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DIAL-A-CAB COMPLAINTS DEPARTMENT |
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Cab Licence As you all know by now, some 650 letters were sent out to drivers who had not produced their Motor Cab Licences. Following that, I received around 150 phone calls questioning why they had been singled out for my attention? They did not realise at that time they were grouped with a third of the circuit that had also failed to comply with our procedure rules. These rules have been printed in Call Sign on more than one occasion over the past 2 years but some drivers asked why we didn’t just send a nice letter? Well we did, and in that same envelope was Call Sign, which also gave information on changes and other items connected to Dial-a-Cab. Any driver who attended the AGM, would have heard Mr Gilliam interrogate me regarding the complaint his friend Mr Cox had to answer. The answers I gave Mr Gillam were truthful when he asked how many other drivers had broken the rule that states you have to produce a copy of your Motor Cab Licence within 14 days of your yearly overhaul. I answered that I didn’t know the answer because at the time the question was asked, nobody in the hall had access to our computer system sited in Brunswick House. If anyone had wanted an honest and truthful answer without trying to gain unnecessary points, they would have enquired in the week preceding the AGM. Then the relevant information could have been presented when the question was posed and all the audience would not have left the meeting uninformed. The Monday following the meeting, I requested our IT department to collate the relevant information. This gave me the correct details; there were some 648 drivers for whatever reason that had not produced their licence. So the appropriate number of letters was sent out. Prior to this, I could only check and send out a complaint for the production of the licence if the driver had been put on complaint for another offence. The previous year, Keith Cain had sent out a very nice letter which many drivers ignored, this was proved by the dates shown on our computer records of the expiry dates of their taxi plates - some up to 3 years out of date. The letter from myself was in the form of a complaint and because of this approach, the replies were returned speedily. Most of the phone calls were from drivers who imparted the information that they do not read Call Sign magazine. When it was explained why it was so important for us to see the licence showing the name of the shareholder, the drivers understood the importance of these letters. Some unscrupulous drivers could sell their taxis to a garage, but then carry on driving them as journeymen. By not informing us, these drivers could then retain their share in ODRTS, something to which they would not be entitled if they were no longer an owner-driver and which the rulebook clearly states that they should be. Also, we publish all subscribers’ names in the back of the annual report each year, but if drivers were misleading us, we could be seen as putting out false information. Last year, drivers who committed this offence were expelled from the circuit. If you are expelled from the circuit, you will never be allowed back. If drivers have not supplied the information needed and a passenger complains about a driver with just the plate number, we have to say that he is not registered as one of our subscribers. The next place these people complain to is the PCO and with the Carriage Office, any complaint whether founded or not, goes on your record. So it pays to keep us up to date with all your current details, addresses, telephone numbers, badge numbers and taxi details.
Free Tickets |
 were lucky when a driver recommended to his son that he give us 200 free tickets to the Ideal Home Exhibition. The driver’s son works for the Daily Mail newspaper group. I advertised the tickets at 2 per driver and within 10 minutes all 200 were taken. Even with the message saying only 2 tickets per driver, some drivers were asking if they could have more as they would like to take all of their family for nothing. When these theatres, companies or organisations offer us tickets, it is to get drivers to go and see the show or exhibition, then to tell their passengers how good it was and that they should go and see it. As an incentive, they give them an extra ticket for their wife. But some drivers get greedy and want to take all of their relatives for free and then do nothing to advertise the show. If we just show this greed, the free tickets will dry up. We also got the offer of drivers to go and see the new Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical Whistle Down the Wind at the Palace Theatre. These are apart from the film and television companies who invite drivers to shows or get them to appear in their shows. Over the years, I have built up a good relationship with these companies and our drivers have been lucky enough to see some of the finest shows in the West End of London. They have also been able to star or be contestants in some successful television shows. I will continue to try and obtain free or reduced priced tickets for our drivers whilst still on the Board. Hello London A new magazine for Londoners and Tourists called Hello London is going to be issued at the beginning of April. It will be an information magazine based on the style of Time Out Dial-a-Cab was the only London Taxi company to be asked to contribute with an article. The company will also be letting us have some 200/300 magazines for drivers to give out to their passengers and in the magazines will be an advert for Dial-a-Cab. The second issue will have a larger advert as the first issue will be tight for space due to it being the introductory issue. I would ask drivers that when I put out a message that the magazines are in the driver’s reception, to come in and get some to hand out. All of these adverts help to promote our circuit and hopefully gain more work. Our National Days I was asked on 17 March why I sent out a message wishing the Irish a Happy Paddy’s Day and was I going to do it for all the other drivers on their national days. Well anyone who reads my articles will know that I love to promote St Georges Day and was doing it well before Ken Livingstone. Perhaps he read my articles and that’s why he is now promoting St Georges Day! I also send out messages if I am in the office on St David’s Day and St Andrew’s Day. We did have a past Chairman who got upset when I did this, maybe I was off on the day it was his special day! If you are uncertain which dates apply to which Saints here they are… St David’s Day 1 March, St Patrick’s Day 17 March, St George’s Day 23 April and St Andrew’s Day 30 November. I must apologise for missing St David’s Day this year, but I was off work with a taxi drivers illness. What was the Illness? It was back in December when I found that I was getting a little breathless when climbing up the stairs at Brunswick House. It got worse over the Christmas period, so my eldest daughter forced me to go to the doctor. The next thing |
I knew, I was having to do a treadmill test at the
Homerton Hospital, the result of this test was an appointment at St
Bartholomew’s Hospital and a collection of tablets to take every
day. On the day given, I presented myself at St Barts at 07:30 for the next test. Up to the first floor and made to change into an idiot gown with tie tags at the back just where the wind whistles up your rear. Then I lay on the bed reading Roberta Taylor’s autobiography, she plays Inspector Gina Gold in "The Bill". I had already had my 2-hour introduction lecture the week before, explaining what was going to happen and also what could go wrong. They explained that 1 in 1000 has a problem. The next person to talk to me was the Indian doctor who was going to inject the dye into my artery to look for blockages. He explained once again what could go wrong, so I asked how many of these test he had done, hundreds he replied. I then asked if he had reached 999 without a hitch, he asked why so I told if he had, I would come back tomorrow after he had done the 1000th one as that could be the problem! The next person I was to encounter was an Australian Sister with an electric hair trimmer, a bit silly I thought as I have hardly any hair left on my head. But with cold latex clinical gloves, she threw back the sheet and whoosh the gown disappeared! Then she proceeded to give what I think is called a Brazilian. It was that evil looking grin on her face that worried me, at least it was not a cut throat razor otherwise I could have ended up with a high squeaky voice. After she had moved certain parts of my anatomy with those cold gloves, I realised that I could never look her straight in the eyes again. Then it was down to the operating theatre with my Indian doctor hiding behind a screen, so I asked him to move the screen so I could see who was doing the work near that very sensitive part of my body. If anything were to go wrong I wanted to know who to blame. He chatted during the procedure explaining what was happening, but it still did not make me any more comfortable knowing that he was cutting so close to such a delicate part of my body! After the doctor had finished, I was passed onto a very short Philippino nurse who would now have to push on my femoral for 15 minutes to seal the incision the doctor had made. This nurse was so short, she had to stand on a box to reach my crotch as I lay on the trolley. At times, I am sure she had raised herself off the box and my leg was taking all of her weight! After 15 minutes, she called over a male nurse to check her work. With a whoosh, back went my hospital gown again and a smile went across the nurse’s face as he said: "My, that is some large bruise you’ve got there!" The little nurse decided to once again put some more pressure on the sensitive part for another 5 minutes, then she called another male nurse over. This was now becoming like a scene from the Will and Grace TV show. Once again whoosh, back went the gown and the now familiar grin creeping back across his face and the familiar comment of my God, look at that bruise! All this grinning, apart from the bruise I always thought 3 inches was the norm…! I was then transferred back up to the ward where a black nurse said she would be looking after me and as you may have guessed, whoosh back went the gown, the smile and well, well, look at that bruise! I was allowed to go home later that day wondering why they had not completed the job and inserted the stents. But it was explained to me that they could not because if anything were to go wrong, they might not have had a bed for me. So now I wait - still breathless when walking the dog - to receive my appointment, have 2 stents put in and I suppose a lot more whooshing and grinning. The bruise has now gone but the hair has not reappeared. Tom Whitbread DaC Complaints Officer |
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