Taxi panic switches set to be permitted in taxis

The council is set to allow audio recording in taxis following a number of assaults on drivers

Taxi drivers and passengers will soon be able to record audio in South Staffordshire cabs by pressing a "panic switch" under new measures to improve safety.

The local authority is set to allow CCTV with audio recording to be installed in cabs, following a consultation with taxi drivers and users last year.

It follows a number of assaults on drivers in recent years, including the manslaughter of Wolverhampton taxi driver Anakh Singh in October 2022.

South Staffordshire Council's licensing committee were recently asked to approve the CCTV policy permitting audio recording in taxis.

A consultation on the plans received 1,329 responses, with a report stating that 88% of respondents agreed audio recording would better protect passengers from drivers, and 96% agreeing it would better protect drivers.

A report to the committee said there had been "several high-profile assaults on licensed drivers" including the murder of Mohammed Istakhar in Solihull in November 2022, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said (LDRS).

In April 2024, a passenger also entered a taxi from Coventry Railway Station and demanded money and hit the driver in the neck and chest with a knife, it added.

"Given the risk to the council's drivers, the position on audio recording and its crime deterrent benefits has been reviewed, to provide greater protection to drivers from this type of attack," the report said.

Greg Bickerdike, licensing manager at City of Wolverhampton Council, which runs taxi licensing services on behalf of the district authority, said it was not a "mandatory requirement" but it would allow drivers to install the audio equipment.

"For the protection of them and passengers' privacy, there will be a switch the driver or passenger can turn on at any time," he explained.

"It's not just a one-way thing, it has to be accessible to both taxi passengers and drivers."

This news was gathered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service, which covers councils and other public service organisations.