Fine imposed on taxi driver for working illegally at Henley Regatta

A taxi driver has been ordered to pay more than £2,000 and had eight penalty points added to his DVLA licence after illegally plying for hire at Henley Regatta.

Mr Shafqat Ali, 36, of Pennine Road, Slough, attended Reading Magistrates’ Court on Friday 9 January when he pleaded guilty to unlawfully plying for hire, failing to have the necessary insurance and failing to wear his driver’s badge issued by Transport for London.

Magistrates heard that Mr Ali, who was working for a chauffeur company, was in Henley on 5 July 2025 with the aim of picking up a pre-booking. However, when no booking came through, he made the decision to unlawfully ply for hire instead. 

Drivers licensed outside South Oxfordshire can only pick up passengers in the district with a prior booking. Anyone caught touting for business or accepting walk-up fares may be prosecuted and risk a £2,500 fine, a driving ban and the revocation of their licence. In sentencing, Magistrates considered Mr Ali’s early guilty plea and noted that he had a faultless driving record. As a result, they fined him £384 for unlawful plying for hire and £576 for the lack of insurance.  He was also ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £384 and £924 in additional costs, bringing the total to £2,268. In addition, eight points were imposed on his DVLA licence.

Cllr Maggie Filipova-Rivers, Leader of South Oxfordshire District Council, said: 

“Our licensing processes are in place to protect the public and ensure that only authorised drivers can operate across South Oxfordshire. Unlawful taxi operations undermine our licensing system, often allowing drivers to offer potentially dangerous untraceable and uninsured journeys. This sentencing reaffirms that we have a zero-tolerance approach for unlawful taxi operations across the district.”