The Broken Meter Seal at the 06:05 Handover
06:05, a car park in Kwun Tong. You are taking over a taxi for the day shift from the night driver. Before you move off you notice four things. The wire seal on the meter is broken and the meter does not return to the flag fall when switched on. The vehicle licence disc on the windscreen expired three days ago. Your taxi driver identity card is not in the holder, because you left it in your other jacket. The fare table displayed inside the taxi is last year's. The night driver says: "Don't worry about the meter, it's only out by a dollar or two. Nobody checks on a Sunday. And my cousin can take the first two hours while you get breakfast - he's driven lorries for years."
1. List what must be put right before you accept a hire, and explain why the meter seal in particular matters.
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Before any passenger boards:
- Meter - the meter must be accurate and its seal intact. A broken seal means the meter has been opened and its accuracy can no longer be relied on. You cannot lawfully operate on a meter in that condition; it has to be checked and re-sealed by an authorised meter tester before the taxi goes back into service. "Out by a dollar or two" is not a defence - the fare must be the fare shown on a correct meter.
- Vehicle licence - an expired disc means the vehicle is not licensed for hire. Driving it for reward is an offence and the insurance position is compromised. The taxi stays parked.
- Identity card - the taxi driver identity card must be displayed where passengers can see it. Put it in the holder, or do not drive.
- Fare table - the current fare table must be displayed; an out-of-date one misleads passengers about what they can be charged. The through-line is that each of these is a condition of lawfully carrying passengers for reward, not a cosmetic defect.
2. The night driver offers his cousin, who holds no taxi driving licence, to drive the first two hours. What is your position?
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Refuse, and do not hand over the keys.
A person driving a taxi for reward must hold the appropriate taxi driving licence. A lorry licence is irrelevant - the vehicle class, the passenger-carrying endorsements and the knowledge requirements are different. If the cousin drives and is stopped or has a collision:
- he commits an offence by driving otherwise than in accordance with a licence;
- you, as the person who permitted him to use the vehicle, expose yourself to liability for allowing it;
- any insurance covering the taxi will not respond to an unlicensed driver, so the passengers and any injured third party are unprotected and the losses land on the people involved.
The offer of "breakfast" has no bearing on any of this. Decline clearly and, if the handover arrangement depends on it, do not take the vehicle.
3. Suppose you drive anyway. A passenger sees the broken seal and says he will not pay and will report you. What is the legal position, and what do you actually do at the kerb?
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Separate the two issues.
- Your position: operating a taxi with a defective or unsealed meter is an offence on your part, and the passenger's complaint to the police or the Transport Department is well founded. That is a matter between you and the authorities.
- His position: he is still liable for the fare properly chargeable for the journey - the amount the meter shows plus any permitted additions. He does not acquire the right to travel free because of your defect.
At the kerb, do this:
- Stay calm and do not detain him, grab his bags, or block his way - that escalates a fare dispute into a much more serious matter.
- Issue a receipt if asked, showing the amount, the date and the vehicle registration mark.
- Record the journey details and, if he walks off without paying, note the time, place and description and report it; do not give chase.
- Accept that the meter defect will be examined on its own merits. Arguing that "the seal was already broken" is an explanation for the handover, not a defence to driving the vehicle.