Taxi drivers in Keighley are using cars rebuilt from the bodies of two separate vehicles following serious crashes.

In most cases the cars have been given MOT certificates by garages who know the cars have been 'cut and shut'. The truth only comes to light when Bradford council carries out its annual test on the vehicle.

Councillors have now pledged to ban cars welded together in such a way from being used to transport the public. They will force hackney carriage and private hire drivers to send suspect vehicles to a special testing centre in Manchester.

The safety move has been welcomed in principle by Linda Dixon, owner of Keighley Taxis and local chairman of the National Private Hire Association. But she claims the council has contributed to the problem by making it more difficult for drivers across the district to make a living.

She says: "The costs borne by the owners has gone overboard."

Mrs Dixon also believes drivers should have been better informed of the impending policy change so they had time to raise cash for replacement vehicles.

She says: "The trade will be in turmoil. Cars will go for a test and suddenly the drivers will be out of a job."

The council's highways committee decided this month to tighten up its licensing procedure by inspecting for dangerous repairs to structural damage.

They heard that several vehicles have been presented for licensing recently that appear to have had major repair work following accidents.

A council report states that in some instances it is almost impossible to detect repairs, or decide whether the repair is satisfactory.

It adds: "Vehicles which are not correctly repaired can be highly dangerous, especially if involved in a serious accident."

Councillors decided that all vehicles suspected of being in major accidents will have their history checked through the national "Equifax" computer network.

Vehicles with no record, or classed as a write-off or "condition alert", will be sent to a specialist testing centre in Manchester. The driver must pay the $200 cost.

A licence will be refused for cars whose age, origin or identity is in doubt.

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