Doncaster taxi driver stripped of license for forging documents and operating without a private hire license

A Doncaster taxi driver has been stripped of his licence and ordered to pay £1,000 after he forged vital documents and deceived his employer.
A Doncaster taxi driver has been stripped of his licence and ordered to pay 1,000 after he forged vital documents and deceived his employer.A Doncaster taxi driver has been stripped of his licence and ordered to pay 1,000 after he forged vital documents and deceived his employer.
A Doncaster taxi driver has been stripped of his licence and ordered to pay 1,000 after he forged vital documents and deceived his employer.

Amad Khorsand, of Chequer Avenue, Hyde Park, altered his private hire licence when it ran out - making his employers, Alpha Mini Cabs, believe it had been renewed.

Before the deception was uncovered by officers at Doncaster Council, Khorsand dealt with nearly 40 private bookings in an unlicensed, uninsured vehicle.

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The council’s cabinet member for communities, Chris McGuinness, said passengers - and Khorsand’s bosses - had been put at risk.

He said: “I am glad that such a lengthy driving ban and substantial fine has been given out to Amad Khorsand, who knowingly broke the law and put his passengers and employers in danger with his actions,” said Coun McGuinness.

“This case emphasises that we will not tolerate people breaking licensing laws, and we have the ability to catch people who try to.

“This decision has cost Mr Khorsand his job as well as a substantial amount of money, and will serve as a warning to anyone thinking of doing the same.”

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Council officers discovered that, after forging paperwork, he continued to work between December 19 and 22 last year, carrying out 38 private hire bookings in an unlicensed, uninsured vehicle before being caught.

A council spokesman said the authority then determined that Khorsand was not ‘a fit and proper person to drive a taxi’ as a result of the deception, and revoked his taxi driver licence.

During a hearing at Doncaster Magistrates’ Court, Khorsand was disqualified from driving for 12 months, fined £360 and ordered to pay the council’s costs of just over £716.

He admitted three counts of operating as a private hire driver without a licence, and three counts of driving without appropriate insurance.

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Private hire taxi drivers are legally obliged to ensure they have a private hire vehicle license.

An operator licence can be refused if the local authority issuing it is not satisfied a driver meets its criteria of a ‘fit and proper person’, or if they do not accept the conditions it sets.

No-one from Alpha Mini Cabs was available for comment.