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Bolton Council revokes private hire driver’s licence after committee reviews mammoth EIGHTY THREE complaints against same driver
A private hire driver’s licence was revoked with immediate effect after a licensing committee considered 83 complaints and found the driver was not a fit and proper person to hold a licence.
The decision was made by the Licensing and Environmental Regulation Committee on 27 October 2026 after the driver attended the hearing and presented his case after hearing the licensing team set out its report.
The committee said some complaints were serious, including allegations involving sexual comments or behaviour and passenger safety. Other reports concerned demands for cash or extra payments, extending journeys, refusing passengers because of children or luggage, and cancelling bookings without an appropriate reason.
The minutes also record complaints of verbal disputes, alleged aggression and threats of violence, smoking in the licensed vehicle, and bookings allegedly completed outside the requirements of a private hire operator licence.
In explaining its decision, the committee cited Department for Transport statutory taxi and private hire vehicle standards. Members said they would not be comfortable putting a loved one in a vehicle with the licence holder and did not consider him fit and proper to drive.
The committee also said it believed the driver did not understand the seriousness of the concerns, showed no remorse and took no responsibility for his actions. It noted that private hire operators had removed him from their platforms.
Members referred to evidence they said contradicted the driver’s account, including booking application screenshots and records relating to two airport journeys. The minutes state that passengers alleged the trips took place outside the booking app, while the driver said the passengers had not shown up.
The motion to revoke the licence immediately on public safety grounds was moved by Councillor Hewitt, seconded by Councillor Finney and carried without opposition.
The minutes state that the licence had already been revoked with immediate effect in March 2026 and that, in light of the evidence presented at the hearing, allowing the driver to return to work would be inappropriate and unsafe.
