Taxi driver waives £80 fare as public vigilance highlights ‘Herbert Protocol’ helping reunite missing woman with family
- Perry Richardson
- 1 day ago
- 3 min read
A late-night incident in Cambridge has highlighted the critical safeguarding role taxi drivers can play, and why awareness of the Herbert Protocol is increasingly relevant for the trade.
Cambridgeshire Constabulary said officers were alerted in the early hours of Monday after concerns were raised about an elderly woman travelling alone in a taxi at around 1.50am. The woman had accrued an £80 fare and was insisting she lived at an address in Cambridge, but appeared confused and struggled to recall basic personal details, including her age.
Police said the situation left the cabbie “confused” and that the situation did not “feel right” to those at the scene. A bystander contacted the police while attempts were being made to ensure the woman’s safety. Further checks revealed the woman actually lived in Newmarket, despite having lived in Cambridge earlier in her life. At the same time, Suffolk Constabulary had logged a missing person report after the woman’s family raised concerns.
Officers from Cambridgeshire Constabulary attended the scene and safely returned the woman home, where she was reunited with her family. Police confirmed that a Herbert Protocol form had previously been completed for her, allowing officers to quickly cross-reference historical addresses and personal details, accelerating the safeguarding response.
Incident in Cambridge highlights why cab drivers can often be the first line of defence when vulnerable passengers travel alone
The Herbert Protocol is a voluntary scheme designed to help police locate people living with dementia who go missing. It relies on families and carers providing key information in advance, including physical descriptions, medical needs, familiar locations and photographs, enabling faster identification when concerns are raised by members of the public, including taxi drivers.
In this case, police said the protocol proved “invaluable”, with further safeguarding measures now being put in place. Cambridgeshire Constabulary added that more than 300 people have already completed Herbert Protocol forms locally, alongside a new yellow dementia wristband scheme that allows next-of-kin contact details to be accessed quickly without immediate police involvement.
Jon Datta, who made the call to police, later clarified that the taxi driver himself did not contact officers but acted responsibly. “To his credit, he didn’t charge her,” Datta said. He added that he remained with the woman, attempted to walk her safely to the address she believed was home, and contacted police once it became clear she was confused, staying until officers arrived.
For the taxi industry, the incident reinforces how drivers are often among the first to encounter vulnerable people late at night. While drivers are not expected to diagnose medical conditions, recognising when something is wrong and knowing that schemes like the Herbert Protocol exist can make the difference between a prolonged missing person search and a swift, safe outcome.
A Cambridgeshire Constabulary spokesperson said: “You see an elderly woman in a taxi at 1.50am, having totted up an £80 fare. The taxi driver looks confused. Something doesn’t feel right. We’d like to thank one man who called us in the early hours of the morning on Monday, because this was his reality.
“On assessing the situation the man told our call handler that he was trying to get the elderly woman home safely, who was insisting she lived on a certain road in Cambridge. The woman also struggled to remember how old she was.
“Further enquiries while we stayed on the phone revealed the elderly woman in fact lived in Newmarket, but had lived in Cambridge earlier in life. Checks with Suffolk Constabulary Official Page highlighted that the woman’s family had reported her missing just a little while before this phone call.
“Officers visited the area and took the woman home to safety in Newmarket, where she was reunited with them.”
