Minutes:
The Licensing Officer:
a) stated that the applicant had held a Private Hire Drivers Licence since April 2018 where he completed the Driver Improvement Programme and knowledge tests. The applicant had also held a licence from June 2011 until June 2013
b) explained that in August 2021 the applicant contacted a member of the Licensing Team to discuss his re-licence application. The applicant stated that he had received 3 penalty points which took his total number of valid penalty points to 12. The applicant stated that he had pleaded exceptional hardship in court in order to keep his driving licence
c) highlighted that within the current Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Licensing Policy it stated the following in relation to ‘totting up’:
‘Any current driver disqualified from holding a DVLA licence under the ‘totting-up’ procedure should expect to have his/her hackney carriage or PHV driver licence revoked. At least 2 to 3 years should then elapse (after the restoration of the DVLA licence) before he/she is considered for a licence.
In the case of an existing hackney carriage or PHV driver where the ‘totting-up’ disqualification of a DVLA licence is considered by the court, even if the court does not disqualify, the Council is likely to revoke the hackney carriage or PHV licence. At least 2 to 3 years should elapse before the individual is considered for a licence.’
The Sub-Committee questioned the applicant about his convictions and received responses from the applicant.
The Decision was made as follows:
The Sub-Committee were not prepared to depart from the Policy and to risk the safety of the public by granting the applicant a renewal of his Private Hire Driver’s Licence so the applicants licence was revoked.
Reasons for the Decision:
1. The applicant had failed to persuade the Sub-Committee that his circumstances justified a departure from the Council’s Hackney Carriage & Private Hire Licensing Policy.
2. The applicant admitted that he had accumulated 12 SP30 speeding points on his driving licence and that 9 of the points were accumulated between May 2019 and June 2020. He admitted that at least one of the offences was whilst driving a taxi with no passengers in the vehicle at the time.
3. The applicant admitted that he had been allowed to keep his licence after pleading hardship at court and that the hardship he referred to was that he was the only member of his family available to take relatives to hospital for treatments.
4. The applicant admitted that he had lost concentration momentarily at the time of the offences and that he had been marginally over the speed limit of 30mph by around 4 mph when the speed cameras captured the offences.
5. The applicant admitted that he had undertaken a speed awareness course in advance of the offences in hand having taken place.
6. The Sub-Committee believed the applicant had not exercised extreme diligence in watching his speed after accumulating 9 points on his driving licence, of which he ought to have been aware that further offences would put him in real jeopardy of losing his driving licence.
7. The Sub-Committee were sympathetic to the applicants personal and financial situation, but were of the view that the offences had been serious and closely clustered together, particularly the last three offences.
8. The Sub-Committee’s priority was the safety of the travelling public and the financial circumstances and other personal circumstances of the applicant could not be given priority over public safety.