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A TAXI proprietor who drove passengers around in unlicensed cabs has been fined £20,000.

A court heard the lack of a licence would have invalidated the vehicles' insurance if he had been involved in a collision.

Robert Fowler, the owner of A2Bee taxi company in Grange Road, Christchurch, was found guilty at Wimborne Magistrates Court of 14 offences of running taxis in Christchurch without a licence and six offences of failing to surrender his expired licence plates to the council.

Although Mr Fowler was the proprietor of A2Bee cabs and did not have the correct licences, the three other drivers of A2Bee are properly licensed. He was fined £1,000 for each offence and ordered to pay £865 in costs, as magistrates took into account his previous convictions for similar offences and the significant risk to the safety of members of the public travelling in the cab.

Despite being found guilty of similar offences in March 2007, Mr Fowler, 58, continued to run cabs without the correct licences.

These vehicles were spotted on taxi ranks by a council licensing officer and also by the police on the 14 different occasions between November 2007 and March 2008.

Peter Woodcock, solicitor for Christchurch council, said: "As Mr Fowler has no licence, his insurance would have been invalid in the event of an accident or claim against him.

"We had been engaged in extended correspondence with him about these matters, which he chose to ignore. I am glad the court saw the seriousness of his offences and fined him accordingly."

Mr Fowler was not available for comment at the time of going to press.

7:23am Thursday 22nd May 2008

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