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Taxi Review Consultation Form

Please use this form to submit any comments that you may
wish to make against the relevant proposal.

Please hover over blue Proposal links to view the changes
proposed and the reason for the changes.


Proposal 1: Proposal
a) Change length of licence from 1 year to 3 years
b) The licence fee be set at £510.

Reason
The Council currently issues 23 annual private hire operators licences. The annual licence fee is £198. The lengthening of the duration of the licence would reduce administration time spent on dealing with such licences and would free officer time to devote to licensing enforcement issues.

The overall cost of the licence could also be reduced to reflect the reduction in administration.



Proposal 2: Proposal
"The Operator shall obtain any necessary planning permission required for his premises and shall comply with any conditions attached to it. A copy of any supporting documentation with regard to planning permissions must be shown on application"

Reason
This condition will enable the Licensing Section to bring some pressure to bear on potential operators where premises are proposed to be used that do not possess the necessary planning consents.



Proposal 3: Proposal
"Anyone applying for an Operators Licence who is not currently a licensed hackney carriage/private hire driver must obtain a standard check from the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB)."

Reason
A private hire operator, who operates from premises that have an office open to the public, comes into contact with young people and vulnerable adults. It is becoming common place for licensing authorities to require such persons to undergo basic CRB checks, in order to gauge a persons suitability for such a position. There is a charge of £31 to the applicant in obtaining a enhanced CRB report. At the present time, all licensed operators with offices also possess drivers licences with the Council, which requires a enhanced CRB report, anyway. It is not anticipated that this will, therefore, affect many people.



Proposal 4: Proposal
"A certificate of Public Liability Insurance is required where the public have access to the premises i.e. waiting room etc. However, where no public access or waiting facilities are provided or if you wish to operate your own vehicle from home, this insurance is not necessary."

Reason
This measure will increase public safety and would be a safeguard for the operator. This is a standard requirement of many other licensing authorities.



Proposal 5: Proposal
"The operator shall maintain an up-to-date list of the owners and registration number of all licensed hire cars connected with his business and their drivers, which shall include:
1. The name of the driver
2. The address of the driver
3. Licence number of the driver
4. Date employment commenced
5. Radio call sign used
6. Date employment ceased (if applicable)
7. Registration of vehicle used by driver
8. Vehicle Licence number (HC/PHV)
9. Vehicle make, model and colour."
Such information to be made available upon request by Council officers.

Reason
Officers have ongoing problems in getting private hire operators to provide regular and up to date information on the drivers and vehicles employed in their business. This has implications upon the safety of the public, as it can be difficult to keep a trace of the employment of a particular driver, for example.

This new condition will enable officers to bring pressure to bear on operators to provide regular and accurate information.



Proposal 6: Proposal
"The records required to be kept by the operator under Section 56 (2) of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976 must be in a manner, whether written or on a computer, which enables them to be examined or audited. The operator must record, before the commencement of each journey, the following particulars of every booking:
1. The time and date of booking
2. The name, address and telephone number of the hirer
3. How the booking was made
4. Any price quoted
5. The time of pick up
6. Point of pick up
7. The destination
8. Time at which a driver was allocated the booking
9. The licence number of the driver allocated the booking
10. The licence number of the vehicle allocated the booking
11. Any remarks"
Such information to be made available upon request by Council officers.

Reason
There is an ongoing problem with officers being able to deal with complaints received concerning bookings. Officers often find that licensed private hire operators fail to record the basic details of each booking. This creates problems in enabling officers to properly identify drivers or vehicles involved in a complaint and, thus, be able to take appropriate action. The adoption of this new condition would assist officers in this respect.



Proposal 7: Proposal
Require Operator or their agent to provide immediate access to records, when requested.

Reason
Will enable officers to react promptly to complaints and other issues.



Proposal 8: Proposal
a) Introduce a discounted level of annual fee for those vehicles that are adapted for wheelchair use.
b) Set a fee of 75% of the cost of the usual Annual fee.

Reason
There are presently only three licensed vehicles that provide wheelchair access, out of a total 142. The annual licence fee is currently £185 and provision of a discount to the fee could act as an incentive to operators to provide vehicles that are purposely built with wheelchair access.



Proposal 9: Proposal
Only licenced vehicles that do not require seats to be folded in order to gain access/egress.

Reason
The Council presently will not consider licensing a two doored vehicle, because of the safety issues of someone having to leave the vehicle from a rear seat in an emergency. This policy was adopted before the advent of 'people carrier' type vehicles, some types of which present the same safety issues as two doored saloons, with regard to egress. Officers recommend that a policy be adopted that does not permit such vehicles, that require seats to be folded for access, to be licensed in the future, in the interests of public safety. Existing such licensed vehicles would be phased out and no new applications from such vehicles will be approved.



Proposal 10: Proposal
Require all Private Hire Vehicles to have door signs indicating 'for advance bookings only', as prescribed by the Council.

Reason
Will improve passenger safety and help the general public to identify the difference between a hackney carriage and a private hire vehicle. Taken that each licensed vehicle is replaced, on average, each three years, there would be an additional cost of about £5 per annum if this recommendation were agreed. An example of a private hire vehicle door sign will be on display at the meeting.



Proposal 11: Proposal
Prohibit Private Hire Vehicles from having roof signs

Reason
Will improve passenger safety and help the general public to identify the difference between a hackney carriage and a private hire vehicle.



Proposal 12: Proposal
Require all Hackney Carriages to have door signs indicating 'Hackney Carriage', as prescribed by the Council.

Reason
Will improve passenger safety and help the general public to identify the difference between a hackney carriage and a private hire vehicle. An example of a hackney carriage door sign will be on display at the meeting.



Proposal 13: Proposal
Require all Hackney Carriages to have roof signs

Reason
Will improve passenger safety and help the general public to identify the difference between a hackney carriage and a private hire vehicle.



Proposal 14: Proposal
Internal licence plate to be double sided.

Reason
Will increase passenger safety as plate will be able to be viewed from both the inside and outside of the vehicle.



Proposal 15: Proposal
In the event of Recommendations 10 and 12 above being approved, the annual licence fee for both hackney carriages and private hire vehicles (currently both £185) be increased to £190.

Reason
To take account of the additional cost of providing door signs.



Proposal 16: Proposal
a) Change from 1 year to 3 years and revert CRB and DVLA checks from annual to 3 yearly.
b) The licence fee be set at £145.

Reason
The Council currently issues 153 annual hackney carriage/private hire vehicle drivers licences. The annual licence fee is £58. The lengthening of the duration of the licence would reduce administration time spent on dealing with such licences. We would also wish to reduce the requirement for the licensee to provide a current CRB report and undergo a DVLA check from annual to each three years. Most local authorities now undertake three year checks and experience has shown that the risk of reverting to such a practice is minimal. The overall cost of the licence would also be reduced, to reflect some saving in staff time saving, although it is proposed that this be taken up in licensing enforcement activities. It is recommended that the fee be set at £145.



Proposal 17: Proposal
Provide thicker, sturdier licence badge (to last for 3 years), redesigned with electronic photograph and provide distinctive OWBC lanyard with each.

Reason
Will enable the public to more easily recognise licensed drivers and, thus, make it more difficult for unlicensed drivers to operate. An example of the badge and sample lanyard will be available at the meeting.



Proposal 18: Proposal
Dashboard Badge - Require second driver badge. This to be inserted in dashboard mounted clip

Reason
Will enable the public to more easily recognise if the driver is licensed. There is a statutory requirement for a licensed driver to wear his badge, but this is not always obvious to anyone getting in or out of a vehicle. The dashboard badge will enhance public safety. A example of the badge will be on display at the meeting.



Proposal 19: Proposal
Require all drivers to undergo a Group 2 level medical, instead of existing Group 1 level.

Reason
This will increase public safety. It will also bring our drivers into line with other councils and standard lorry and bus driver requirements and DVLA recommended levels. The cost to the applicant is roughly the same as a Group 1 examination.



Proposal 20: Proposal
Require all non-UK European Community drivers licence holders to apply for DVLA registration.

Reason
The law requires that the Council has to accept an application if the driver has a drivers licence issued by another EC member state. However, there are significant difficulties in checking the credentials of such licence holders, with their member state. The DVLA has now issued guidance that recommends, in cases where such licence holders are employed in driving as an occupation, they should be registered with the DVLA, who will provide a UK counterpart document attached to their licence. This will enable the Council to check on the driver against DVLA held records and, thus, improve our safety checks.



Proposal 21: Proposal
Require such applicants to produce a Certificate of Good Conduct from the relevant embassy.

Reason
The law requires that the Council has to accept an application if the driver has a drivers licence issued by another EC member state. However, a Criminal Record Bureau check of such an individual is of little value and the Council currently has problems in establishing whether the applicant has a satisfactory background for such a role. It is recommended that, as part of our licensing procedure, an applicant who has not been a resident within the United Kingdom for the previous 5 years is required to produce a certificate of good conduct authenticated by the relevant embassy.



Proposal 22: Proposal
Require such applicants to produce a Certificate of Good Conduct from the relevant embassy.

Reason
The law requires that the Council has to accept an application if the driver has a drivers licence issued by another EC member state. However, a Criminal Record Bureau check of such an individual is of little value and the Council currently has problems in establishing whether the applicant has a satisfactory background for such a role. It is recommended that, as part of our licensing procedure, an applicant who has not been a resident within the United Kingdom for the previous 5 years is required to produce a certificate of good conduct authenticated by the relevant embassy.



Proposal 23: Proposal
To introduce a Driver Penalty Points Scheme - see separate paper attached.

Reason
The Council, from time to time, has to take action against licensed drivers for offences against their licence conditions. Some offences are more serious than others and records of these are maintained on file. However, other licensing authorities have introduced with some success a system of grading offences against the licence, in order that both the Council and the licensee know exactly where they stand in terms of the severity of the offences and when the licensee can expect punishment. Details of the proposed scheme for adoption is attached as Appendix 4 to this report. The scheme would enable the Council to operate a disciplinary system to a recognised standard which can be easily understood by all.


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  Return to Top Author: Legal and Licensing Updated: 13 August 2008  
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