“Stupid” private hire driver with nine points on his licence given “severe warning”

Shahzad Jamil picked up points for speeding, not obeying a red traffic signal and driving on the hard shoulder.

He had asked Glasgow City Council for a three-year renewal of his private hire driver’s licence but licensing chiefs only approved a one-year extension.

They also warned Mr Jamil over his future behaviour.

The applicant said he “accepted all responsibility” for his actions and claimed he had changed his ways.

Mr Jamil said: “I’m not here to tell any lies, I’m not here to make any excuses. I admit my responsibility, I made mistakes, I was stupid.

“I’ve matured now, I can prove to the council, if the licence is granted, by the next renewal there will be no points.”

The licensing committee heard from a Police Scotland representative who said Mr Jamil had nine points on his licence until August last year, when three were dropped.

In August 2018, he was convicted after not obeying a traffic signal and given three penalty points.

He was given three more points in August 2019 for driving more than 30mph in a built up area and received another three points in December 2020 for driving on the hard shoulder.

Mr Jamil said he had “got confused” while using his Sat Nav during the first incident as two junctions “are too close to each other”.

He added he only saw the “red X” at “the last minute”. “By that time I was too late and I got pulled over. I accept full responsibility and it was my mistake.”

Mr Jamil added the speeding incident happened as he was “talking away to the customer” and “lost track of my speed”.

Licensing committee chairman, Cllr Alex Wilson, said: “That’s quite worrying Mr Jamil, because to be fair you should never allow a passenger to distract you so much that your speed changes.

“You have to be in control of your vehicle at all times, especially when you’ve got passengers in your car. You could have ended up in a serious accident and that passenger could have been injured.”

Mr Jamil said he had pulled over on the hard shoulder to take a phone call due to a family emergency.

Cllr Wilson said he sympathised with the applicant but added: “Regardless of the situation, if you felt you really had to take a phone call you should have found yourself a safe spot to do so and not on the hard shoulder.”

Mr Jamil told the committee: “I accept all responsibility, it was my mistake. I’ve changed my ways of driving, I’ve changed my ways on the road.”