Tewkesbury Borough Council is moving towards introducing a new penalty-points scheme for taxi and private hire licence holders, with the proposals expected to go before the council’s Executive Committee next week.
The scheme is intended to give licensing officers an additional way of dealing with relatively minor breaches of taxi and private hire licensing requirements.
Tewkesbury Borough Council consulted drivers, private hire operators, residents and other interested parties earlier this year before progressing the proposals.
A report published on Tuesday, 25 August says the council’s Licensing Committee has recommended that the Executive Committee approve implementation of the scheme when it meets on 2 September.
Under the proposed system, penalty points could be recorded against hackney carriage and private hire drivers, vehicle proprietors and private hire operators where licensing offences or breaches of conditions are identified.
The points would be separate from the penalty points motorists receive on their DVLA driving licences.
Tewkesbury’s draft scheme says there must be sufficient evidence to prove the relevant offence or breach before licensing penalty points are issued, with each case considered on its own merits.
Licence holders would receive written confirmation when points are imposed and would have a right to appeal to the council’s Licensing Team Leader.
Points would remain live for a rolling period of three years.
The most significant threshold would be reached when a driver, proprietor or operator accumulated 12 licensing penalty points during that three-year period.
Reaching 12 points would not automatically mean losing a taxi or private hire licence. Instead, the licence holder would be referred to a Licensing Sub-Committee, which would consider whether the person remained fit and proper to hold the relevant licence.
The proposed scheme would not prevent the council from taking other enforcement action where circumstances justified it. Existing options include warnings, formal cautions, prosecution and licence reviews that can result in suspension or revocation.
When launching the consultation in April, the council said the intention was to create a fair and transparent way of dealing with minor breaches while protecting public safety.
The proposal should not yet be treated as an implemented licensing rule. The latest development is a recommendation for the Executive Committee to approve the scheme, with that decision expected on 2 September.
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Sources
Tewkesbury Borough Council – Proposed Taxi and Private Hire Penalty Points Scheme
Tewkesbury Borough Council – Draft Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Penalty Points Scheme
Tewkesbury Borough Council – Original Penalty Points Consultation Announcement
