When we use a taxi service, we expect that the service we are using is going to get us to where we want to be safely. All taxi drivers should have a personal identification number to show that they have a valid licence to drive a taxi. This identification number is there for passengers of the taxi to take note of if they wish to complain about the taxi service they received, or in the unfortunate event that they do become involved in an accident.
If you do become involved in a road traffic accident whilst travelling as a passenger in a taxi, then you may be able to make an injury compensation claim. As a passenger in a taxi, a court will see you as the innocent party, as it is unlikely that you will have had any contribution towards the accident. If you suffer injury due to that accident, you should seek medical attention, and make medics aware of how you sustained your injuries.
A drunken Sheffield taxi driver who crashed his cab, injuring himself and three passengers, has received a 16 month jail term. Sheffield Crown Court heard how father-of-five Suleymaan Ismaciil, aged 37, terrified his three passengers as he drove them home following a night out in the city. Ismaciil picked up the men on London Road and was asked to take them to Hackenthorpe.
The court was told that he set off at a speed, and ignored a red light as he sped along the dark streets. His passengers begged him to slow down but he kept driving in an erratic manner. At one point, Ismaciil’s head slumped as if he had passed out at the wheel. The court heard how he narrowly avoided another vehicle, and then as he overtook another car, he lost control and collided at high speed with a bollard.
The collision caused his black cab to flip onto its side, and the passengers had to be dragged out of the vehicle by a passer-by. Ismaciil suffered chest injuries, and his passengers all suffered injuries including whiplash, that caused them to miss lengthy periods of work.
Ismaciil refused to give a breath sample at the scene, but a blood sample taken at the Northern General Hospital showed he had 71mg of alcohol in 100ml of his blood. The legal limit is 80mg, but a back-calculation showed that at the time of the accident, the reading would have been around 122mg.
Banning him from driving for three years, and ordering him to take an extended driving test, Judge Simon Lawler QC said: “Those who are charged with carrying members of the public as taxi drivers owe those passengers a duty of care. You fell well below that standard.”
If you would like free and friendly legal advice about claiming for road accidents, give us a call for a no obligation chat about your options.
