National complaint hotline set to put manners on taxi drivers

Neil_Sedaka

TAXI drivers who dress like slobs or who are consistently rude or unhelpful to customers run a much greater risk of losing their licence from September.

A new national complaint system is to come on line, with the Commission for Taxi Regulation promising that making complaints about drivers or their cars will be much easier.

The new system will be in place shortly before the introduction of a skills course which new drivers will be obliged to take. It will cover a range of areas, including customer courtesy, as the industry continues to clean up its act.

"From September, the national complaint system will be up and running," chairman Ger Deering said yesterday.

"The penalties will range from a €250 on-the-spot fine all the way up to revocation of licence. Obviously, that will depend on the seriousness of the allegations, and other factors.

"In the taxis, there will extra information on how to make a complaint more easily than the present system.

"For example, there will a text number that will send you back information. There will also be a lo-call number you can ring - just one national number," he said.

Up to now, gardai could be called in to intervene if a complaint was made against a taxi driver. But the 2003 Taxi Regulation Act gives new power to the commission to get involved, and this involvement will be on a national basis.

"We are currently putting in place a national database of taxis through the national licensing system and this will be of benefit in dealing with complaints," Mr Deering said. Existing drivers will have to take the new skills course when they renew their licence from 2008.

Jason O'Brien, Unison.ie

RedPlanet

interesting.
I hope they make mandatory the displaying of this information inside (and outside) the taxi.

What's the deal with 50€ notes? Are we allowed to pay with them (and receive change) or are the drivers entitled to give us an earful.

lostexpectation

who cares how taxi drivers dress, and don't say tourist my god tourist must not live in the real world for the amount of potential offense they may take at variety of everyday things

_Kaiser_

Personally I'd be happier if they standardised the type of car that can be used as a taxi (I've seen Jeeps and small 4-door hatchbacks being used for the purpose ) and sprayed them all yellow for easy identification as in the US.

Stark

I don't like the sound of this at all. If anything it serves to demonise taxi drivers, most of whom are extremely polite and professional in the face of a fair bit of abuse. Imagine having a night of escorting drunken louts and having to wear a big mac smile for the whole of it.

shltter

A complete waste of time doing something to make it look like action without actually doing anything.

Complaints made by anomynous phone callers are absolutely useless for example I dislike my taxi driving neighbour so I ring and say he was rude and unwashed

It makes no mention of how they will deal with the complaints sending out plain clothes inspectors to take taxi journeys is the only way to deal with it yet this makes no mention of anything like that.
All this does is allow you to get it off your chest while nothing actually changes.

Stark

A new national complaint system is to come on line, with the Commission for Taxi Regulation promising that making complaints about drivers or their cars will be much easier.

Go taxirant.ie!!