TfL taxi compliance officers can now carry out road stops

There are now around 113 licensed private hire vehicles in London

There are now around 113 licensed private hire vehicles in London

Transport for London taxi and private hire (TPH) compliance officers have been granted new powers by the Metropolitan Police to carry out road stops without the need for a police presence. 

The new powers will enable more enforcement against illegal and non-compliant activity to be carried out, thus improving the safety of taxi and private hire passengers while freeing up police resources.

Some 109 TfL’s TPH compliance officers are being trained with powers to stop any TPH vehicle for inspection, testing and verification of licensing conditions without the presence of police.

The offices will be able to check for valid insurance, inspect a driver’s license or photo ID, and inspect vehicles for defects. 

For the first time compliance officers will have the powers to pull a driver off the road and stop them driving if they are breaching their license.

The new powers also allow officers to better tackle private hire vehicles that have been licensed by another authority, known as cross-border hiring, and address the increased safety risk that such private hire vehicles can pose.

There has been a rapid growth of the capital’s private hire industry, with the number of licensed drivers rising from 59,000 in 2009/10 to around 113,000 currently. 

Mayor of London Sadiq Kahn said: “The safety of Londoners is my number-one priority, and with the growth of the private hire industry in London it is essential we give our compliance officers real powers to clamp down on illegal activity, and take action against unsafe and unlicensed vehicles. 

“The majority of taxi and private hire drivers provide a good and safe service for Londoners, but drivers who haven’t got a valid licence or are breaching the terms of their license shouldn’t be on London’s streets.”

The introduction of the new powers follows a successful trial at Heathrow Airport that saw more than 800 vehicles checked.

TPH compliance officer-led enforcement will increasingly take place across London as more officers are trained in the Community Safety and Accreditation Scheme (CSAS). 

With the enhanced powers, teams of six or more TPH compliance officers can cordon off a ‘stop’ area to pull over a vehicle and undertake safety checks. Stops will be carried out as quickly as possible so any passengers on board are not held up unnecessarily. 

It is an offence under the Road Traffic Act for a driver a fails to stop when directed by a CSAS-accredited officer. Contravention may lead to a criminal conviction and TPH licensing action being taken.

TfL's director of enforcement and on-street operations, Steve Burton, said: “Our compliance officers are at the forefront of combatting unsafe and unlicensed taxi and private hire drivers, who not only pose a serious risk to passenger safety, but undermine licensed, law abiding drivers.

“These new powers will allow officers to stop and check vehicles without the police present, which will significantly increase levels of enforcement so we can robustly deal with dangerous drivers and vehicles.”

These enhanced role of TPH compliance officers forms part of the Mayor of London’s Taxi and Private Hire Action Plan, which seeks drive up standards, boost the quality of service and encourage the creation of an environmentally friendly taxi fleet.

A TfL spokesman said: “As part of TfL’s efforts to strengthen its enforcement approach we will be making more effective use of its powers to prosecute drivers and operators for illegal and non-compliant TPH activity.

“The increase in the number of compliance officers has significantly increased our capacity to detect driver, vehicle and operator non-compliance. As a result we are putting systems in place to ensure that appropriate enforcement action is taken on all offences reported by TPH compliance officers where evidence supports this.”

Transport for London works with the taxi and private hire trade, the Metropolitan Police and the City of London Police. It directly funds 68 police officers dedicated to taxi and private hire issues in addition to the TPH compliance officers. Since March 2017, these officers have checked drivers’ licenses and vehicles at 240 police road stops. 

TfL, the Metropolitan Police and the City of London Police also run Safer Travel at Night (STaN) operations throughout the year, which include patrols in hotspot locations, plain clothes operations and high visibility enforcement activities, which help to detect and deter illegal activity.

TfL also encourages members of the public to report touting and other cab-related offences across London and actively promotes safer travel by using black taxis, booked minicabs or TfL services to get home.