Two drivers have been prosecuted after being caught on CCTV cameras illegally plying for hire in Darlington town centre.

In both cases they had been driving private hire vehicles, which by law can only be pre-booked and must not ply for hire, this means they must not be hailed in the street by members of the public and are not allowed to use designated taxi ranks.

Beniamin Benali, 60, of Selbourne Terrace, Darlington, was given a conditional discharge for one year and ordered to pay costs of £75 and a victim surcharge of £26 after pleading guilty to illegally plying for hire at Peterlee Magistrates’ Court earlier this month (2 October).

The court was told that at 2.24am on February 5 this year, Darlington Borough Council’s control room team identified a private hire vehicle appearing to take a fare without prior booking.

CCTV footage showed a vehicle being approached by a man in Tubwell Row and, after a brief conversation with the driver, the man walked around the vehicle and pulled out a banknote.

Once inside the car, he was seen passing the note to the driver, who then drove off with the passenger inside.

The driver was identified as Benali and no prior booking had been made through a private hire operator. Benali pleaded guilty, but in mitigation said he picked the man up to assist him.

The court also heard the case of Liviu Oros, 53, of Forester Street, Darlington, who was found guilty in his absence of illegally plying for hire and having no insurance.

Magistrates were told that at 4.25am on February 3 this year, the council’s control room team again identified a private hire vehicle appearing to take a fare without prior booking.

It was seen by CCTV cameras in Skinnergate, where it was approached by five young men, and shortly afterwards it picked up four of the men in Woodland Road. The driver was identified as Oros and no booking had been made through his private hire operator.

Further investigations by the council’s licensing officers, also found that insurance for the vehicle only covered pre-booked fares.

Orus was fined a total of £1,320 for the two offences and was ordered to pay £150 costs and a victim surcharge of £528 and six penalty points were added to his licence.

Councillor Amanda Riley, Darlington Borough Council’s cabinet member for stronger communities, said: “Those illegally plying for hire undermine the trust and safety placed upon the licensed taxi trade, and I’d like to thank our control room operators for their vigilance in spotting these incidents.

“Darlington Borough Council's licensing team will act upon any information it receives and I hope these convictions send out a message to those people who wish to operate outside the law that we will seek prosecutions to protect the public and the legitimate taxi trade.”

Only hackney carriage vehicles are allowed to pick up passengers from the street or from taxi ranks without prior bookings.

For passengers to travel in private hire vehicles, they must go through an operator who records all the details of the journey. This is a legal requirement and is there to protect the public.

Hackney carriages in Darlington can be easily identified, as they are red with a taxi roof sign. Their front and rear plates will also identify them as hackney carriage along with a door sign.

Private hire vehicles may be any colour other than red and do not have a roof sign.