Sheriff calls for action after taxi death probe

Sheriff calls for action after taxi death probe
http://www.thecourier.co.uk/output/2008/01/26/newsstory10852501t0.asp

By Gordon Berry

A FIFE SHERIFF has suggested the law could be changed so taxi drivers would have to wear seatbelts while driving in rural areas at night.

The statement has come from Sheriff George Evans in the wake of a fatal accident inquiry held at Cupar into the death of a taxi driver who was thrown from his vehicle while not wearing a seatbelt.

Sheriff Evans has issued his formal determination relating to the death of Malcolm Dowds (48 ), Riverside Way, Leven, who was killed at around 2am on November 26, 2006, while he was employed by the Cupar firm A. & J. Taxis.

His vehicle left the road between Pitlessie and Cupar, entered a field and overturned, fatally injuring Mr Dowds.

The inquiry heard police evidence that it was found a spare seatbelt buckle had been clicked into the holder in the driver’s seat, silencing the warning signal. The driver’s belt was hanging loose.

The police evidence was that, while it could not be said a seatbelt would have saved the driver entirely, it could have made a difference.

Mr Dowds, it was said, might still have received serious injuries but they might not have been fatal because he could not have been thrown out of the car.

In his determination, Sheriff Evans said members of the public are required to wear seatbelts at all times, but not so a licensed taxi driver.

He said that, as far as he is aware, the regulations obliging drivers to wear seatbelts do not apply to licensed taxi drivers, and the belt does not have to be worn while a taxi is used for seeking hire, answering a call for hire, or carrying a passenger for hire.

Sheriff Evans said there was no evidence to explain what the deceased was doing, as far as taxi fares are concerned, just before his accident.

The sheriff said, “He had, of course, no passenger but he may well have been answering a call for hire, and thus not required to wear a seatbelt.

“It may be that Fife Council already insist on drivers wearing a seatbelt unaccompanied and that would certainly be a wise requirement, especially for taxi drivers driving in rural areas at night, who may have to go longer distances in the dark on more difficult side roads while on their own than their urban counterparts.

“Perhaps the exemption should be lifted during the hours of darkness in country areas.”

Sheriff Evans said, having considered all the evidence, he found Mr Dowds died as a result of a road traffic accident in the course of his employment.

The cause of the accident, he said, was probable inattention or tiredness that led to Mr Dowds oversteering slightly to the left when rounding a bend, as a result of which a front wheel collided with the kerb.

In consequence of that, said Sheriff Evans, the deceased most probably made a sudden steer to the right, which caused the taxi to cross the carriageway and come to rest upside down in a field.

He also found that, had he worn his seatbelt, Mr Dowds might well have avoided fatal injuries, and it would have been a reasonable precaution for him to have worn the belt.

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