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Purpose and summary |
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The purpose of this report is to enable the Sub-Committee to consider an existing hackney carriage/private hire driver and his suitability to hold such a licence following him being served with a Domestic Violence Protection notice (DVPN) and the Court imposing a Domestic Violence Protection Order (DVPO).
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Recommendation
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It is recommended that the Sub-Committee give consideration to the report and the drivers suitability to be a licensed Hackney Carriage/Private Hire driver.
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Minutes:
The Committee considered the report, and at the hearing heard further from the driver. He explained that his wife had hoped to attend in support, but this had not been possible due to domestic events and were content to proceed.
In relation to the Domestic Violence Protection Notice and the connected domestic violence protection order (DVPO), the Licensing Manager had been able to make enquiries with the Police to indicate that no further action had been taken in relation to the initial matter which came to police attention.
The driver denied assaulting his wife as alleged and the Committee accepted that he had cooperated with the Police in relation to the process of the DVPN and attended Court and did not contest the DVPO order being made, and did not have legal advice at Court. The driver explained the difficult family circumstances including in relation to his wife’s health and the impact of this upon his family and the relationship, and that it had been a difficult time as a result for a number of months.
During the Committee hearing, the driver outlined that he had been contacted by the Police and his wife whilst the DVPO was in place but that he had abided by the order and complied with this throughout, staying initially at a hotel and then later with friends until the order expired.
He also explained that he had recently acquired a British passport and was a dual passport holder, and this had been impacted by covid-19 and felt demonstrated his good character – and presented this to the Licensing Officer by way of evidence in support of his position.
The Committee considered carefully his record of complaints made and questioned him about this during the hearing and he was candid during the hearing indicating that he had disagreements with other drivers but had discussed and resolved those. The Committee felt that overall he was a credible and open witness and noted his explanations.
The Licensing Officer confirmed that he had a clean DVLA driving licence with no penalty points recorded, and although there was some concern about the number of complaints recorded against him, it was noted that he had not received any Waverley penalty points since his licence as originally granted in 2015. The driver also apologised to the Committee for taking up time and indicated that he took his role seriously and hoped not to appear before the Committee again in future.
The Committee noted the position and the challenging circumstances which he and his family had encountered and his explanation of events and felt sympathy for the situation but decided it was not appropriate to take any action in relation to the fact that you had received a DVPN and DVPO. In the circumstances the Committee was satisfied that he remain a ‘fit and proper’ or safe and suitable person to hold a Waverley taxi driver licence. The Committee took the opportunity to remind him to consider his position carefully in light of the background of complaints brought to their attention and his future conduct.