Taxi Driver Online

City cabbie to sue over taxi that burst into flames

A TAXI driver is driving a test case for compensation over a fault which leads to black cabs bursting into flames without warning. David Gillan is claiming for lost earnings after his taxi caught fire in Frogstone Road West last February. The vehicle was one of 44 later impounded by the city council and branded unsafe for use.

At least one other cab in Edinburgh is known to have spontaneously burst into flames and the same problem has hit cabs in London, where 673 were taken off the road for checks. The engine problems have only affected LTI-manufactured TX4-type cabs with a 56 registration.

Mr Gillan, 45, is now seeking compensation from Black Horse Finance, which sold him the vehicle. The hearing at Edinburgh Sheriff Court in March will be seen as a test case for other cabbies.

Mr Gillan, from Pilton, shares the taxi with his brother Robert. As well as having the car impounded for a month following the fire, he said it had broken down frequently, causing further loss of earnings: "This is our only source of income, so to have the cab off the road has meant that we have lost a lot of money.

"In the last year-and-a-half we've had to deal with seven burst radiators, a ruptured thermostat, the inner wing collapsing, as well as three fuel leaks. "I know one other cabbie with the same make of taxi as us and his vehicle was completely destroyed after the engine caught fire."

The father-of-one would not reveal exactly how much he is claiming, but said: "It affects my family tremendously. I come home and my wife gets it in the neck because I'm stressed, I've had to sell personal effects to pay the mortgage. We have to work all hours because we don't know when the taxi's going to break down again – I've not had a holiday for a year."

David Wilson, legal partner with Warners solicitors, who represent Mr Gillan, said: "There is clearly a fault with these taxis but none of the finance companies or garages that sold them, or even the manufacturers themselves, have taken responsibility. They haven't even admitted there are problems in the first place.

"We are representing a number of other taxi drivers over loss of earnings caused by these taxis." Mr Gillan said he had been advised to pursue Black Horse Finance, with whom he had a legal agreement, rather than the manufacturers.

A spokeswoman for Black Horse Finance said: "As Mr Gillan intends to take this matter to court, it would be inappropriate for us to comment further." A spokesman for LTI said it was gathering information, but was awaiting legal advice.

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IDFIMH

Are they suing the right party?

Regards

JD

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Copyright notice © The contents of this post are copyright of JD and are not to be reproduced outside of TDO without written permission.

Perhaps they feel Black Horse have deeper pockets than LTI, and less likely to go bankrupt.

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http://wingsoverscotland.com/ http://www.newsnetscotland.com/

They might have deeper pockets but are they liable?

regards

jd

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Copyright notice © The contents of this post are copyright of JD and are not to be reproduced outside of TDO without written permission.

I think that would probably depend on the terms of their agreements.
Some types of credit agreement do make the lender liable for faulty goods. Their legal team must think so.

I'm not very familiar with consumer law but I know that if you buy goods from a shop and they turn out to be faulty, your contract is with the shop, not the manufacturer and the shop is liable. If you pay by credit card, the card company are liable.

If Black Horse are held liable, they can always sue the manufacturers who are ultimately at fault.

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http://wingsoverscotland.com/ http://www.newsnetscotland.com/

They are liable for the cost of the goods under consumer credit legislation. I'm not sure if their liability extends further under the tort of negligence, ie Do the defendants have a duty of care towards the purchaser and was the fault reasonably foreseeable? The decision will be interesting.

Maybe they are liable in the same way as the credit card companies are liable if you buy an iffy product with a credit card.

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IDFIMH

I think there is a possiblility that LTi could still be brought into this action with an amendment from either party. There is also the possibility that this case may never really see the light of day as it is settled out of court with some kind of gagging order attached to it. Who knows it'll be interesting to see what happens.

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Note to self: Just because it pops into my head does NOT mean it should come out of my mouth!!

Good point, Toots. They should have issued against all possible parties in one action:

The finance company, the retailer and the manufacturer.