Harrogate taxi drivers face questions over their legal position after local government shake-up - claims expert

The alleged legal problems for taxi drivers in the town have been highlighted by David Wilson, a leading Licensing consultant for the trade, who has been the taxi and private hire licensing consulting editor of Paterson’s Licensing Acts, the leading legal text on licensing since 2014.

He claims that since April 1, when North Yorkshire Council took over hackney carriage taxi licensing from the now abolished district councils, the new unitary authority has said that all hackney carriage taxis may ply for hire on all the ranks and streets in the whole of the North Yorkshire Council area.

But Mr Wilson, who founded A2Z Licensing in 2009, argues the law says it is illegal for anyone to ply for hire in an area for which they are not licensed.

On conviction, a fine of up to £2,500 may be imposed.

As a result, he adds, hackney carriage taxi drivers in Harrogate are concerned that they might still face prosecution by the police, and fines from the courts on conviction, even if do not expect the Council would prosecute them for plying illegally, as the Council has already decided it wants hackney carriage taxis to be able to ply for hire throughout the area.

Richard Fieldman, formerly a Harrogate District Council hackney carriage taxi driver, said: “We only discovered the Council may not have followed the legal procedure to create a single hackney carriage licensing area, when we consulted a licensing consultant about the Council applying different rules to hackney carriage taxis licensed in different parts of the county, even though we were now supposed to be one area, subject to one set of rules.”

Prior to the creation of the new council on April 1, taxis were licensed by each of the seven district councils - including Craven, Hambleton, Richmondshire, Ryedale, Scarborough, Selby and Harrogate.

This meant hackney carriage taxis could only ply for hire on the ranks and in the streets in the area of the district council where they were licensed.

Mr Wilson took action to write to the Council’s monitoring officer in June, asking him to investigate the Council’s legal position on the matter.

"What is important is that the Council takes urgent action to comply with the law,” he said.

"Members of the public can be reassured that a hackney carriage taxi is insured, even if plying for hire illegally in an area in which it is not licensed.”

The Harrogate Advertiser raised the issue with North Yorkshire Council.

North Yorkshire Council’s corporate director of environment, Karl Battersby, told us: “We have received the letter and are taking legal advice on the points raised.

"We will be responding as soon as we can.”

Hackney carriage taxis must have a 'Taxi' sign, are licensed and regulated by the local authority and are available for hire only at designated taxi ranks.

A meter must be engaged during a journey.

Private hire cars, including app based operators, can only be booked through an operator.

They cannot wait at taxi ranks and should not stop and pick any customers when hailed in the street.