SEVEN Somerset taxi drivers have had their licences revoked after failing to complete proper background checks.

Anyone wishing to drive a taxi, Hackney carriage or operate a private hire service must complete an interim check with the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS), to flag up any criminal convictions or other details which make them unfit to serve the public.

A Sedgemoor District Council licensing panel has decided to revoke the licence of seven drivers after they failed to complete these checks or respond to multiple attempts by officers to contact them.

Several of the drivers have already moved away from the area – and one has left the UK altogether.

The drivers were named in the agenda papers for the council’s licensing panel, which met in Bridgwater on Tuesday morning (August 6).

None of the drivers attended the hearing in person, and no representations were made on their behalf, besides comments by the council’s licensing officers.

The drivers whose licences have been revoked are:

Louis Brunskill (Bridgwater, self-employed): Mr Brunskill indicated via a phone call on May 28 that he did not wish to pursue his private hire driver licence. He was advised to surrender his driving badges immediately – but has not made any further contact since then

Justin Bushen (Bridgwater, H Cabs): Mr Bushen has moved away from Sedgemoor to take another job, but indicated he wanted to keep his licence to “keep his options open” for weekend work. He failed to attend an appointment on June 11, made by H Cabs, and did not respond to separate emails

Christopher Mant (outside SDC area, Sybaris Chauffeurs): Mr Mant failed to respond to phone calls and emails on May 28. His employer subsequently confirmed he had moved away to Oxfordshire in early-May

Cormac McDonagh (outside SDC area, Broadway Taxis): Mr McDonagh did not respond to phone messages left on June 3 and 12. Hie employer later confirmed he had left his position at the end of May and was possibly returning to Birmingham to begin a university course

Tiago Raimundo (Bridgwater, self-employed): Mr Raimundo was contacted on June 3, and indicated he would surrender his private hire licence after he returned from a holiday in Portugal. He did not respond to further contact until July 16, when he indicated he had permanently moved to the country and would not be returning to the UK

Karen Scott (West Huntspill, Curtisee Cabs): Ms Scott told officers on June 13 she was not aware she had to register online for DBS checks. Although she wished to retain her Hackney licence, she said she could not afford a DBS application and did not respond to further correspondence

Tom Sheppard (Highbridge, Curtisee Cabs): Mr Sheppard did not respond to phone messages left on May 28 and June 12. His employer said he had left “two to three months ago” (possibly before the first phone call), and speculated he was “now working for a delivery service”

An additional driver – Abdur Tarafdar from Highbridge – was given more time to complete his DBS checks due to a “family emergency” which had taken him out of the country.

Licensing officer Simon Guest said: “He has never been any trouble whatsoever over the last six years.

“This seems to have because of a genuine family emergency. I would recommend we allow him more time.”

The panel agreed to give Mr Tarafdar until August 31 to complete the necessary checks, noting he was not likely to return to the UK until August 12.

A further driver, Aneka Woodman, was due to have her licence revoked by the panel, but she surrendered her Hackney licence before the hearing, meaning no further action was needed.