BOGUS TAXI CALLS

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 52, 24 November 1917, Page 8

BOGUS TAXI CALLS

COMPLAINTS AGAINST HOTELKEEPERS

DEPUTATION TO COUNCIL

COMMITTEE

In consequence of a complaint received from Mr. Diirant, manager of tho Commercial Hotel, that certain taxi-drivers wero refusing to answer calls from his hotel, about a. dozen, taxi-drivers appeared before the I3yLaws Committee of tbo City Counoil yesterday to answer the charge and state their caso. Initially, the chairmim (Councillor W. H. P. Barber) said tho trouble was that certain drivers had refused to respond to calls from tho Commercial Hotel, ho understood, they lost their position on tho stand, but he reminded them that they had to answer calls and provide >v service for the people. Ho quoted by-law 675, which clearly states the responsibilities of n driver of a taxi, and said that whether it was to go to Tho Terraco or Trentham, a 2s. or a £A fare, it was their "duty to respond— they were on tho stand for that purpose, and had taken out their licences knowing what was expected of them. Mr. C. Niran, ono of tho drivers, said that it was tho practice with somo hotelkeepers to call upon a taxi when they required "drunks" or # undesirables removed from tho premises. Ho did not refer in that regard to the Commercial Hotel. That was not their chief grievance. What they did complain of was receiving; calls from hotels, and on arriving there to find that no ono wanted a car, thereby losing a fare and their place on the stand. Several of tho "drivers present gave instances of the Hn"d, and othew said that maybe after looking round the bars they did find tho man who had rung up or got someone else to, and who, "By the time the car got round, decided that ho did not want it, and declined to pity the 2s. faro. One driror related that ho had recently had such an experience. Tho man was pretty drunk, and on tho fare being demanded had said: "If you don't get out, I'll put my boot into youl" "As tho man was twice my size," said the driver, "I did not think it worth while to argue any further about the 2s ; " Another driver stated that a call from an hotel sometimes meant that they wero expected to take a man who was in a filthy state of drunkenness. The chairman, said that lie thought that in all such cases they should be in a position to claim their full fare from the hotel proprietor who allowed his telephone to be used to call the car. Councillor M. F. Luckio eaid that he did not think that might be sound in law. The practice was that all guests in an hotelhad tho right to use the telephone. Councillor 0. B. Norwood doubted whether the by-laws were wide enough to insist on that being done, as hotel telephones were likely to bo used by irresponsible people. The chairman: If the hotel proprietors refused, then they must be subject to the trouble Mr. Durrarit is complaining about. We must endeavour to protect tlio drivers as far as we are ablo. Wβ may not be able to give the taxi-driver the right to demand the 'fare in such cases, but we could urge on hotel proprietors to protect themselves by seeing that taxis are not called on any fool's errand. A man could hardly be'expected to pull off the stand for nothing. One driver said that he had been called to the Commercial Hotel on one occasion, and the girl in tho office admitted she had rung for a taxi, but ho could not find his "fare." Another driver testified, that only tho evening beforo he had been called to the Bamo hotel, and, when he got there, tho man wno had ordered tho car , wont with somo friends in another car and refused to pay the 2s. fare. Tho chairman: If you coold identify him you would be porfectly justified in prosecuting him. Still another driver said that nearly every day there wore,four or five bogus calls given. An address was given, and when they went there ther.e was either no one in tho placo or tho people said that no call had been given.

The chairman said that they could not do anything in such cases, as it was probably, done T)y somo of tho drivers themselves who wanted a better ■position on the stand. A suggestion was mado hy a driver that the matter of answering calls might he left to their discretion. Councillor Luokie said that could not he. Whilst tlie drivers had his sympathy in such cases as had been stated, no pointed out that to allow such discretion would be to encourage practices which the by-law wne made to restrain. Tho chairman said.in rogard to hocus calls from • private addresses that tho drivers would have to bo their own detectives, as it must bo their own peoplo doing it. Councillor W. T. Hildroth. said that nino out of every ten hotolkeeners would co-operate with tho council in tho matter of agreeing to guarantee fares when the calk came from their own telephones. Ono driver mentioned two hotels which favoured two earages for their ordinary work, hut when they wanted a "druiik" removed they rang up the stand. He wanted'to know whether they would not be justified in refusinc to take a "drunk" as a fare. Tho chairman thought they would bo. Then what about police calls? It was explained .that a call from tho police was different, as they had the- right to call, not only on a car, hut on a private person for assistance. Tho committeo finally decided that a circular letter l>e forwarded to all hotelkeopers in Wellington pointing out the disabilities under which taxi-drivers worked, and urging their co-operation in doing what was right and iust in connection with calls given through th'e medium of hot-el telephones.