Minutes:
The following is a summary of the hearing:
The Sub-Committee was asked to consider whether the Private Hire operator Ref 02-14, was fit and proper to continue to hold a private hire operator’s licence.
The Senior Licensing Officer presented the Licensing Authority’s case to the Sub-Committee and referred to an incident in October 2013 which led to convictions of the operator under the Act and to the identification of other failures to comply with the Act. In June, 2014, the operator and the Director of the company had pleaded guilty at Slough Magistrates Court to operating an unlicensed driver and an unlicensed vehicle in Slough in October 2013. In addition the driver had pleaded guilty to acting as a private hire driver without a valid private hire driver’s licence. Fines and costs were awarded and the Magistrates Court stated that they regarded this to be a very serious set of offences, putting the public at risk and depriving legitimate drivers of income.
The Officer discussed the legal requirements when a company held separate operating licences and advised that the operator had failed to adhere to his responsibilities under the Licensing Act. In view of the seriousness of the offences and breaches, the Officer recommended that the private hire operator’s licence be revoked in this case.
Operator Ref 02-14 and a colleague addressed the Sub-Committee. They accepted the business had acted wrongly and were sincerely sorry for this. They stated that all parties had been heavily penalised by the Courts and did not want these mistakes to happen again. It was accepted that serious offences had been committed, which all parties pleaded guilty to. In light of the measures they said had been put in place since the incidents referred to, they asked the Sub-Committee to be lenient on this occasion.
The Sub-Committee considered all the written and oral information at its disposal. In reaching its decision the Sub Committee’s primary concern was public safety. The Sub-Committee took into account the measures that the operator advised had been implemented since the incident to ensure better compliance with the requirements of his licence.
Having carefully considered all the evidence the Sub Committee:
Resolved –
(a) That the Operator’s licence (Ref 02-14) be suspended for the period of one calendar month.
(b) That it be noted that Slough BC takes a very serious view of an operator’s failure to comply with licensing obligations and that a strict formal written warning be issued to the operator (Ref 02-14).