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Application for the Renewal of a Private Hire Driver Licence MC
Minutes:
The Applicant was in attendance with two representatives.
The Licensing Officer outlined the background to the application as follows:
· The application was for the renewal of a Licence which had expired on 12 August;
· On renewal the Applicant had declared driving convictions and on carrying out a search on his Driver’s Licence he was found to have 9 penalty points;
· In relation to the CU80 offence, the applicant was convicted in November 2017 at Bristol Magistrates’ Court where he received six penalty points and a fine;
· The Applicant had entered a plea of exceptional hardship which was accepted by the court and meant that he was not disqualified from driving;
· The Applicant had not notified the Council at the time of the offence which he should have done so in accordance with the conditions of his licence;
· The Applicant had previously renewed two licences online without declaring his motoring offences;
· The Council was unable to consider exceptional hardship as different criteria applied for the granting of PHD Licences.
· He commended that the Committee be guided by Council policy in determining the application.
The Applicant’s Representative presented his case as follows:
· He asked the Committee to consider reinstating the Applicant’s licence;
· He confirmed that there was no dispute over what had happened and the Applicant had pleaded guilty to the first 2 offences of speeding and driving through a red traffic light;
· In relation to the third offence of answering a mobile phone while driving, the Applicant was awaiting a telephone call from a consultant regarding the result of hospital tests;
· He accepted that he had taken a call while driving and this was a serious offence, but there were mitigating circumstances;
· In relation to the non-declaration of these offences, the Applicant had not deliberately withheld this information. He did not have the literacy skills in English to complete the form and so he had attended the Licencing Office where he was helped to do so using the online form. He had no recollection of being asked about his offences at these times. In applying for his current licence he was asked to declare his offences and this was the first time he recollected being asked to do so;
The Applicant confirmed that his failure to declare his convictions was a genuine mistake and that he had been driving for 20 years without any complaints. The Licensing Officer confirmed that there were no complaints in relation to the Applicant.
The Applicant’s Representative:
· asked the Committee to consider the mitigating circumstances and consider his personal circumstances;
· confirmed that the Applicant was not a threat to public safety and that it had been nearly 2 years since the last conviction;
· asked the impact on the Applicant and his family would be disproportionate.
At this point in the meeting the Applicant and his representatives and Licensing Officer withdrew from the meeting while the Committee considered the application. They returned to the meeting to hear the decision.
RESOLVED – that the application for a Private Hire Driver’s Licence be GRANTED for the following reasons:
The Committee was satisfied that the Applicant was a fit and proper person to hold a Private Hire Driver’s Licence. The Committee noted the history of driving convictions and that the Applicant had been unlicensed for a period of time already whilst awaiting the outcome of this application. The Committee accepted that there were mitigating circumstances in respect of commission of the latest driving conviction which was taken into account.
The Committee accepted the explanation that the omission to tell the Licensing Office of the previous convictions was a genuine mistake and advised the Applicant of the requirement to do so immediately in the future and also to comply with all conditions attached to the licence otherwise, should there be any future offences, another Committee may not be so lenient.
Supporting documents:
- Restricted enclosure View the reasons why document 27./1 is restricted
- Restricted enclosure View the reasons why document 27./2 is restricted
- Restricted enclosure View the reasons why document 27./3 is restricted