Report of the Director of Law and Governance (Monitoring Officer)

The subject of the decision:

The Director of Law and Governance asked the Panel to consider whether to grant or refuse an application for the renewal of a private hire vehicle licence.

Alternative options considered:

The Panel considered granting the application but concluded that the specific circumstances of the case were not sufficient to justify a departure from the Council’s Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Licensing Policy.

The reason for the decision:

The Panel considered the officer’s report, the applicant’s representations, copies of letters awarding five contracts provided by the applicant and the Council’s Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Licensing Policy and the relevant legislation.

The Panel noted that the Council’s policy generally opposed the grant of a licence in respect of vehicles over the age of ten years.  The Panel noted that the vehicle in question was first registered 14 years and 3 months ago.  The Panel noted that the vehicle in question met the mechanical standards set out by the policy.

The applicant made reference to a previous decision of the Panel in relation to a third party’s application to renew a vehicle licence.  The Panel concluded that any previous decisions of the Panel were not relevant considerations as each application must be determined on its individual merits.  

The applicant indicated that his private hire business relied exclusively on school contract work.  The applicant informed the Panel that his business model would provide sufficient grounds to justify making an exception to the general age limit prescribed by the Council’s policy.

The applicant made reference to a number of contracts awarded to the applicant by North Yorkshire County Council due to expire in 2018 and 2019.  The applicant informed the Panel that the tenders for the school contracts were won prior to the implementation of the age limit and were based around a business model of using older vehicles.  The Panel noted that the school contracts were awarded prior to the Council’s implementation of the general age limit for licensed vehicles which took effect from 1^st January 2017. 

The applicant informed the Panel that he was under a contractual obligation to deliver the services he had successfully tendered for and that the refusal of the vehicle licence would be unreasonable on the basis he would need to invest in newer, more expensive vehicles.  The Panel had not been provided with copies of the terms and conditions of the contracts, however, the applicant informed the Panel that the only mechanism he had to get out of his contractual obligations was to declare his company insolvent.  However, the Panel was satisfied that the applicant had been aware of the new policy for at least 18 months and therefore had had sufficient notice of the revised provisions and to take appropriate steps.

The applicant informed the Panel that all his licensed vehicles were used to deliver his school contracts and, due to the relatively low value of the contracts, it is difficult to reallocate the contracts onto other operators.  The Panel  ...  view the full minutes text for item LAHP.16