Taxi Driver Online

October 12, 2006 Thursday

HEADLINE: Warning on private hire taxis

BYLINE: Gordon McCully

DATELINE: Chorley Citizen

A warning to people not to get into private hire taxis at the side of the road has been issued after a driver was prosecuted following an undercover operation in Chorley.

Terrence Penzer, 55, was snared after agreeing to take the Chorley Borough Council test team from the corner of Market Street and St George's Road to the Yarrow Bridge Hotel, Bolton Road, in November 2005.

Leyland Magistrates' Court heard how Penzer held a private hire vehicle licence issued by the Chorley Council, which allows him to work as a taxi driver but only for pre-booked fares.

He was caught during an investigation by the authority and police to find out how many private hire taxi drivers would flout licensing laws and take passengers without a prior booking being made. Under licensing laws, only hackney carriages can pick up fares by being flagged down in the street or by waiting at a taxi rank.

Private hire vehicles can only operate through a prior booking. The undercover team flagged down private hire vehicles during the operation.

The court heard that Penzer had parked his taxi in Market Street, Chorley, near its junction with St George's Street when he was approached by the team. They asked him if he could take them to the Yarrow Bridge Hotel in Bolton Road and he said he could.

The council explained that it grants licences for both hackney carriages and private hire vehicles in the area but only after both the driver and the vehicle have been rigorously tested and vetted.

Problems often arise because people are not aware of the difference between a hackney carriage and a private hire vehicle - or what to look for when distinguishing a licensed vehicle.

Penzer, of Larchwood Crescent, Leyland, was fined £200 and ordered to pay costs in the sum of £75.

The council said its hackney carriages are generally white saloon cars with illuminated 'taxi' signs on the roof except for two London-style black cabs' and one Peugeot Euro Cab.
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