How far has your private hire driver gone to get their licence?
Shocking statistics reveal almost half of the 2,800 private hire taxi drivers operating in Derby have not been cleared to work by Derby City Council.
Figures obtained from other authorities show more than 1,300 cabbies have gained licences elsewhere, meaning they have not passed Derby City Council's knowledge test. The council is powerless to check drivers or vehicles in the area if they have qualified with other authorities.
The Derby Telegraph revealed last week that 254 licensed drivers had travelled as far as Rossendale in Lancashire, which has no such test, to gain their qualification but further investigation showed this was just part of the problem.
Gedling Borough Council, in Nottinghamshire, showed a total of 765 drivers with a Derby home address had obtained licences from the authority.
About 1,500 private hire drivers in the city have taken and passed the Derby test.
Derby councillor Baggy Shanker, who responsible for taxi licensing in Derby, said this was "worrying". He said: "It gives us a lack of control to assess these guys who are licensed elsewhere. We can't, by law, stop and inspect them. We simply do not know who is getting a licence to work in Derby."
A loophole in the law allows drivers with a hackney carriage licence, who can pick up fares on the street, to operate as private hire drivers anywhere in the country. Private hire drivers are only permitted to pick up passenger who have made a prior booking.
Drivers have registered as far away as Rossendale in Lancashire.
The Derby Telegraph asked a number of councils how many licences they had handed out since the start of 2013 to drivers from Derby.
Gedling said a total of 765 had been issued since 2013 - 154 were handed out in 2013, 323 in 2014, 171 in 2015 and 117 so far in 2016.
A Gedling council spokesman said: "In May 2014, the council introduced the knowledge test as part of the fit and proper test, with the aim of improving and driving up the standards of the drivers driving Gedling licensed vehicles. There is anecdotal evidence that suggests the introduction of the knowledge test may have reduced the number of hackney carriage licences issued to people outside the Nottingham area."
The spokesman said the Gedling knowledge quiz included 25 questions on directions and local landmarks, five on conditions of licences and legislation, five on mental arithmetic and five based on knowledge of the Highway Code. Applicants must answer 75% of the questions correctly to pass.
Erewash Borough Council revealed it had issued 299 licences to Derby drivers in that time – 68 of those in 2013, 72 in 2014, 86 in 2015 and 73 so far this year. A spokeswoman for the authority said: "Local knowledge was removed from the knowledge test in 2007/08 when it was considered an unnecessary requirement with the increased use of sat navs. However, with the increase in inquiries from persons living outside the borough and those having plans not to work in Erewash, the council reintroduced local knowledge and also disability and safeguarding elements to the existing knowledge test in June 2016."
Erewash said its knowledge test addressed hackney carriage and private hire vehicle laws, disability and safeguarding issues, area knowledge and the Highway Code.
Mark Keenan, of Western Cars, which only uses drivers with Derby City Council badges.
East Staffordshire Borough Council said it currently had five people licensed with a Derby address and Derbyshire Dales District Council said it had four.
Mr Shanker said the law needed to be changed nationally to put a stop to the problem. He said: "If you are a Derby driver and a Derby resident then you should qualify in Derby. I think you should be licensed by the local authority in the area you are working in, it's as simple as that."
Mark Keenan, managing director of Derby-based taxi firm Western Cars, said the numbers were "remarkable". He said: "It makes me wonder why these drivers are going there, what have they got to hide? Is there something in their personal or driving records that would prevent them from passing in Derby or can they not pass the Derby test?"
Mr Keenan said his policy was to only hire drivers with Derby City Council badges.
Black cabbies are raising money to buy an electric wheelchair for a disabled customer who currently has to “crawl” to and from their taxis.
Alex Doodle, 44, has been on the lengthy waiting list for three months. The architecture graduate, who is gender neutral, has relied on black cabs to get around since losing the ability to walk in a cycling collision in Essex Road seven years ago.
But the costs, coupled with their mental healthcare bill, means they have had to survive on full fat milk since November.
And after sharing their story with driver Terry Vaus, who watched them “crawl” from his cab last month, the cabbie called on the close-knit community to raise £3,000 for a chair.
“I feel like a prisoner in my own home,” Alex told the Gazette. “To have the freedom to go out when I want would be life-changing.”
To make matters worse, Alex lives in a first floor flat in Englefield Road, Canonbury, because wheelchair-accessible homes are so scarce (they made up just 28 of the 2,000 council properties let in the last two years). The two Alex was offered by housing association Family Mosaic were turned down on medical advice.
The council helped Alex get crutches and undergo physiotherapy to use them, but they still have to stumble up and down the stairs, causing up to 15 falls a week. “My neighbour has found me unconscious a number of times,” Alex added.
“I spend all my money on taxis and mental health services so I haven’t been able to eat since November, but drivers have been bringing me baby food. I get full from just half a jar – I’ve been living off full fat milk.”
Terry said: “I’ve picked up Alex a couple of times and we got chatting about their life.
“When I dropped them off I offered to help but they didn’t want me to. I watched them crawling along the wall. They’ve been pushed from pillar to post. So I posted about it on our Save Our Black Taxis Facebook group and it went from there.”
Islington’s health boss Cllr Janet Burgess said she was sorry to hear of Alex’s situation and was doing what she could to help, including offering in-home adaptations and mental healthcare.
She said: “I would urge Alex to engage with our services so we can ensure they have all the support they need.
“While we are building new homes for disabled tenants, demand for properties vastly outweighs supply.”
Donate to Alex’s appeal > here. <
Comment From # SaveTaxi 's Shelly Hartnett
It is a great honour to have been asked to help support a very special #SaveTaxi member and trade supporter!
Together, let's get him the wheelchair he so desperately needs and with it, a new lease of life.
Thank you to everybody that has already shown support.
Please donate whatever you can and share share share.
Thank you!
A former mini-cab driver has been jailed for 14 years after raping a woman at knifepoint near a West End club more than two decades ago.
Haci Ibramahain Koc, 53, was caught following a cold case review by the Met’s Sexual Offences, Exploitation and Child Abuse Command.
The breakthrough came when detectives made a DNA match with Koc, who had provided a smaple for an unrelated matter in February.
Koc, now living in Devon, attacked the 28-year-old woman when she got into his minicab on May 17 1994, at 2.30am.
During the journey, he stopped the car and dropped the passenger seat backwards.
He then pulled out a knife, held it to her face and cut off a lock of her hair before forcing himself on her.
The terrified woman was eventually able to get out of the car and flee for safety.
Yesterday, at Isleworth Crown Court, Koc was finally convicted of rape and jailed for 14 years.
Detective Inspector Keith Braithwaite, of the Serious and Complex Case Team, said: "Despite the overwhelming forensic evidence against Koc, he still denied the charge against him and went to trial putting his victim in the witness box forcing her to relive her ordeal 20 years on.
"Koc has shown little if any remorse for this horrific crime. I hope the verdict and sentence gives some closure to the victim and would like to thank her for her courage and dignity throughout.”
