week.

During the early hours of Sunday morning cab drivers can make up to £70 an hour taking revellers home.

City black cab drivers are obliged to accept any fare, however short or long, if they are displaying their ‘for hire’ sign and the fare is no more than four miles over the city boundary.

The Transport and General Workers union backs the move to root out rogue cabbies because they give the vast majority of legitimate drivers a bad reputation.

The ECHO receives regular calls, letters and emails from readers with stories about outrageous cherry picking fares and rude drivers.

But our letters page also includes many thanks from grateful passengers who have free journeys or had lost belongings returned to them by the honest and kin-hearted taxi drivers working in Liverpool.

Council bosses want to hear about good service too. Drivers who go the extra mile can be rewarded with a badge for a year.

A spokesman for the city council’s taxi licensing department said: “I am appalled at the way some drivers speak to the public. Drivers must speak to people in an civil manner. If they can’t do that they should not be drivers.

“There is a very small minority who act in this way and it is very damaging.”

Do you have any horror stories about rogue cabbies? Or have you had fantastic service from the city’s taxis? Contact Mary Murtagh at marymurtagh@liverpoolecho.co.uk or call 0151-472 2504.

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Oh I bet that's gone down well with both punters and drivers.

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IDFIMH

Good on Lpcc, but ffs why publish what can be earned that could leave drivers open to attack, and there more than enough of that going on at the moment

70 pound an hour my a..e.Even london cabbies dont do that,so why print a load of bull that puts us all under threat?

Obviously someone, probably the council press office, gave that information to the reporter. Some reporters will print anything regardless of how bizarre is might seem to people like you and I.

Regards

JD

But a dayshift driver could make that on an airport run that takes an hour?

Obviously this doesn't tell the whole story, but if the press do the same thing with a figure when we agree with the point being made then we don't normally bother.

However, some Saturdays I'm lucky to take £70 even for eight hours until the chucking out time.

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Taxi Driver Online
www.taxi-driver.co.uk

I've never known anyone to Cherry-pick with their light on

"Obliged" meaning what exactly?

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

I have no idea what " obliged" means . But in the early hours of a Saturday morning, loads of cabs just sit there. They are not looking to Cherry pick. There just having a good look at the punter. If the punter looks dodgy, then we don’t give a [edited by admin] what the council think, they dont get in to our cabs. Regards Streetcars.

How accurate is this?

City black cab drivers are obliged to accept any fare, however short or long, if they are displaying their ‘for hire’ sign and the fare is no more than four miles over the city boundary.

Is this gross or net? And how many hours do drivers work to acomplish this?

The average takings for a city taxi driver are approximately £500 a week.

Perhaps Mary Murtagh can produce the cab drivers that have told her they can make £70 pounds an hour in the early hours of Sunday Morning because quite frankly I haven't met any that can?

During the early hours of Sunday morning cab drivers can make up to £70 an hour taking revellers home.

Regards

JD

I personally know a bloke that was charge from Liverpool to seaforth which is five miles,50 pounds , five blokes 10 pound a head take it or leave it 2.30am Sunday morning... 20 minute Run...


And it has nothing to do with restricted licences, it is just a group of blokes that need kicking out of the trade,,, a bit like Skull..

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Justice for the 96. It has only taken 27 years...........repeat the same lies for 27 years and the truth sounds strange to people!

Is Seaforth in or out?

Have you got any answers to the points I raised or don't they appeal to you?

Regards

JD

What's the legal difference between a taxi driver who sits with his for hire sign turned off eating his lunch, refusing to take several punters but relents when someone offers him a lucrative financial incentive?

As against someone who is waiting for a pre booked fare outside a night club or anywhere else in the street, who is also offered the same financial incentive?

Finally how do these two scenarios compare to someone sat on a Taxi rank who is offered a sum of money far greater than the actual cost of the fare?

Answers on a postcard please.

Regards

JD

Is Seaforth in or out?

Have you got any answers to the points I raised or don't they appeal to you?

Regards

JD[/quote]Depending on exactly, where in seaforth, it is more than 4 miles outside Liverpool, so i think he was quite right charging what ever he wanted. No to make 70 pounds an hour is total rubish, legally that is. You can take 600 pounds a week if you work 60 hours . fri and sat nights. regards streetcars

What about the grand national, i no a bloke who was charged 60 to the City centre. Perhaps there should be a greater liverpool plate, most of this ripping off might stop. regards streetcars

Tit

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