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Middlesbrough Council refuses private hire driver licence after drink-driving conviction
A Middlesbrough Licensing Committee refused a man’s application for a private hire driver licence, citing a drink-driving conviction and discrepancies in his accounts of events surrounding the offence.
The application was considered on 7 September 2026. The applicant had previously held a Middlesbrough private hire driver licence, which the council revoked in July 2024 after receiving information from Cleveland Police about allegations of driving with excess alcohol and possessing cocaine.
He was convicted of driving with excess alcohol on 6 September 2024 and disqualified from driving for 17 months. He applied for a new licence in March 2026, after his DVLA licence had been restored in October 2025.
The applicant told licensing officers that after socialising with friends, he had been assaulted and later drove to retrieve a phone he had left at a pub. He said he had consumed his last alcoholic drink at about 10pm and drove at 4am. He accepted his judgement had been poor and completed a drink-drive rehabilitation course.
The committee was also told that the applicant’s accounts had differed over time. In a 2024 interview, he had described going to a different pub and leaving between 11.30pm and midnight. He had also said he had used cocaine for about 11 years, occasionally while on holiday, and had intended to use it on the night in question. In his 2026 interview, he said the cocaine belonged to a friend and was not intended for his use. He later told officers that his 2024 account was correct but that he could not remember the precise details.
Middlesbrough Council’s policy says an applicant convicted of drink-driving must have at least seven years free from conviction after completing any sentence or driving ban before an application can be considered. The committee said the relevant period would run until at least 2032.
The committee accepted that the applicant had taken responsibility for his actions but said it had no good reason to depart from the policy. It was particularly concerned that he believed he was fit to drive four hours after his last drink.
The application was refused because the committee was not satisfied that the applicant was a fit and proper person to hold a licence. The decision notice says he may appeal to the magistrates’ court within 21 days.
