Walsall limo firm fined over danger proms ride
A limousine operator who took youngsters to their school prom in the Black Country in an unsuitable vehicle has been ordered to pay almost £1,000 by the courts.
Sarah Farrell was told to pay the cash by Walsall Magistrates Court after admitting four charges relating to a Dodge stretch limousine registered in her name.
Farrell was not at court yesterday but pleaded guilty to four motoring-related charges in writing. They all related to her owning a limousine which had nine passenger seats rather than eight which she had the official paperwork for.
The offences came to light after inspectors from the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency pulled over the limo taking pupils from Wednesbury to a prom night at Walsall's Banks's Stadium on June 29 last year.
It was found that Farrell did not have the proper paperwork and the limo was kitted out with nine seats even though her licence only allowed her to carry eight passengers or less.
It was being driven by Michael Blewer, who was employed by Farrell.
During the short hearing yesterday, she was ordered by the magistrates to pay a £350 fine, £593 costs and a £15 victim surcharge.
In writing to the court, Farrell claimed that when she bought the limo, she thought it could carry up to 10 passengers.
In January, Farrell had her limousine operator's licence revoked for 12-months by the West Midlands Traffic Commissioner Nick Jones. He found she had been "reckless" in failing to check the legal status of her stretch limousine.
At the time Mr Jones labelled Farrell, aged 38, of Maryvale Road, Birmingham, as a "naive individual" who ought to have applied for a private hire licence from a local authority.
He said it had been a "flagrant breach of basic legal requirements" and she had already been warned of the rules.
