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Taxi driver ‘is assaulted and has his phone smashed by Uber driver’ at York station

A file photograph of taxis at York Station. Photograph: YorkMix

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A York taxi driver has told of the moment he was assulted by an Uber driver who smashed his phone.

The incident is said to have happened on Saturday at the station. Driver Gene Nutt said:

  • These Uber drivers can be very aggressive and in York they have resorted to threats to life and actual violence.

    I was actually assualted on Saturday in the station by a Bradford Uber driver.

    And it’s cost me about a thousand pounds for a new phone because he literally forced my phone out of my hand and smashed it to the ground.

    He assaulted me to get hold of it and whilst he was doing so he shouted out he was going to sort out the chair of Station Taxis.

Mr Nutt said the Uber driver is being investigated by police and has had his licence revoked.

‘Threats continue’

Taxi driver Gene Nutt talking at the meeting. Photograph: City of York Council / YouTube
Speaking at a meeting of City of York Council’s licensing and regulatory committee, Mr Nutt said the threats continue.

“Councillors, I ask you please, how much more of this threatening behaviour and assaults do we have to put up with?”

He asked members to work with their licensing counterparts in West Yorkshire to “remove these Uber drivers from our streets.

“If they are capable of violence to us, then they are capable of the same to the public.”

Speaking at the same meeting chair of York Private Hire Association Wendy Loveday said the decision by Transport for London not to renew Uber’s licence over numerous safety breaches showed the app was flawed.

“Anyone, and I mean anyone at all, could pretend to be a fully-fledged, DBS-checked licensed driver. How dangerous is that?” she said.

  • Uber advertises now that they operate in York. Who do they think they are?

    Uber do not operate in York, as they do not hold an operator’s licence here, because they were found to be not fit or proper.

    Uber are immoral, and work unlawfully in York and they know it.

Wendy asked councillors to urge their West Yorkshire counterparts to also ban Uber, thereby “finally ridding York of them too”.

Seriously hurt or attacked

Later the meeting was told that the Transport for London decision did not affect the situation in York.

Independent Cllr Mark Warters said:

  • We heard that the situation at the station is out of control – so what is going to happen there immediately before somebody is seriously hurt or attacked?

Licensing officer Lesley Cooke said that the council is restricted as to what it can do at York Station because it is private land. But officers are planning to meet with British Transport Police to discuss matters with them.