TOTTED-UP BAN: Application for Middlesbrough private hire licence refused after driving ban revealed via DVLA checks
- Perry Richardson
- 1 hour ago
- 1 min read
Middlesbrough Council’s Licensing Committee has refused a private hire driver licence application after discovering the applicant had been disqualified from driving under the totting-up procedure.
The case, referenced 33/25, was heard on 13 October 2025. The applicant, who previously held a licence with the council for many years, appeared before members to explain a six-month driving disqualification issued in July 2022.
Licensing officers became aware of the conviction following a routine DVLA check. The applicant had not declared the disqualification on his application. He later told officers that he had been working abroad at the time and had not received correspondence about the offence due to postal issues.
The applicant stated that penalty points may have been incurred by a relative using his car while he was overseas. He said he had paid fines after bailiffs attended his family’s address but had been unaware of the driving ban itself.
Members questioned how the applicant could have accumulated 12 or more penalty points without knowing and noted inconsistencies in his account. They also pointed out that the policy required a five-year conviction-free period before any licence could be granted following a major traffic offence such as a TT99 disqualification.
The committee concluded that the explanations given were unclear and contradictory. It determined that there were no exceptional reasons to depart from the council’s licensing policy and that the applicant was not a fit and proper person to be granted a private hire driver licence.
The application was refused, and the applicant was advised of his right to appeal to Teesside Magistrates’ Court within 21 days.
