A Leeds taxi driver has spoken out about the licencing process in the city following several incidents involving his colleagues.
The cabbie, who wanted to be referred to only as 'Wahab', says he and other drivers play a vital role in the hospitality industry but don't get the credit or help they deserve.
Wahab said another driver in Leeds called him to say he was assaulted after dropping off two people at the end of a night. The driver had taken two passengers home and one of them vomited in the taxi during the journey.
Despite this, he agreed to drop them off but informed them there would be a charge. The other driver claims that the man was then assaulted in his car which meant he had to take time out of work, to clean the vehicle and for his mental health.
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The driver said to LeedsLive: “The problem that we are facing at the moment, is the abuse and the assaults that black and white cab drivers get.
“It has increased massively and we don’t know why, drivers are being attacked, assaulted, abused and this gentleman he called me the other day.
“He picked up a couple from Leeds and on the way, the lady puked in his car, it was quite bad and the taxi driver had a conversation with them and said he was happy to take them but there would be a charge.
“He got them home, they got out of the car, then they were abusive.
“The lady said she is going to pay you and he was assaulted from behind, went unconscious.
“The neighbours heard the noise, they came out and the driver was unconscious and once he was woken up he didn’t know what had happened.”
Wahab says this is an ongoing issue and Leeds City Council's taxi licencing department don't do enough to stop it or help drivers after it happens.
He said: “The problem we are facing is Leeds taxi licencing, when this was reported they were very rude to him, and didn’t offer any support.
“There is a fear of taxi licencing, they are almost like a dictatorship, as soon as you step into their office, it’s like you are no longer in Britain.”
“A lot of taxi drivers are not aware of their rights, and there is a language barrier, the local authorities are aware of this and have no respect.”
The other driver went to hospital but Wahab said the licencing people didn't do enough to help and support him, so he had to contact Wahab.
“He was assaulted, he ended up in hospital and they have no time or sympathy for him and they didn’t tell him what to do and he had to call me.
“The amount of pressure mentally and psychology that taxi licencing push onto us is too much," he added.
A spokesperson for Leeds City Council said: “While we cannot comment on individual cases, the council’s licencing team works hard to offer support and guidance to all members of the local taxi trade.
“The welfare of drivers, including any issues they might have with their physical or mental health, is important to us and something we take extremely seriously.
“Our staff always strive to handle enquiries and complaints in a polite, considerate and timely fashion, and we welcome feedback from customers so we can deal with any specific problems they are facing.”
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