Taxi Driver Jailed After Claiming 'American Friend' Drove Speeding Cab

Taxi driver Nigel Taylor, from Sherbourne Grove in Birmingham, has been jailed for perverting the course of justice after falsely claiming a friend visiting from America was at the wheel when his cab was caught on camera speeding.

Mr Taylor had claimed he was asleep at home when his private hire vehicle was flashed by a speed camera in Pershore Road in August 2012, he said that a friend from Los Angeles had used the car without his permission.

In light of his information the prosecution was discontinued, however the enquiry was passed to West Midlands Police at the camera enforcement unit who probed the claim with Birmingham licensing enforcement officers. Taylor’s driver records from his taxi base showed that he was working at the time of the speeding offence proving that he had invented the story to avoid points ( he already had seven points on his licence).

Taylor was interviewed and admitted driving the vehicle at the time and was charged with perverting the course of justice after refusing a fixed-penalty ticket. He was jailed for four months at Birmingham Crown Court and ordered to pay £580 costs.