A council has put a stop to a restaurant offering free lifts to customers without a licence.
The Michelin-Listed Hansom Restaurant in Bedale, North Yorkshire, had previously provided free lifts home for customers due to limited transport options in the area.
To ensure customers could get home safely, Chef Ruth Hansom-Rigby’s partner Mark would complete the lifts as a ‘complimentary service’, with alternative uber, taxi, and public transport options being unreliable.
However, North Yorkshire Council has since said it is unlawful for customers to be driven home by someone who doesn’t hold a private hire licence.
Mrs Hansom-Rigby said: ‘Our only intention was to make things easier and safer for our customers by helping transport them back to Northallerton, their Airbnb accommodation, or wherever they were staying after dining with us.’
She explained that the trips were ‘offered in good faith, with no intention of disregarding council regulations or breaking any laws’.
‘We hope we can work together to find a practical and sensible solution that supports the restaurant, our customers, and of course North Yorkshire Council’, she added.
North Yorkshire Council's corporate director for environment, Karl Battersby, said that delivering lifts for the public without having secured official licences can result in ‘serious risks for both the business and the customer’.
He said that the rules ‘ensure that appropriate insurance, safeguarding measures, vehicle safety standards and driver suitability checks are in place to protect customers’.
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