Liverpool City Council licensing officers took almost 50 taxis and private hire cars off the road in March for a string safety defects.
As part of the council’s ongoing commitment to ensure passenger safety in the city, officers served suspension notices on 48 vehicles following routine inspections throughout the month.
Cabs were taken off the road for a variety of breaches, including unsafe tyres, dented and damaged bodywork – including sharp and dangerous edges and unhygienic interiors.
A further 45 vehicles were issued with defect notices for minor faults and ordered to make repairs within seven days.
In total 25, of the cabs taken off the road were licensed in Liverpool whilst 23 were licensed with other local authorities.
The city council has pledged to protect the public through a series of ongoing safety campaigns, which include the crackdown on unsafe cabs.
Licensing officers are also working to prevent unscrupulous drivers breaking the rules through plying for hire, cherry-picking fares and failing to use their meters, particularly on match days.
At the recent Liverpool home game against Tottenham Hotspur, three private hire drivers were reported for plying for hire without a licence to do so.
City manager Kevin Johnson said: “The taxi and private hire industry plays an important part in Liverpool’s local economy and provide an extremely valuable service to the public. People who visit or live and work in Liverpool have the right to travel around the city in safety and be secure in the knowledge that they are not being ripped off.
“Thankfully the vast majority of our drivers play by the rules and provide a first-class service but the message to anyone who thinks they can come to Liverpool and flaunt the rules the message is – you will be caught.”
Throughout March, a further 37 drivers were given written warnings for violations such as not wearing their badges, not having their taxi licence plates fixed properly and failing to act in a civil manner.
The offending drivers came from Liverpool and surrounding boroughs such as Sefton, Knowsley and the Wirral, but some who were caught came from as far away as Wolverhampton.
Whilst 15 drivers were prosecuted by the council for offences such as plying for hire.
This means when a private hire vehicle picks passengers off the street who have not pre-booked the journey in advance, or if a hackney carriage driver has picked passengers up outside of the area they are licensed with.
During March the city council Licensing Committee also revoked one private hire driver’s license for drink-driving offences.
- For more information on Licensing Issues in Liverpool, visit Liverpool City Council’s website – liverpool.gov.uk and search for ‘licensing’.
