Spring 2012 Newsletter - Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council

Operator conditionsOperators are required by licenceconditions to record specific detailsof passengers who book with them.During recent inspections officershave had cause to take action againstoperators for not complying with thiscondition which is essential for driverand passenger safety reasons.To illustrate the importance of this,a licensed driver was the subject ofan assault by passengers who alsodamaged his vehicle before takingoff without paying. The incidentwas reported by the police but theirinvestigation was hindered by thelack of passenger details recordedby the operator who had recorded afirst name only. Recording full detailswould have assisted the police toidentify the perpetrators immediately.Not recording sufficient passengerdetails offers no protection at all.In contrast with this, a privatehire driver who was punched bya passenger during a prebookedjourney reported the assault to thepolice. Following an investigationthe police were able to identify thepassenger who was subsequentlycharged with assault. We recommendany driver who is assaulted bypassengers reports the matter to thepolice for their investigation.Operators are also required to keepup to date copies of all licenses ofdrivers and vehicles they operate. Toassist your operator to do so, pleaseensure you provide them with an upto date copy of your licence aftercollecting from the council, failureto do so could result in you being‘locked out’ and unable to work. Itwould also be helpful if you providethem with vehicle test certificatecopies so they can keep their recordsup to date. The purpose of this is toenable the operator to make sureall licensed drivers and vehicles aresuitably licensed and insured soto protect the safety of travellingcustomers.8 Taxi and Private Hire News