Taxi driver refused hire licence after harassing passenger

A council meeting heard he continued to message and harass her after the complaint, and was found by Bolton Council’s licensing committee to have “acted in an inappropriate way”.

The driver, who attended the meeting on November 18, “accepted this had been wrong”.

The committee also found he had not attended safeguarding training “despite reminders” and there was no evidence that he had completed it.

They added that he had breached his licence conditions by “plying for hire by returning to pick up the complainant without a booking via his private hire operator”.

They said this would invalidate his private hire vehicle insurance.

Cllr Martin Donaghy moved to refuse, seconded by Cllr Charlotte Moncado-Sears, as the applicant “is not a fit and proper person to hold a licence at this time”.

The committee voted to refuse to grant the driver a private hire licence, but agreed for no action to be taken regarding his vehicle licence.