Repeat violent offender among drivers caught in illegal ride-hailing blitz, B.C. RCMP say

A prolific violent offender was among the drivers caught in an illegal ride-hailing crackdown in Richmond.

Mounties in British Columbia say a recent crackdown on illegal ride-hailing operators netted thousands of dollars in fines against multiple drivers, including a prolific violent offender and a man whose licence had been cancelled two months earlier due to impaired driving.

The results of the crackdown highlight the risks that unlicensed ride-hailing operations pose to the public, according to the Richmond RCMP, which conducted the enforcement effort alongside the provincial Commercial Vehicle Safety Enforcement office.

Authorities say a combined total of $10,615 in fines and penalty points were levied during the one-day blitz on Jan. 2. Some repeat offenders also had their vehicles towed, police said.

“Illegal ride-hailing is both unlawful and dangerous to the public,” the Richmond RCMP said in a statement Wednesday. “Drivers working for licensed ride-hailing companies must meet provincial regulatory requirements, including criminal record checks, driving history reviews, and proper commercial insurance.”

The statement alleges that drivers who operate unlicensed ride-hailing vehicles usually do so because they are ineligible to work for a licensed taxi or ride-hailing company.

The RCMP noted that one driver who was caught in the recent enforcement blitz had been convicted of five violent criminal offences since 2024. Those convictions would have prevented him from lawful employment in the passenger transportation industry, police said.

Another driver who was stopped had lost his licence two months earlier following an impaired driving investigation, according to the statement.

“Illegal ride-hailing creates a real safety risk for unsuspecting members of the public who believe they are getting into a legitimate service,” said Const. Frank Tarape with the Richmond RCMP’s road safety unit.

“People need to know that if anything happens on a ride with a driver on one of these unlicensed platforms, there is no central office or customer service to help law enforcement locate the driver or the vehicle.”

Police are advising the public to only use licensed taxi and ride-hailing companies, whose drivers undergo mandatory and routine criminal record checks.

The Richmond RCMP conducted a similar enforcement blitz last February, in which $13,343 worth of violation tickets were handed out in a single day. The fines ranged from $1,656 for driving under the wrong licence classification to $2,137 for failing to display a valid certificate and $6,900 for operating without a business licence.

In 2024, authorities in Richmond conducted eight joint such operations, issuing more than $79,000 in fines to 35 suspected illegal ride-hailing operators.