Taxi Boss Calls For Action On Unlicensed Cabs
29th August 2008
Someone will be killed unless action is taken against illegal cabs, a taxi boss has warned.
Anjad Nadeem, vice chairman of Kirklees Hackney Carriage Association, fears someone in Huddersfield will meet a similar fate to Stephanie Hammill.
The 20-year-old got into a car which she mistook for a taxi in Wakefield in 2003.
Fearing a sexual assault, Miss Hammill jumped out of the car and was killed by a vehicle coming in the other direction.
Mr Nadeem said: “We’re very fortunate not to have had a similar incident in Huddersfield.”
Mr Nadeem claimed many unlicensed taxis operated in the town centre. He said: “It is a major problem, particularly at Cross Church Street and outside the parish church on Kirkgate.
“People should not be getting into these cars. They are illegal and uninsured and the driver will often overcharge for the journey.”
Mr Nadeem predicted the problem would get worse over the next few months.
He said: “The weather will be colder and there will be more people going out in the town centre when the students come back.”
Mr Nadeem called for more action from Kirklees Council.
He said: “We speak to licensing officers about this all the time but, despite our pleas, not a single person has been prosecuted.”
A council spokesman said Kirklees took the problem of unlicensed taxis seriously.
He said: “The council carries out regular awareness campaigns alerting people to unlicensed taxis and our enforcement team acts swiftly on reports of alleged unlicensed vehicles.”
The spokesman urged people not to use unlicensed taxis.
He said: “They are operating illegally and will not be insured to carry fare-paying passengers, and the vehicle will not have been examined by the council to check their roadworthiness.
“We have two types of taxis in Kirklees – the public Hackney Carriage that people can hail in the street, and private hire vehicles which people have to book in advance.
“The signs and licence plates they are required to display on their vehicles are clearly visible so passengers know they are using a properly licensed vehicle. All licensed drivers should be wearing their identity badge.”
Source; Huddersfield Daily Examiner
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