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Rise in dodgy private hire drivers as thousands pay to forge compulsory exam

Staff at Vista Training Solutions in east London are said to have offered 500 to take tests for wannabe drivers

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Private hire licences soared from 61,200 to 113,645 between 2011 and 2018

Dodgy private hire drivers are buying forged qualifications for as little as 500. It is feared thousands of fraudulent drivers are operating in Britain.

A probe found one college is completing compulsory map-reading and English tests in return for cash.

Driver numbers in London have jumped to 228,600 up 84% on the mid-2000s.

Private hire licences soared from 61,200 to 113,645 between 2011 and 2018 after the rise of Uber.

Staff at Vista Training Solutions in Newham, east London, are said to have offered to take tests for 500 per BTec exam.

Undercover researchers from the BBC received qualifications without attending an exam.

Gerti Qamili, a college manager, said he had helped over 300 students to gain fraudulent qualifications.

Transport for London said it was deeply concerned and bosses are reviewing rules that allow tests to be taken in colleges rather than TfL centres.

TfLs Helen Chapman said: We have put applications on hold from those candidates who have not taken a topographical assessment in a TfL centre.

Vista Training Solutions said it was shocked by the allegations and is investigating.

A previous version of this article included numerous stock images of black taxis. We are happy to clarify that this story refers to private hire vehicles only and would like to apologise for any confusion.

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